diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/preview/DesktopBrowserHost.test.ts b/apps/desktop/src/preview/DesktopBrowserHost.test.ts
index 7b8729a11646c..bb7028f998214 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/preview/DesktopBrowserHost.test.ts
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/preview/DesktopBrowserHost.test.ts
@@ -78,6 +78,13 @@ const makeDebuggee = (
     getUserAgent: () => "Electron",
     isLoadingMainFrame: () => options.loading === true,
     isDestroyed: () => destroyed,
+    // A viewport screenshot copies the guest's surface; it waits like a debugger command.
+    capturePage: () =>
+      new Promise((resolve) => {
+        sent.push(undefined);
+        pending.push(() => resolve({ isEmpty: () => false, toPNG: () => Buffer.from("png") }));
+        sendWaiters.shift()?.();
+      }),
   });
   return {
     tab: {
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/preview/GuestInput.test.ts b/apps/desktop/src/preview/GuestInput.test.ts
index a0889940a6682..fda66ad598b80 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/preview/GuestInput.test.ts
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/preview/GuestInput.test.ts
@@ -240,6 +240,86 @@ describe("preview guest input", () => {
     },
   );
 
+  it("screenshots the guest's surface once the app paints it, and leaves clips to Chromium", async () => {
+    vi.useFakeTimers();
+    try {
+      const guest = makeGuest({ focused: false });
+      const painted = { isEmpty: () => false, toPNG: () => Buffer.from("png") };
+      const capturePage = vi
+        .fn()
+        .mockRejectedValueOnce(new Error("UnknownVizError"))
+        .mockResolvedValueOnce({ isEmpty: () => true })
+        .mockResolvedValueOnce(painted);
+      Object.assign(guest.webContents, { capturePage, isDestroyed: () => false });
+      const screenshot = guest.send("Page.captureScreenshot", { format: "png" });
+      await vi.advanceTimersByTimeAsync(100);
+      await expect(screenshot).resolves.toEqual({ data: Buffer.from("png").toString("base64") });
+      expect(capturePage).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(3);
+      await guest.send("Page.captureScreenshot", { format: "png", clip: { x: 0, y: 0 } });
+      expect(capturePage).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(3);
+      expect(guest.sendCommand).toHaveBeenCalledWith("Page.captureScreenshot", {
+        format: "png",
+        clip: { x: 0, y: 0 },
+      });
+    } finally {
+      vi.useRealTimers();
+    }
+  });
+
+  it("fails a screenshot of a guest that never paints instead of leaving it unanswered", async () => {
+    vi.useFakeTimers();
+    try {
+      const guest = makeGuest({ focused: false });
+      const capturePage = vi.fn(() => new Promise<never>(() => {}));
+      Object.assign(guest.webContents, { capturePage, isDestroyed: () => false });
+      const screenshot = guest.send("Page.captureScreenshot", { format: "png" });
+      const failed = expect(screenshot).rejects.toThrow(/did not paint within 5 seconds/);
+      await vi.advanceTimersByTimeAsync(5_000);
+      await failed;
+      expect(capturePage).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1);
+      expect(guest.sendCommand).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
+    } finally {
+      vi.useRealTimers();
+    }
+  });
+
+  it("shares an unanswered copy across timeouts and captures again after it settles", async () => {
+    vi.useFakeTimers();
+    try {
+      const guest = makeGuest({ focused: false });
+      const painted = { isEmpty: () => false, toPNG: () => Buffer.from("png") };
+      let finish: ((image: typeof painted) => void) | undefined;
+      const capturePage = vi
+        .fn()
+        .mockImplementationOnce(
+          () =>
+            new Promise((resolve) => {
+              finish = resolve;
+            }),
+        )
+        .mockResolvedValue(painted);
+      Object.assign(guest.webContents, { capturePage, isDestroyed: () => false });
+      for (let attempt = 0; attempt < 2; attempt++) {
+        const screenshot = guest.send("Page.captureScreenshot", { format: "png" });
+        const failed = expect(screenshot).rejects.toThrow(/did not paint within 5 seconds/);
+        await vi.advanceTimersByTimeAsync(5_000);
+        await failed;
+      }
+      expect(capturePage).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1);
+      const fresh = guest.send("Page.captureScreenshot", { format: "png" });
+      await vi.advanceTimersByTimeAsync(0);
+      expect(capturePage).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1);
+      finish!({ isEmpty: () => false, toPNG: () => Buffer.from("old frame") });
+      await vi.advanceTimersByTimeAsync(0);
+      await expect(fresh).resolves.toEqual({
+        data: Buffer.from("png").toString("base64"),
+      });
+      expect(capturePage).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(2);
+    } finally {
+      vi.useRealTimers();
+    }
+  });
+
   it("refuses input when a cross-site frame holds the unfocused page's focus", async () => {
     const guest = makeGuest({ focused: false, focusedDocument: false });
     await expect(guest.send("Input.insertText", { text: "secret" })).rejects.toThrow(
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/preview/GuestInput.ts b/apps/desktop/src/preview/GuestInput.ts
index 2af13af8d7daa..a518af34369cb 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/preview/GuestInput.ts
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/preview/GuestInput.ts
@@ -1,4 +1,7 @@
 // CDP input follows shared window focus; send directly to unfocused guests to avoid typing into the app.
+import * as Effect from "effect/Effect";
+import * as Schedule from "effect/Schedule";
+import * as Schema from "effect/Schema";
 
 const FOCUS_ROUTED_INPUT = new Set([
   "Input.insertText",
@@ -167,7 +170,85 @@ const sendPointerCommand = async (
   }
 };
 
-/** Sends one command to the guest's page, keeping reloads and input inside it. */
+const SCREENSHOT_DEADLINE = "5 seconds";
+const SCREENSHOT_RETRY = "50 millis";
+const pendingViewportCopies = new WeakMap<Electron.WebContents, Promise<Electron.NativeImage>>();
+
+const copyViewport = (
+  webContents: Electron.WebContents,
+  signal: AbortSignal,
+): Promise<Electron.NativeImage> => {
+  signal.throwIfAborted();
+  const pending = pendingViewportCopies.get(webContents);
+  if (pending) return pending.catch(() => undefined).then(() => copyViewport(webContents, signal));
+  const copy = webContents.capturePage().finally(() => {
+    if (pendingViewportCopies.get(webContents) === copy) pendingViewportCopies.delete(webContents);
+  });
+  pendingViewportCopies.set(webContents, copy);
+  return copy;
+};
+
+class PreviewScreenshotError extends Schema.TaggedError<PreviewScreenshotError>()(
+  "PreviewScreenshotError",
+  { reason: Schema.Literals(["unpainted", "timeout"]) },
+) {
+  override get message(): string {
+    return this.reason === "timeout"
+      ? `The preview tab did not paint within ${SCREENSHOT_DEADLINE}.`
+      : "The preview tab has not painted yet.";
+  }
+}
+
+/** Whether capturePage can stand in for this screenshot; a clip or full page goes to Chromium. */
+const capturesViewport = (params: Record<string, unknown>) =>
+  Object.entries(params).every(([name, value]) => {
+    switch (name) {
+      case "format":
+        return value === "png" || value === "jpeg";
+      case "fromSurface":
+        return value !== false;
+      case "captureBeyondViewport":
+        return value !== true;
+      case "quality":
+      case "optimizeForSpeed":
+        return true;
+      default:
+        return false;
+    }
+  });
+
+/**
+ * Page.captureScreenshot waits for a presented frame, which Chromium may never present for a
+ * guest the app paints behind itself. capturePage copies the surface instead. That surface exists
+ * only once the client paints the guest, so a refused copy is retried; a stalled one is not overlapped.
+ */
+const captureViewport = (webContents: Electron.WebContents, params: Record<string, unknown>) =>
+  Effect.runPromise(
+    Effect.tryPromise({
+      try: (signal) => copyViewport(webContents, signal),
+      catch: () => new PreviewScreenshotError({ reason: "unpainted" }),
+    }).pipe(
+      Effect.filterOrFail(
+        (image) => !image.isEmpty(),
+        () => new PreviewScreenshotError({ reason: "unpainted" }),
+      ),
+      Effect.retry({
+        schedule: Schedule.spaced(SCREENSHOT_RETRY),
+        while: () => !webContents.isDestroyed(),
+      }),
+      Effect.timeoutOrElse({
+        duration: SCREENSHOT_DEADLINE,
+        orElse: () => Effect.fail(new PreviewScreenshotError({ reason: "timeout" })),
+      }),
+      Effect.map((image) => {
+        const quality = typeof params["quality"] === "number" ? params["quality"] : 80;
+        const encoded = params["format"] === "jpeg" ? image.toJPEG(quality) : image.toPNG();
+        return { data: encoded.toString("base64") };
+      }),
+    ),
+  );
+
+/** Sends one command to the guest's page, keeping reloads, screenshots and input inside it. */
 export const sendPageCommand = async (
   webContents: Electron.WebContents,
   debuggee: Electron.Debugger,
@@ -185,6 +266,9 @@ export const sendPageCommand = async (
     else webContents.reload();
     return {};
   }
+  if (method === "Page.captureScreenshot" && capturesViewport(params)) {
+    return captureViewport(webContents, params);
+  }
   if (!FOCUS_ROUTED_INPUT.has(method) || webContents.focusedFrame) {
     return debuggee.sendCommand(method, params);
   }