diff --git a/src/lib/components/dashboard/DashboardCards.svelte b/src/lib/components/dashboard/DashboardCards.svelte
index 4446d94f..848f20dc 100644
--- a/src/lib/components/dashboard/DashboardCards.svelte
+++ b/src/lib/components/dashboard/DashboardCards.svelte
@@ -18,6 +18,7 @@
 	} from '$lib/sensor-labels';
 	import { m } from '$lib/paraglide/messages.js';
 	import { goto } from '$app/navigation';
+	import { onAppForeground } from '$lib/utils/onAppForeground';
 
 	interface Filters {
 		group: string;
@@ -216,12 +217,21 @@
 		});
 	});
 
+	let removeForegroundListener: (() => void) | null = null;
+
 	onMount(() => {
 		pollTimer = setInterval(refreshLoaded, REFRESH_INTERVAL_MS);
+		// Pull fresh data whenever the user returns to the tab/app, so devices
+		// that went "stale" while the page sat in the background don't linger as
+		// false offline indicators.
+		removeForegroundListener = onAppForeground(() => {
+			void refreshLoaded();
+		});
 	});
 
 	onDestroy(() => {
 		if (pollTimer) clearInterval(pollTimer);
+		removeForegroundListener?.();
 	});
 </script>
 
diff --git a/src/lib/components/dashboard/DashboardTable.svelte b/src/lib/components/dashboard/DashboardTable.svelte
index ffb0b8f4..dbf887cb 100644
--- a/src/lib/components/dashboard/DashboardTable.svelte
+++ b/src/lib/components/dashboard/DashboardTable.svelte
@@ -8,6 +8,7 @@
 	import { getAppContext } from '$lib/appContext.svelte';
 	import { formatSensorValue, labelFor } from '$lib/sensor-labels';
 	import { m } from '$lib/paraglide/messages.js';
+	import { onAppForeground } from '$lib/utils/onAppForeground';
 
 	interface Filters {
 		group: string;
@@ -82,14 +83,21 @@
 		return { rows: page.rows, total: page.total };
 	}
 
+	// Bumped whenever the user returns to the tab/app, to force a fresh pull so
+	// devices that went stale in the background don't show as false offline.
+	let refreshToken = $state(0);
+	$effect(() => onAppForeground(() => (refreshToken += 1)));
+
 	// Mapped into CwDataTable's `Record<string, string[]>` filter shape so the
 	// table re-runs `loadData` whenever the dashboard filters (incl. the search
-	// box) change. The actual values are read from `filters` inside `loadData`.
+	// box) or the refresh token change. The actual filter values are read from
+	// `filters` inside `loadData`; `_refresh` only exists to trigger a reload.
 	const tableFilters = $derived({
 		group: filters.group ? [filters.group] : [],
 		locationGroup: filters.locationGroup ? [filters.locationGroup] : [],
 		location: filters.location ? [filters.location] : [],
-		name: filters.name ? [filters.name] : []
+		name: filters.name ? [filters.name] : [],
+		_refresh: [String(refreshToken)]
 	});
 </script>
 
diff --git a/src/lib/utils/onAppForeground.ts b/src/lib/utils/onAppForeground.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..69426266
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/lib/utils/onAppForeground.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,34 @@
+/**
+ * Invoke `callback` when the app returns to the foreground — i.e. the browser
+ * tab becomes visible again, or the window regains focus after the user
+ * switched to another tab or application.
+ *
+ * Both `visibilitychange` and `focus` are observed because switching *apps*
+ * (rather than browser tabs) does not reliably fire `visibilitychange` on every
+ * platform. A short cooldown collapses the burst that happens when both events
+ * fire together on return, so `callback` runs at most once per return.
+ *
+ * Returns a cleanup function. Safe to call during SSR (it becomes a no-op).
+ */
+export function onAppForeground(callback: () => void): () => void {
+	if (typeof document === 'undefined') return () => {};
+
+	const COOLDOWN_MS = 1000;
+	let lastFired = 0;
+
+	const trigger = () => {
+		if (document.visibilityState !== 'visible') return;
+		const now = Date.now();
+		if (now - lastFired < COOLDOWN_MS) return;
+		lastFired = now;
+		callback();
+	};
+
+	document.addEventListener('visibilitychange', trigger);
+	window.addEventListener('focus', trigger);
+
+	return () => {
+		document.removeEventListener('visibilitychange', trigger);
+		window.removeEventListener('focus', trigger);
+	};
+}
diff --git a/src/routes/locations/[location_id]/devices/[dev_eui]/+page.svelte b/src/routes/locations/[location_id]/devices/[dev_eui]/+page.svelte
index ab2fd381..25a8d165 100644
--- a/src/routes/locations/[location_id]/devices/[dev_eui]/+page.svelte
+++ b/src/routes/locations/[location_id]/devices/[dev_eui]/+page.svelte
@@ -15,6 +15,7 @@
 	import { resolveExportTimeZone } from './csvExport';
 	import type { PageProps } from './$types';
 	import { onDestroy } from 'svelte';
+	import { onAppForeground } from '$lib/utils/onAppForeground';
 	import DeviceDashboardHeader from './DeviceDashboardHeader.svelte';
 	import {
 		DEFAULT_RANGE_SELECTION,
@@ -323,6 +324,18 @@
 		return isRelayDevice ? await refreshRelayDisplayData() : await fetchLatestData();
 	}
 
+	// Full pull whenever the user returns to the tab/app. A detail page left in
+	// the background goes stale — the device can look offline purely because the
+	// page sat idle past its upload interval. Refresh the active history range
+	// first, then the latest reading so it prepends onto fresh history.
+	async function refreshOnForeground(): Promise<void> {
+		if (!authToken || !devEui) return;
+		await selectRange(activeRange ?? DEFAULT_RANGE_SELECTION);
+		await refreshDisplayedData();
+	}
+
+	$effect(() => onAppForeground(() => void refreshOnForeground()));
+
 	async function queueRelayCommand(
 		relay: RelayNumber,
 		targetState: RelayTargetState,