diff --git a/containers/libreportal/frontend/css/apps.css b/containers/libreportal/frontend/css/apps.css
index fc0caa2..1b4bddb 100644
--- a/containers/libreportal/frontend/css/apps.css
+++ b/containers/libreportal/frontend/css/apps.css
@@ -6,25 +6,25 @@
   --app-min: 300px;
   --app-gap: 20px;
   display: grid;
-  /* Fixed-width tracks (not minmax/1fr) so cards stay exactly --app-min
-     wide regardless of how many are visible — a 2-card category lines up
-     with a 3-card category at the same X positions. 1fr stretching used
-     to rubber-band card widths between categories as the box width
-     changed. */
-  grid-template-columns: repeat(auto-fill, var(--app-min));
+  /* JS sets --app-cols to a balanced track count: as many as fit the
+     row at min-width, but reduced by 1 if the natural count would
+     orphan a single card on the last row (e.g. 4 cards on a 3-col
+     viewport becomes a 2x2 grid instead of 3+1). Falls back to
+     auto-fill while JS hasn't run yet. Cards stretch via 1fr so the
+     last row never leaves a card-shaped hole — accepting some width
+     variation across categories in exchange for no internal gaps. */
+  grid-template-columns: repeat(var(--app-cols, auto-fill), minmax(var(--app-min), 1fr));
   gap: var(--app-gap);
   margin: 22px;
   padding: 22px;
   background: rgba(var(--text-rgb), 0.025);
   border: 1px solid var(--border-subtle);
   border-radius: 16px;
-  /* Shrink the glass box to exactly the visible-card count so a row with
-     two apps doesn't leave a card-shaped hole on the right. --app-count
-     is set from apps-manager.js (render + search filter); the 100%-44px
-     cap keeps the same 22px gutter when the formula would otherwise
-     exceed parent width. Outer width under border-box (global default,
-     style.css:4): N*min + (N-1)*gap + 44px padding + 2px border + 2px
-     buffer for sub-pixel rounding. Default 99 = no cap until JS reports. */
+  /* Box reaches the layout edge for 2+ visible cards (sentinel from
+     apps-manager.js); for a single card the formula caps the box to
+     one card's worth instead of stretching it across the full row.
+     Outer under border-box (global, style.css:4): N*min + (N-1)*gap +
+     44px padding + 2px border + 2px sub-pixel buffer. */
   max-width: min(
     calc(100% - 44px),
     calc(var(--app-count, 99) * var(--app-min) + (var(--app-count, 99) - 1) * var(--app-gap) + 48px)
diff --git a/containers/libreportal/frontend/js/components/app/apps-manager.js b/containers/libreportal/frontend/js/components/app/apps-manager.js
index 299dd2c..89f9f7b 100755
--- a/containers/libreportal/frontend/js/components/app/apps-manager.js
+++ b/containers/libreportal/frontend/js/components/app/apps-manager.js
@@ -552,17 +552,21 @@ class AppsManager {
     });
   }
 
-  // Sync --app-count on .apps-section. The CSS formula shrinks the glass
-  // box around the visible cards when there are too few to fill a row
-  // (so 1-2 cards on a 3-col viewport don't leave a card-shaped hole).
-  // When the visible count already meets the natural full-width column
-  // count, we pass a large sentinel (99) so the formula overshoots the
-  // 100%-44px parent cap and the box reaches the layout edge — otherwise
-  // a row with "exactly enough" cards would leave a visible gap between
-  // the box's right edge and the parent. Cards themselves are fixed
-  // --app-min width via the grid template, so widths line up across
-  // categories regardless of which branch fires. Driven from render,
-  // sidebar search filter, and window resize.
+  // Sync --app-cols + --app-count on .apps-section so the grid lays out
+  // without orphans on the last row.
+  //
+  // --app-cols picks a balanced column count: as many as the row fits
+  // naturally, but reduced by 1 when the natural choice would leave a
+  // single card alone on the last row (e.g. 4 cards on a 3-col viewport
+  // becomes 2x2 instead of 3+1). 5+2, 6+3, etc are accepted — only the
+  // worst case (last row has exactly 1 orphan) is rebalanced.
+  //
+  // --app-count drives the CSS max-width cap: 1 visible card shrinks
+  // the box to one card's worth (stretching one card to 1000px+ looks
+  // bad); 2+ cards pass a sentinel (99) so the cap defers to the
+  // 100%-44px parent and the box runs edge-to-edge.
+  //
+  // Driven from render, sidebar search filter, and window resize.
   updateAppsCount() {
     const container = document.getElementById('apps-section');
     if (!container) return;
@@ -579,11 +583,22 @@ class AppsManager {
     // 22px margin + 22px padding + 1px border, doubled.
     const parent = container.parentElement;
     const inside = parent ? Math.max(0, parent.clientWidth - 90) : 0;
-    const naturalCols = inside > 0
+    const maxCols = inside > 0
       ? Math.max(1, Math.floor((inside + gap) / (minCol + gap)))
       : visible;
-    const effective = visible >= naturalCols ? 99 : visible;
-    container.style.setProperty('--app-count', effective);
+
+    let cols = Math.min(visible, maxCols);
+    // Avoid orphaning a single card on the last row — reduce columns
+    // by one so the layout becomes (cols-1)+(cols-1)+… with a fuller
+    // tail. Don't drop below 2; a 1-col stack looks worse than an
+    // orphan. Only handles the immediate "last row is 1" case;
+    // last-row-of-2 etc are accepted as good enough.
+    if (cols > 2 && visible > cols && visible % cols === 1) {
+      cols--;
+    }
+
+    container.style.setProperty('--app-cols', cols);
+    container.style.setProperty('--app-count', visible === 1 ? 1 : 99);
   }
 
   // Client-side substring filter wired to the sidebar search box.