diff --git a/macos-bar/Sources/CCSBarApp/BarMenuView.swift b/macos-bar/Sources/CCSBarApp/BarMenuView.swift
index b5d29124..14a09437 100644
--- a/macos-bar/Sources/CCSBarApp/BarMenuView.swift
+++ b/macos-bar/Sources/CCSBarApp/BarMenuView.swift
@@ -195,6 +195,11 @@ struct BarMenuView: View {
       if viewModel.isRefreshing {
         ProgressView().controlSize(.small)
       }
+      if let v = BarVersionDisplay.string() {
+        Text(v)
+          .font(.caption2)
+          .foregroundStyle(.secondary)
+      }
     }
     .padding(.horizontal, 14)
     .padding(.vertical, 10)
diff --git a/macos-bar/Sources/CCSBarCheck/main.swift b/macos-bar/Sources/CCSBarCheck/main.swift
index 0932ca85..a49e9b92 100644
--- a/macos-bar/Sources/CCSBarCheck/main.swift
+++ b/macos-bar/Sources/CCSBarCheck/main.swift
@@ -1436,6 +1436,15 @@ do {
   check(selectedIdx == 1, "screenPicker: exact hit selects right screen (index 1) for #1502 anchor")
 }
 
+// MARK: BarVersionDisplay — pure display-string helper
+
+check(BarVersionDisplay.displayString(for: nil) == nil, "version nil raw -> nil (no dangling 'v')")
+check(BarVersionDisplay.displayString(for: "") == nil, "version empty raw -> nil (no dangling 'v')")
+check(BarVersionDisplay.displayString(for: "1.5.0") == "v1.5.0", "version '1.5.0' -> 'v1.5.0'")
+check(BarVersionDisplay.displayString(for: "2.0.0") == "v2.0.0", "version '2.0.0' -> 'v2.0.0'")
+// Outside a bundle, string() must not crash and returns nil (no assertion on value — bundle absent).
+let _ = BarVersionDisplay.string()
+
 // cleanup
 try? FileManager.default.removeItem(atPath: tmp)
 
diff --git a/macos-bar/Sources/CCSBarCore/BarVersionDisplay.swift b/macos-bar/Sources/CCSBarCore/BarVersionDisplay.swift
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..54bdee79
--- /dev/null
+++ b/macos-bar/Sources/CCSBarCore/BarVersionDisplay.swift
@@ -0,0 +1,28 @@
+import Foundation
+
+/// Pure helper for the version string shown in the bar panel header.
+///
+/// Kept tiny so it can be tested in CCSBarCheck without a bundle present:
+/// the display-string logic is pure-Foundation and has no AppKit dependency.
+public enum BarVersionDisplay {
+
+  /// Converts a raw version string to a "v{version}" display string.
+  ///
+  /// - Returns: `"v\(raw)"` when `raw` is non-nil and non-empty; `nil` otherwise.
+  ///
+  /// This is the logic under test. The actual `Bundle.main` lookup is in `string()`.
+  public static func displayString(for raw: String?) -> String? {
+    guard let v = raw, !v.isEmpty else { return nil }
+    return "v\(v)"
+  }
+
+  /// Returns the display string for the running app's bundle version, or `nil`
+  /// when the key is absent (e.g. `swift run` outside a bundle).
+  ///
+  /// Never produces a dangling "v" prefix: if `CFBundleShortVersionString` is
+  /// missing or empty, returns `nil` so the caller can omit the label entirely.
+  public static func string() -> String? {
+    let raw = Bundle.main.object(forInfoDictionaryKey: "CFBundleShortVersionString") as? String
+    return displayString(for: raw)
+  }
+}
diff --git a/src/commands/bar/install-subcommand.ts b/src/commands/bar/install-subcommand.ts
index af5b2670..c51d740a 100644
--- a/src/commands/bar/install-subcommand.ts
+++ b/src/commands/bar/install-subcommand.ts
@@ -681,7 +681,7 @@ export async function handleBarInstall(
 
   if (barIsRunning && !forceLaunch) {
     console.log(
-      '[!] CCS Bar is currently running the previous version. Quit and reopen it (or run `ccs bar`) to use the update.'
+      '[!] CCS Bar is currently running an older build. Quit it from the menu bar, then run `ccs bar` to relaunch the updated app.'
     );
   } else if (forceLaunch) {
     await launchBar([]);
diff --git a/tests/unit/commands/bar-command.test.ts b/tests/unit/commands/bar-command.test.ts
index 4ad796f7..9c1f7c8d 100644
--- a/tests/unit/commands/bar-command.test.ts
+++ b/tests/unit/commands/bar-command.test.ts
@@ -2622,8 +2622,9 @@ describe('bar install: already-running detection (Finding 3)', () => {
 
     const allOutput = consoleOutput.join('\n');
     // Must print the restart hint
-    expect(allOutput).toMatch(/currently running the previous version/i);
-    expect(allOutput).toMatch(/Quit and reopen/i);
+    expect(allOutput).toMatch(/currently running an older build/i);
+    expect(allOutput).toMatch(/Quit it from the menu bar/i);
+    expect(allOutput).toMatch(/run `ccs bar` to relaunch/i);
   });
 
   it('when not running after install: prompt path unchanged', async () => {
@@ -2646,7 +2647,7 @@ describe('bar install: already-running detection (Finding 3)', () => {
     expect(promptCalled).toBe(true);
     const allOutput = consoleOutput.join('\n');
     // The restart hint must NOT appear when bar is not running
-    expect(allOutput).not.toMatch(/currently running the previous version/i);
+    expect(allOutput).not.toMatch(/currently running an older build/i);
   });
 
   it('pgrep error treated as not running: prompt path unchanged', async () => {
@@ -2670,7 +2671,7 @@ describe('bar install: already-running detection (Finding 3)', () => {
     // pgrep error treated as not running → normal prompt flow
     expect(promptCalled).toBe(true);
     const allOutput = consoleOutput.join('\n');
-    expect(allOutput).not.toMatch(/currently running the previous version/i);
+    expect(allOutput).not.toMatch(/currently running an older build/i);
   });
 
   it('--launch with bar already running: launchBar still invoked', async () => {
@@ -2693,7 +2694,7 @@ describe('bar install: already-running detection (Finding 3)', () => {
     expect(launchCalled).toBe(true);
     // Restart hint must NOT appear when --launch is passed
     const allOutput = consoleOutput.join('\n');
-    expect(allOutput).not.toMatch(/currently running the previous version/i);
+    expect(allOutput).not.toMatch(/currently running an older build/i);
   });
 });