diff --git a/src/renderer/src/components/automations/AutomationListSearchField.test.tsx b/src/renderer/src/components/automations/AutomationListSearchField.test.tsx
index b43e018f98b..c0d12ed3608 100644
--- a/src/renderer/src/components/automations/AutomationListSearchField.test.tsx
+++ b/src/renderer/src/components/automations/AutomationListSearchField.test.tsx
@@ -34,6 +34,6 @@ describe('AutomationListSearchField', () => {
 
     const input = container.querySelector('input')
     expect(input).not.toBeNull()
-    expect(input?.hasAttribute('autofocus') || document.activeElement === input).toBe(true)
+    expect(document.activeElement).toBe(input)
   })
 })
diff --git a/src/renderer/src/components/sidebar/WorktreeParentPickerPopover.test.ts b/src/renderer/src/components/sidebar/WorktreeParentPickerPopover.test.ts
index ff761bbc249..4f7df50e9d3 100644
--- a/src/renderer/src/components/sidebar/WorktreeParentPickerPopover.test.ts
+++ b/src/renderer/src/components/sidebar/WorktreeParentPickerPopover.test.ts
@@ -1,6 +1,9 @@
+// @vitest-environment happy-dom
+
 import { afterEach, describe, expect, it, vi } from 'vitest'
 import type { Worktree } from '../../../../shared/types'
 import {
+  getWorktreeParentPickerFocusRestoreTarget,
   handleWorktreeParentPickerKeyDown,
   selectWorktreeParent
 } from './WorktreeParentPickerPopover'
@@ -173,6 +176,36 @@ describe('clampWorktreeParentPickerIndex', () => {
   })
 })
 
+describe('getWorktreeParentPickerFocusRestoreTarget', () => {
+  function makeSidebarRow(): { listbox: HTMLElement; row: HTMLElement } {
+    const listbox = document.createElement('div')
+    listbox.tabIndex = 0
+    listbox.setAttribute('role', 'listbox')
+    const row = document.createElement('div')
+    row.setAttribute('role', 'option')
+    listbox.appendChild(row)
+    return { listbox, row }
+  }
+
+  afterEach(() => {
+    document.body.innerHTML = ''
+  })
+
+  it('restores focus to the focusable container of the anchored row', () => {
+    const { listbox, row } = makeSidebarRow()
+    document.body.appendChild(listbox)
+
+    expect(getWorktreeParentPickerFocusRestoreTarget(row)).toBe(listbox)
+  })
+
+  it('skips a row whose sidebar was already unmounted or never anchored', () => {
+    const { row } = makeSidebarRow()
+
+    expect(getWorktreeParentPickerFocusRestoreTarget(row)).toBeNull()
+    expect(getWorktreeParentPickerFocusRestoreTarget(null)).toBeNull()
+  })
+})
+
 describe('parent picker keyboard input', () => {
   it.each([
     { isComposing: true, keyCode: 13 },
diff --git a/src/renderer/src/components/sidebar/WorktreeParentPickerPopover.tsx b/src/renderer/src/components/sidebar/WorktreeParentPickerPopover.tsx
index ad9ee845c8d..8647dabbcdd 100644
--- a/src/renderer/src/components/sidebar/WorktreeParentPickerPopover.tsx
+++ b/src/renderer/src/components/sidebar/WorktreeParentPickerPopover.tsx
@@ -61,6 +61,20 @@ function getAnchorRect(anchorElement: HTMLElement | null): AnchorRect | null {
   return anchorElement?.getBoundingClientRect() ?? null
 }
 
+const FOCUSABLE_ANCHOR_SELECTOR =
+  'a[href],button,input,select,textarea,[tabindex]:not([tabindex="-1"])'
+
+// Why: the anchor is a non-focusable `role="option"` row, so closing focus has
+// to land on its nearest focusable container (the sidebar listbox).
+export function getWorktreeParentPickerFocusRestoreTarget(
+  anchorElement: HTMLElement | null
+): HTMLElement | null {
+  if (!anchorElement?.isConnected) {
+    return null
+  }
+  return anchorElement.closest<HTMLElement>(FOCUSABLE_ANCHOR_SELECTOR)
+}
+
 export function selectWorktreeParent({
   childWorktreeId,
   parentWorktreeId,
@@ -312,8 +326,13 @@ export function WorktreeParentPickerPopover({
           event.preventDefault()
           inputRef.current?.focus()
         }}
-        // Why: virtual anchor has no trigger for Radix to restore focus to.
-        onCloseAutoFocus={(event) => event.preventDefault()}
+        // Why: virtual anchor has no trigger for Radix to restore focus to, so
+        // drive it back to the anchored row's listbox instead of dropping it on
+        // the detached input (i.e. document.body).
+        onCloseAutoFocus={(event) => {
+          event.preventDefault()
+          getWorktreeParentPickerFocusRestoreTarget(anchorElement)?.focus()
+        }}
         onInteractOutside={(event) => {
           if (suppressInitialOutsideCloseRef.current) {
             event.preventDefault()