diff --git a/src/components/SyncStatus.tsx b/src/components/SyncStatus.tsx
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..01ff332
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/components/SyncStatus.tsx
@@ -0,0 +1,141 @@
+/**
+ * SyncStatus -- shows sync state with visual indicator and relative time.
+ *
+ * States:
+ * - synced: green dot, "Synced Xm ago"
+ * - syncing: spinner, "Syncing..."
+ * - stale: amber dot, "Last sync Xm ago" (auto-detected if > 15min)
+ * - error: red dot, error message, retry button
+ * - offline: gray dot, "lore unavailable"
+ */
+
+export type SyncState = "synced" | "syncing" | "stale" | "error" | "offline";
+
+interface SyncStatusProps {
+  status: SyncState;
+  lastSync?: Date;
+  error?: string;
+  onRetry?: () => void;
+}
+
+/** Threshold in ms after which "synced" becomes "stale" (15 minutes) */
+const STALE_THRESHOLD_MS = 15 * 60 * 1000;
+
+/**
+ * Format a relative time string like "2m ago", "30s ago", "2h ago", "2d ago"
+ */
+function formatRelativeTime(date: Date): string {
+  const now = Date.now();
+  const diff = now - date.getTime();
+
+  if (diff < 1000) {
+    return "just now";
+  }
+
+  const seconds = Math.floor(diff / 1000);
+  if (seconds < 60) {
+    return `${seconds}s ago`;
+  }
+
+  const minutes = Math.floor(seconds / 60);
+  if (minutes < 60) {
+    return `${minutes}m ago`;
+  }
+
+  const hours = Math.floor(minutes / 60);
+  if (hours < 24) {
+    return `${hours}h ago`;
+  }
+
+  const days = Math.floor(hours / 24);
+  return `${days}d ago`;
+}
+
+export function SyncStatus({
+  status,
+  lastSync,
+  error,
+  onRetry,
+}: SyncStatusProps): React.ReactElement {
+  // Auto-detect stale: if status is "synced" but time is > 15 minutes
+  const isAutoStale =
+    status === "synced" &&
+    lastSync &&
+    Date.now() - lastSync.getTime() > STALE_THRESHOLD_MS;
+
+  const effectiveStatus: SyncState = isAutoStale ? "stale" : status;
+
+  // Determine indicator color
+  const indicatorColors: Record<SyncState, string> = {
+    synced: "bg-green-500",
+    syncing: "bg-blue-500 animate-pulse",
+    stale: "bg-amber-500",
+    error: "bg-red-500",
+    offline: "bg-gray-400",
+  };
+
+  // Determine status text
+  const getStatusText = (): string => {
+    switch (effectiveStatus) {
+      case "synced":
+        return lastSync ? `Synced ${formatRelativeTime(lastSync)}` : "Synced";
+      case "syncing":
+        return "Syncing...";
+      case "stale":
+        return lastSync ? `Last sync ${formatRelativeTime(lastSync)}` : "Stale";
+      case "error":
+        return error || "Sync failed";
+      case "offline":
+        return "lore unavailable";
+    }
+  };
+
+  // Show retry/refresh button for error and stale states
+  const showActionButton =
+    (effectiveStatus === "error" || effectiveStatus === "stale") && onRetry;
+  const actionLabel = effectiveStatus === "error" ? "Retry" : "Refresh";
+
+  return (
+    <div className="flex items-center gap-2 text-sm">
+      {effectiveStatus === "syncing" ? (
+        <svg
+          data-testid="sync-spinner"
+          className="h-3 w-3 animate-spin text-zinc-400"
+          xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"
+          fill="none"
+          viewBox="0 0 24 24"
+        >
+          <circle
+            className="opacity-25"
+            cx="12"
+            cy="12"
+            r="10"
+            stroke="currentColor"
+            strokeWidth="4"
+          />
+          <path
+            className="opacity-75"
+            fill="currentColor"
+            d="M4 12a8 8 0 018-8V0C5.373 0 0 5.373 0 12h4zm2 5.291A7.962 7.962 0 014 12H0c0 3.042 1.135 5.824 3 7.938l3-2.647z"
+          />
+        </svg>
+      ) : (
+        <div
+          data-testid="sync-indicator"
+          className={`h-2 w-2 rounded-full ${indicatorColors[effectiveStatus]}`}
+        />
+      )}
+
+      <span className="text-zinc-500">{getStatusText()}</span>
+
+      {showActionButton && (
+        <button
+          onClick={onRetry}
+          className="text-xs text-zinc-400 hover:text-zinc-200 underline"
+        >
+          {actionLabel}
+        </button>
+      )}
+    </div>
+  );
+}
diff --git a/tests/components/SyncStatus.test.tsx b/tests/components/SyncStatus.test.tsx
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..f9b3396
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/components/SyncStatus.test.tsx
@@ -0,0 +1,195 @@
+import { describe, it, expect, vi, beforeEach, afterEach } from "vitest";
+import { render, screen } from "@testing-library/react";
+import userEvent from "@testing-library/user-event";
+import { SyncStatus } from "@/components/SyncStatus";
+
+describe("SyncStatus", () => {
+  beforeEach(() => {
+    // Mock Date.now for consistent time-based tests
+    vi.useFakeTimers();
+    vi.setSystemTime(new Date("2026-02-26T12:00:00Z"));
+  });
+
+  afterEach(() => {
+    vi.useRealTimers();
+  });
+
+  describe("synced state", () => {
+    it("shows green indicator when synced", () => {
+      const lastSync = new Date("2026-02-26T11:58:00Z"); // 2 minutes ago
+      render(<SyncStatus status="synced" lastSync={lastSync} />);
+
+      const indicator = screen.getByTestId("sync-indicator");
+      expect(indicator).toHaveClass("bg-green-500");
+    });
+
+    it("shows relative time for recent sync", () => {
+      const lastSync = new Date("2026-02-26T11:58:00Z"); // 2 minutes ago
+      render(<SyncStatus status="synced" lastSync={lastSync} />);
+
+      expect(screen.getByText(/synced 2m ago/i)).toBeInTheDocument();
+    });
+
+    it("shows seconds for very recent sync", () => {
+      const lastSync = new Date("2026-02-26T11:59:30Z"); // 30 seconds ago
+      render(<SyncStatus status="synced" lastSync={lastSync} />);
+
+      expect(screen.getByText(/synced.*30s ago/i)).toBeInTheDocument();
+    });
+
+    it("shows 'just now' for immediate sync", () => {
+      const lastSync = new Date("2026-02-26T12:00:00Z"); // right now
+      render(<SyncStatus status="synced" lastSync={lastSync} />);
+
+      expect(screen.getByText(/synced just now/i)).toBeInTheDocument();
+    });
+  });
+
+  describe("syncing state", () => {
+    it("shows spinner when syncing", () => {
+      render(<SyncStatus status="syncing" />);
+
+      expect(screen.getByTestId("sync-spinner")).toBeInTheDocument();
+    });
+
+    it("shows 'Syncing...' text", () => {
+      render(<SyncStatus status="syncing" />);
+
+      expect(screen.getByText("Syncing...")).toBeInTheDocument();
+    });
+
+    it("does not show indicator dot when syncing", () => {
+      render(<SyncStatus status="syncing" />);
+
+      expect(screen.queryByTestId("sync-indicator")).not.toBeInTheDocument();
+    });
+  });
+
+  describe("stale state", () => {
+    it("shows amber indicator when explicitly stale", () => {
+      const lastSync = new Date("2026-02-26T11:40:00Z"); // 20 minutes ago
+      render(<SyncStatus status="stale" lastSync={lastSync} />);
+
+      const indicator = screen.getByTestId("sync-indicator");
+      expect(indicator).toHaveClass("bg-amber-500");
+    });
+
+    it("auto-detects stale when synced status but time > 15 minutes", () => {
+      const lastSync = new Date("2026-02-26T11:40:00Z"); // 20 minutes ago
+      render(<SyncStatus status="synced" lastSync={lastSync} />);
+
+      // Should show amber (stale) even though status is "synced"
+      const indicator = screen.getByTestId("sync-indicator");
+      expect(indicator).toHaveClass("bg-amber-500");
+    });
+
+    it("shows 'Last sync' text for stale", () => {
+      const lastSync = new Date("2026-02-26T11:40:00Z"); // 20 minutes ago
+      render(<SyncStatus status="synced" lastSync={lastSync} />);
+
+      expect(screen.getByText(/last sync 20m ago/i)).toBeInTheDocument();
+    });
+
+    it("shows refresh button when stale", () => {
+      const lastSync = new Date("2026-02-26T11:40:00Z");
+      render(<SyncStatus status="synced" lastSync={lastSync} onRetry={() => {}} />);
+
+      expect(screen.getByRole("button", { name: /refresh/i })).toBeInTheDocument();
+    });
+  });
+
+  describe("error state", () => {
+    it("shows red indicator for error", () => {
+      render(<SyncStatus status="error" error="lore command failed" />);
+
+      const indicator = screen.getByTestId("sync-indicator");
+      expect(indicator).toHaveClass("bg-red-500");
+    });
+
+    it("shows error message", () => {
+      render(<SyncStatus status="error" error="lore command failed" />);
+
+      expect(screen.getByText(/lore command failed/)).toBeInTheDocument();
+    });
+
+    it("shows retry button", () => {
+      render(<SyncStatus status="error" error="failed" onRetry={() => {}} />);
+
+      expect(screen.getByRole("button", { name: /retry/i })).toBeInTheDocument();
+    });
+
+    it("calls onRetry when retry button clicked", async () => {
+      // Use real timers for this test since userEvent needs them
+      vi.useRealTimers();
+      const user = userEvent.setup();
+      const onRetry = vi.fn();
+      render(<SyncStatus status="error" error="failed" onRetry={onRetry} />);
+
+      await user.click(screen.getByRole("button", { name: /retry/i }));
+
+      expect(onRetry).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1);
+      // Restore fake timers for subsequent tests
+      vi.useFakeTimers();
+      vi.setSystemTime(new Date("2026-02-26T12:00:00Z"));
+    });
+
+    it("shows generic message when no error provided", () => {
+      render(<SyncStatus status="error" />);
+
+      expect(screen.getByText(/sync failed/i)).toBeInTheDocument();
+    });
+  });
+
+  describe("offline state", () => {
+    it("shows gray indicator when offline", () => {
+      render(<SyncStatus status="offline" />);
+
+      const indicator = screen.getByTestId("sync-indicator");
+      expect(indicator).toHaveClass("bg-gray-400");
+    });
+
+    it("shows 'lore unavailable' message", () => {
+      render(<SyncStatus status="offline" />);
+
+      expect(screen.getByText(/lore unavailable/i)).toBeInTheDocument();
+    });
+
+    it("does not show retry button when offline", () => {
+      render(<SyncStatus status="offline" onRetry={() => {}} />);
+
+      // Offline doesn't get a retry button (user needs to fix lore first)
+      expect(screen.queryByRole("button", { name: /retry/i })).not.toBeInTheDocument();
+    });
+  });
+
+  describe("relative time formatting", () => {
+    it("formats hours correctly", () => {
+      const lastSync = new Date("2026-02-26T10:00:00Z"); // 2 hours ago
+      render(<SyncStatus status="stale" lastSync={lastSync} />);
+
+      expect(screen.getByText(/2h ago/i)).toBeInTheDocument();
+    });
+
+    it("formats days correctly", () => {
+      const lastSync = new Date("2026-02-24T12:00:00Z"); // 2 days ago
+      render(<SyncStatus status="stale" lastSync={lastSync} />);
+
+      expect(screen.getByText(/2d ago/i)).toBeInTheDocument();
+    });
+  });
+
+  describe("no onRetry callback", () => {
+    it("hides retry button when no onRetry provided for error", () => {
+      render(<SyncStatus status="error" error="failed" />);
+
+      expect(screen.queryByRole("button", { name: /retry/i })).not.toBeInTheDocument();
+    });
+
+    it("hides refresh button when no onRetry provided for stale", () => {
+      const lastSync = new Date("2026-02-26T11:40:00Z");
+      render(<SyncStatus status="synced" lastSync={lastSync} />);
+
+      expect(screen.queryByRole("button")).not.toBeInTheDocument();
+    });
+  });
+});