diff --git a/packages/app/src/pages/session/helpers.test.ts b/packages/app/src/pages/session/helpers.test.ts
index b70917ae9b0e..fd55752e407a 100644
--- a/packages/app/src/pages/session/helpers.test.ts
+++ b/packages/app/src/pages/session/helpers.test.ts
@@ -1,12 +1,14 @@
 import { describe, expect, test } from "bun:test"
 import { createMemo, createRoot } from "solid-js"
 import { createStore } from "solid-js/store"
+import type { Session } from "@opencode-ai/sdk/v2"
 import {
   createOpenReviewFile,
   createOpenSessionFileTab,
   createSessionTabs,
   focusTerminalById,
   getTabReorderIndex,
+  selectNextSessionAfterRemoval,
   shouldShowFileTree,
 } from "./helpers"
 
@@ -166,3 +168,55 @@ describe("createSessionTabs", () => {
     })
   })
 })
+
+describe("selectNextSessionAfterRemoval", () => {
+  const makeSession = (id: string, overrides?: Partial<Session>): Session =>
+    ({
+      id,
+      slug: id,
+      projectID: "prj",
+      directory: "/tmp",
+      title: id,
+      version: "0",
+      time: { created: 0, updated: 0 },
+      ...overrides,
+    }) as Session
+
+  test("returns undefined when archiving the only root session", () => {
+    expect(selectNextSessionAfterRemoval([makeSession("ses_a")], "ses_a")).toBeUndefined()
+  })
+
+  test("excludes child and archived sessions so a lone root still returns undefined", () => {
+    const sessions = [
+      makeSession("ses_a"),
+      makeSession("ses_child", { parentID: "ses_a" }),
+      makeSession("ses_archived", { time: { created: 0, updated: 0, archived: 1 } }),
+    ]
+    expect(selectNextSessionAfterRemoval(sessions, "ses_a")).toBeUndefined()
+  })
+
+  test("picks the following root neighbor when multiple roots exist", () => {
+    const sessions = [makeSession("ses_a"), makeSession("ses_b"), makeSession("ses_c")]
+    expect(selectNextSessionAfterRemoval(sessions, "ses_a")).toBe("ses_b")
+  })
+
+  test("falls back to the previous root neighbor for the last root", () => {
+    const sessions = [makeSession("ses_a"), makeSession("ses_b")]
+    expect(selectNextSessionAfterRemoval(sessions, "ses_b")).toBe("ses_a")
+  })
+
+  test("skips interleaved child and archived rows when picking the neighbor", () => {
+    const sessions = [
+      makeSession("ses_a"),
+      makeSession("ses_child", { parentID: "ses_a" }),
+      makeSession("ses_archived", { time: { created: 0, updated: 0, archived: 1 } }),
+      makeSession("ses_b"),
+    ]
+    expect(selectNextSessionAfterRemoval(sessions, "ses_a")).toBe("ses_b")
+  })
+
+  test("returns undefined when the removed id is not a navigation candidate", () => {
+    const sessions = [makeSession("ses_a"), makeSession("ses_child", { parentID: "ses_a" })]
+    expect(selectNextSessionAfterRemoval(sessions, "ses_child")).toBeUndefined()
+  })
+})
diff --git a/packages/app/src/pages/session/helpers.ts b/packages/app/src/pages/session/helpers.ts
index fcbc681acdea..84c3659a334a 100644
--- a/packages/app/src/pages/session/helpers.ts
+++ b/packages/app/src/pages/session/helpers.ts
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 import { batch, createMemo, onCleanup, onMount, type Accessor } from "solid-js"
 import { createStore } from "solid-js/store"
 import { makeEventListener } from "@solid-primitives/event-listener"
+import type { Session } from "@opencode-ai/sdk/v2"
 import { same } from "@/utils/same"
 
 const emptyTabs: string[] = []
@@ -189,3 +190,13 @@ export const createSizing = () => {
 }
 
 export type Sizing = ReturnType<typeof createSizing>
+
+// Pick the session to navigate to after `sessionID` is removed (archived or deleted).
+// Only root, non-archived sessions are navigation candidates, so archiving the only
+// open session lands on the empty/draft view instead of reopening a recent session.
+export function selectNextSessionAfterRemoval(sessions: readonly Session[], sessionID: string): string | undefined {
+  const candidates = sessions.filter((s) => !s.parentID && !s.time?.archived)
+  const index = candidates.findIndex((s) => s.id === sessionID)
+  if (index === -1) return undefined
+  return (candidates[index + 1] ?? candidates[index - 1])?.id
+}
diff --git a/packages/app/src/pages/session/timeline/message-timeline.tsx b/packages/app/src/pages/session/timeline/message-timeline.tsx
index 9d8d82bcc9be..5b716ed2eef3 100644
--- a/packages/app/src/pages/session/timeline/message-timeline.tsx
+++ b/packages/app/src/pages/session/timeline/message-timeline.tsx
@@ -62,6 +62,7 @@ import { SessionContextUsage } from "@/components/session-context-usage"
 import { useDialog } from "@opencode-ai/ui/context/dialog"
 import { useLanguage } from "@/context/language"
 import { useSessionKey } from "@/pages/session/session-layout"
+import { selectNextSessionAfterRemoval } from "@/pages/session/helpers"
 import { useServerSDK } from "@/context/server-sdk"
 import { usePlatform } from "@/context/platform"
 import { useSettings } from "@/context/settings"
@@ -795,9 +796,7 @@ export function MessageTimeline(props: {
     const session = sync().session.get(sessionID)
     if (!session) return
 
-    const sessions = sync().data.session ?? []
-    const index = sessions.findIndex((s) => s.id === sessionID)
-    const nextSession = index === -1 ? undefined : (sessions[index + 1] ?? sessions[index - 1])
+    const nextSessionID = selectNextSessionAfterRemoval(sync().data.session ?? [], sessionID)
 
     await sdk()
       .client.session.update({ sessionID, time: { archived: Date.now() } })
@@ -809,7 +808,7 @@ export function MessageTimeline(props: {
           }),
         )
         sync().session.evict(sessionID)
-        navigateAfterSessionRemoval(sessionID, session.parentID, nextSession?.id)
+        navigateAfterSessionRemoval(sessionID, session.parentID, nextSessionID)
         notifySessionTabsRemoved({ directory: sdk().directory, sessionIDs: [sessionID] })
       })
       .catch((err) => {
@@ -824,9 +823,7 @@ export function MessageTimeline(props: {
     const session = sync().session.get(sessionID)
     if (!session) return false
 
-    const sessions = (sync().data.session ?? []).filter((s) => !s.parentID && !s.time?.archived)
-    const index = sessions.findIndex((s) => s.id === sessionID)
-    const nextSession = index === -1 ? undefined : (sessions[index + 1] ?? sessions[index - 1])
+    const nextSessionID = selectNextSessionAfterRemoval(sync().data.session ?? [], sessionID)
 
     const result = await sdk()
       .client.session.delete({ sessionID })
@@ -869,7 +866,7 @@ export function MessageTimeline(props: {
       }
     }
 
-    navigateAfterSessionRemoval(sessionID, session.parentID, nextSession?.id)
+    navigateAfterSessionRemoval(sessionID, session.parentID, nextSessionID)
 
     sync().set(
       produce((draft) => {