diff --git a/static/js/components/SidebarManager.js b/static/js/components/SidebarManager.js
index 8c127be6..19cda3f1 100644
--- a/static/js/components/SidebarManager.js
+++ b/static/js/components/SidebarManager.js
@@ -11,6 +11,13 @@ import { performFolderUpdateCheck } from '../utils/updateCheckHelpers.js';
 import { escapeHtml, escapeAttribute } from './shared/utils.js';
 import { MODEL_CARD_DRAG_MIME_TYPE } from '../utils/constants.js';
 
+// Pages whose folder sidebar starts hidden. "other" downloads default to a flat
+// layout (no subfolders are created), so on a fresh library the tree is empty
+// there and the sidebar would only consume horizontal space. The preference is
+// still persisted per page once the user toggles it, and the edge indicator
+// makes the hidden sidebar discoverable/recoverable.
+const SIDEBAR_DEFAULT_HIDDEN_PAGES = new Set(['other']);
+
 export class SidebarManager {
     constructor() {
         this.pageControls = null;
@@ -1785,7 +1792,10 @@ export class SidebarManager {
         const expandedPaths = getStorageItem(`${this.pageType}_expandedNodes`, []);
         const displayMode = getStorageItem(`${this.pageType}_displayMode`, 'tree'); // 'tree' or 'list', default to 'tree'
         const recursiveSearchEnabled = getStorageItem(`${this.pageType}_recursiveSearch`, true);
-        this.isDisabledByPage = getStorageItem(`${this.pageType}_sidebarDisabled`, false);
+        this.isDisabledByPage = getStorageItem(
+            `${this.pageType}_sidebarDisabled`,
+            SIDEBAR_DEFAULT_HIDDEN_PAGES.has(this.pageType)
+        );
 
         this.expandedNodes = new Set(expandedPaths);
         this.displayMode = displayMode;
diff --git a/tests/frontend/components/sidebarManager.visibility.test.js b/tests/frontend/components/sidebarManager.visibility.test.js
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..0721de3a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/frontend/components/sidebarManager.visibility.test.js
@@ -0,0 +1,71 @@
+import { describe, it, beforeEach, expect, vi } from 'vitest';
+
+const {
+  SIDEBAR_MANAGER_MODULE,
+  STORAGE_HELPERS_MODULE,
+  MODEL_API_FACTORY_MODULE,
+  I18N_MODULE,
+  BULK_MANAGER_MODULE,
+  UI_HELPERS_MODULE,
+  UPDATE_CHECK_MODULE,
+} = vi.hoisted(() => ({
+  SIDEBAR_MANAGER_MODULE: new URL('../../../static/js/components/SidebarManager.js', import.meta.url).pathname,
+  STORAGE_HELPERS_MODULE: new URL('../../../static/js/utils/storageHelpers.js', import.meta.url).pathname,
+  MODEL_API_FACTORY_MODULE: new URL('../../../static/js/api/modelApiFactory.js', import.meta.url).pathname,
+  I18N_MODULE: new URL('../../../static/js/utils/i18nHelpers.js', import.meta.url).pathname,
+  BULK_MANAGER_MODULE: new URL('../../../static/js/managers/BulkManager.js', import.meta.url).pathname,
+  UI_HELPERS_MODULE: new URL('../../../static/js/utils/uiHelpers.js', import.meta.url).pathname,
+  UPDATE_CHECK_MODULE: new URL('../../../static/js/utils/updateCheckHelpers.js', import.meta.url).pathname,
+}));
+
+vi.mock(MODEL_API_FACTORY_MODULE, () => ({ getModelApiClient: vi.fn() }));
+vi.mock(I18N_MODULE, () => ({ translate: (key, _args, fallback) => fallback || key }));
+vi.mock(BULK_MANAGER_MODULE, () => ({ bulkManager: {} }));
+vi.mock(UI_HELPERS_MODULE, () => ({ showToast: vi.fn() }));
+vi.mock(UPDATE_CHECK_MODULE, () => ({ performFolderUpdateCheck: vi.fn() }));
+
+const { SidebarManager } = await import(SIDEBAR_MANAGER_MODULE);
+const { setStorageItem } = await import(STORAGE_HELPERS_MODULE);
+
+function createManager(pageType) {
+  const manager = new SidebarManager();
+  manager.pageType = pageType;
+  manager.pageControls = { pageState: { searchOptions: {} } };
+  return manager;
+}
+
+describe('SidebarManager default visibility', () => {
+  beforeEach(() => {
+    localStorage.clear();
+  });
+
+  it('hides the folder sidebar by default on the other page', () => {
+    const manager = createManager('other');
+
+    manager.restoreSidebarState();
+
+    expect(manager.isDisabledByPage).toBe(true);
+  });
+
+  it('keeps the folder sidebar visible by default on the primary pages', () => {
+    for (const pageType of ['loras', 'checkpoints', 'embeddings', 'recipes']) {
+      const manager = createManager(pageType);
+
+      manager.restoreSidebarState();
+
+      expect(manager.isDisabledByPage, pageType).toBe(false);
+    }
+  });
+
+  it('lets an explicit stored preference override the other-page default', () => {
+    setStorageItem('other_sidebarDisabled', false);
+    const shown = createManager('other');
+    shown.restoreSidebarState();
+    expect(shown.isDisabledByPage).toBe(false);
+
+    setStorageItem('other_sidebarDisabled', true);
+    const hidden = createManager('other');
+    hidden.restoreSidebarState();
+    expect(hidden.isDisabledByPage).toBe(true);
+  });
+});