diff --git a/backend/main.py b/backend/main.py
index 8c98b64..f558fdc 100644
--- a/backend/main.py
+++ b/backend/main.py
@@ -130,6 +130,7 @@ def on_startup():
             note TEXT DEFAULT '',
             created_at DATETIME DEFAULT CURRENT_TIMESTAMP
         )""",
+        "ALTER TABLE user_videos ADD COLUMN feed_shown_count INTEGER NOT NULL DEFAULT 0",
     ]:
         try:
             db.execute(text(col_sql))
diff --git a/backend/routers/videos.py b/backend/routers/videos.py
index 0bfeabe..8e9ef03 100644
--- a/backend/routers/videos.py
+++ b/backend/routers/videos.py
@@ -297,6 +297,8 @@ def home_feed(
         ]
 
     # mode == "ranked" (default)
+    import random as _random
+    candidate_limit = limit * 4  # wider pool for tier sampling
     rows = db.execute(
         text(f"""
             WITH channel_stats AS (
@@ -305,7 +307,8 @@ def home_feed(
                     COUNT(CASE WHEN uv.watched = 1 THEN 1 END) AS watched_count,
                     COUNT(CASE WHEN uv.liked   = 1 THEN 1 END) AS liked_count,
                     SUM(CASE WHEN uv.rating IS NOT NULL THEN uv.rating ELSE 0 END) AS rating_sum,
-                    AVG(CASE WHEN uv.completion_percent IS NOT NULL THEN uv.completion_percent END) AS avg_completion_pct
+                    AVG(CASE WHEN uv.completion_percent IS NOT NULL THEN uv.completion_percent END) AS avg_completion_pct,
+                    COUNT(CASE WHEN uv.watched = 1 AND uv.last_watched_at > datetime('now', '-30 days') THEN 1 END) AS recent_watches
                 FROM videos v
                 LEFT JOIN user_videos uv ON v.id = uv.video_id AND uv.user_id = :user_id
                 GROUP BY v.channel_id
@@ -326,7 +329,9 @@ def home_feed(
                     (SQRT(CAST(COALESCE(cs.watched_count, 0) AS REAL)) * 5.0
                         + COALESCE(cs.liked_count, 0) * 10.0
                         + COALESCE(cs.rating_sum, 0) * 8.0
-                        + COALESCE(cs.avg_completion_pct, 50.0) * 0.08) * :w_channel
+                        + COALESCE(cs.avg_completion_pct, 50.0) * 0.08
+                        + COALESCE(cs.recent_watches, 0) * 4.0
+                    ) * :w_channel
                         + MAX(COALESCE(julianday(v.published_at) - julianday('now'), -90), -365) * :w_recency
                         + COALESCE((
                             SELECT COALESCE(SUM(uta.score), 0)
@@ -336,6 +341,10 @@ def home_feed(
                                    OR instr(LOWER(COALESCE(v.tags, '')), '"' || uta.tag || '"') > 0)
                             LIMIT 5
                           ), 0) * :w_affinity
+                        - CASE WHEN COALESCE(uv.completion_percent, 100) < 20
+                                    AND COALESCE(uv.watch_progress_seconds, 0) > 30
+                               THEN 25 ELSE 0 END
+                        - 3 * MIN(COALESCE(uv.feed_shown_count, 0), 10)
                         AS score,
                     ROW_NUMBER() OVER (
                         PARTITION BY v.channel_id
@@ -352,17 +361,38 @@ def home_feed(
                   {duration_clause}
             )
             SELECT * FROM scored
-            WHERE rn <= 3
-            ORDER BY score DESC, RANDOM()
-            LIMIT :limit OFFSET :offset
+            WHERE rn <= 5
+            ORDER BY score DESC
+            LIMIT :candidate_limit OFFSET :offset
         """),
-        {"user_id": current_user.id, "limit": limit, "offset": offset, "hide_watched": 1 if hide_watched else 0,
+        {"user_id": current_user.id, "candidate_limit": candidate_limit, "offset": offset,
+         "hide_watched": 1 if hide_watched else 0,
          "w_recency": w_recency, "w_affinity": w_affinity, "w_channel": w_channel},
     ).mappings().all()
+
+    # Tier-based sampling with score perturbation so the feed varies each load
+    candidates = [dict(r) for r in rows]
+    for c in candidates:
+        c["_ps"] = c["score"] + _random.uniform(-12, 12)
+    candidates.sort(key=lambda x: x["_ps"], reverse=True)
+    top = candidates[:limit]
+
+    # Track impressions for page 0 (first visit) — penalises videos shown but ignored
+    if offset == 0 and top:
+        for item in top:
+            if not item["watched"]:
+                db.execute(text("""
+                    INSERT INTO user_videos (user_id, video_id, feed_shown_count)
+                    VALUES (:uid, :vid, 1)
+                    ON CONFLICT (user_id, video_id)
+                    DO UPDATE SET feed_shown_count = feed_shown_count + 1
+                """), {"uid": current_user.id, "vid": item["id"]})
+        db.commit()
+
     followed = [
-        VideoDetail(**{k: v for k, v in dict(r).items() if k not in ("watched", "score", "rn")},
-                    is_watched=bool(r["watched"]))
-        for r in rows
+        VideoDetail(**{k: v for k, v in item.items() if k not in ("watched", "score", "rn", "_ps")},
+                    is_watched=bool(item["watched"]))
+        for item in top
     ]
 
     # Inject discovery cards on every page: 1 every 5 followed cards.
diff --git a/frontend/src/pages/Home.jsx b/frontend/src/pages/Home.jsx
index d46acc1..355ff17 100644
--- a/frontend/src/pages/Home.jsx
+++ b/frontend/src/pages/Home.jsx
@@ -56,9 +56,9 @@ export default function Home() {
   };
 
   const { data: feedData = [], isLoading: loadingFeed } = useQuery({
-    queryKey: ["home-feed", mode, page, hideWatched, duration, mode === "random" ? shuffleKey : 0],
+    queryKey: ["home-feed", mode, page, hideWatched, duration, shuffleKey],
     queryFn: () => homeFeed(page, PAGE_SIZE, mode, duration).then((r) => r.data),
-    staleTime: 10 * 60_000,
+    staleTime: mode === "ranked" ? 90_000 : 10 * 60_000,
     placeholderData: (prev) => prev,
   });
 
@@ -195,9 +195,13 @@ export default function Home() {
           {mode === "chronological" && (
             <p className="text-xs text-zinc-600">All videos from channels you follow, newest first.</p>
           )}
-          {mode === "random" && (
+          {(mode === "ranked" || mode === "random") && (
             <div className="flex items-center justify-between">
-              <p className="text-xs text-zinc-600">Random from your discovery pool — no weighting, no ranking.</p>
+              <p className="text-xs text-zinc-600">
+                {mode === "ranked"
+                  ? "Ranked by your taste — reshuffles show a fresh mix."
+                  : "Random from your discovery pool — no weighting, no ranking."}
+              </p>
               <button
                 onClick={handleReshuffle}
                 className="flex items-center gap-1.5 text-xs text-zinc-500 hover:text-zinc-300 transition-colors shrink-0 ml-4"