diff --git a/ui/src/pages/settings/index.tsx b/ui/src/pages/settings/index.tsx
index b01539f2..5d1bf4a1 100644
--- a/ui/src/pages/settings/index.tsx
+++ b/ui/src/pages/settings/index.tsx
@@ -210,12 +210,7 @@ function SettingsPageInner() {
 
             {/* Config Content - scrollable */}
             <div className="flex-1 overflow-auto">
-              {rawConfigLoading ? (
-                <div className="flex items-center justify-center h-full text-muted-foreground">
-                  <RefreshCw className="w-5 h-5 animate-spin mr-2" />
-                  {t('settings.loading')}
-                </div>
-              ) : rawConfig ? (
+              {rawConfig ? (
                 <CodeEditor
                   value={rawConfig}
                   onChange={() => {}}
@@ -224,6 +219,11 @@ function SettingsPageInner() {
                   minHeight="auto"
                   className="min-h-full"
                 />
+              ) : rawConfigLoading ? (
+                <div className="flex items-center justify-center h-full text-muted-foreground">
+                  <RefreshCw className="w-5 h-5 animate-spin mr-2" />
+                  {t('settings.loading')}
+                </div>
               ) : (
                 <div className="flex items-center justify-center h-full text-muted-foreground">
                   <div className="text-center">
diff --git a/ui/tests/unit/ui/pages/settings/settings-page.test.tsx b/ui/tests/unit/ui/pages/settings/settings-page.test.tsx
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..651a3adb
--- /dev/null
+++ b/ui/tests/unit/ui/pages/settings/settings-page.test.tsx
@@ -0,0 +1,87 @@
+import { beforeEach, describe, expect, it, vi } from 'vitest';
+import type { ReactNode } from 'react';
+import { render, screen } from '@tests/setup/test-utils';
+
+const mocks = vi.hoisted(() => ({
+  useSettingsTab: vi.fn(),
+  useRawConfig: vi.fn(),
+  setActiveTab: vi.fn(),
+  fetchRawConfig: vi.fn(),
+  copyToClipboard: vi.fn(),
+}));
+
+vi.mock('@/pages/settings/hooks', () => ({
+  useSettingsTab: mocks.useSettingsTab,
+  useRawConfig: mocks.useRawConfig,
+}));
+
+vi.mock('react-resizable-panels', () => ({
+  PanelGroup: ({ children }: { children: ReactNode }) => <div>{children}</div>,
+  Panel: ({ children }: { children: ReactNode }) => <div>{children}</div>,
+  PanelResizeHandle: () => <div data-testid="panel-resize-handle" />,
+}));
+
+vi.mock('@/components/shared/code-editor', () => ({
+  CodeEditor: ({ value }: { value: string }) => (
+    <textarea aria-label="config editor" readOnly value={value} />
+  ),
+}));
+
+vi.mock('@/pages/settings/sections/websearch', () => ({
+  default: () => <div>WebSearch Section</div>,
+}));
+
+vi.mock('@/pages/settings/sections/channels', () => ({
+  default: () => <div>Channels Section</div>,
+}));
+
+vi.mock('@/pages/settings/sections/globalenv-section', () => ({
+  default: () => <div>Global Env Section</div>,
+}));
+
+vi.mock('@/pages/settings/sections/thinking', () => ({
+  default: () => <div>Thinking Section</div>,
+}));
+
+vi.mock('@/pages/settings/sections/proxy', () => ({
+  default: () => <div>Proxy Section</div>,
+}));
+
+vi.mock('@/pages/settings/sections/auth-section', () => ({
+  default: () => <div>Auth Section</div>,
+}));
+
+vi.mock('@/pages/settings/sections/backups-section', () => ({
+  default: () => <div>Backups Section</div>,
+}));
+
+import { SettingsPage } from '@/pages/settings';
+
+describe('SettingsPage raw config panel', () => {
+  beforeEach(() => {
+    mocks.setActiveTab.mockReset();
+    mocks.fetchRawConfig.mockReset();
+    mocks.copyToClipboard.mockReset();
+
+    mocks.useSettingsTab.mockReturnValue({
+      activeTab: 'websearch',
+      setActiveTab: mocks.setActiveTab,
+    });
+  });
+
+  it('keeps the current config editor visible while raw config refreshes', async () => {
+    mocks.useRawConfig.mockReturnValue({
+      rawConfig: 'websearch:\n  enabled: true\n',
+      loading: true,
+      copied: false,
+      fetchRawConfig: mocks.fetchRawConfig,
+      copyToClipboard: mocks.copyToClipboard,
+    });
+
+    render(<SettingsPage />);
+
+    expect(await screen.findAllByText('WebSearch Section')).toHaveLength(2);
+    expect(screen.getByLabelText('config editor')).toHaveValue('websearch:\n  enabled: true\n');
+    expect(screen.queryByText('Loading...')).not.toBeInTheDocument();
+  });
+});