diff --git a/src/tools/delegate-task/free-model-fallback.test.ts b/src/tools/delegate-task/free-model-fallback.test.ts
index 975add9760d..cd990b640d8 100644
--- a/src/tools/delegate-task/free-model-fallback.test.ts
+++ b/src/tools/delegate-task/free-model-fallback.test.ts
@@ -1,11 +1,18 @@
 /// <reference types="bun-types" />
 
 import { describe, expect, test } from "bun:test"
-import { FREE_ONLY_FALLBACK_CHAIN, isKnownFreeModel } from "./free-model-fallback"
+import {
+  FREE_ONLY_FALLBACK_CHAIN,
+  appendFreeModelFallbacks,
+  isFreeOnlyProviderConfiguration,
+  isKnownFreeModel,
+} from "./free-model-fallback"
+import { CATEGORY_MODEL_REQUIREMENTS } from "../../shared/model-requirements"
+
+const ultrabrainFallbackChain = CATEGORY_MODEL_REQUIREMENTS.ultrabrain.fallbackChain
 
 describe("FREE_ONLY_FALLBACK_CHAIN", () => {
   // Deprecated by opencode (https://opencode.ai/zen/v1/models, models.dev catalog).
-  // If any of these reappear, the chain ships a model that no longer resolves.
   const deprecatedFreeModelIds = ["kimi-k2.5-free", "kimi-k2-free", "kimi-k2-thinking-free"]
 
   test("does not contain models that opencode has marked deprecated", () => {
@@ -19,4 +26,70 @@ describe("FREE_ONLY_FALLBACK_CHAIN", () => {
       expect(isKnownFreeModel(entry.model)).toBe(true)
     }
   })
+
+  test("every provider in the chain is recognized as a free-only provider", () => {
+    for (const entry of FREE_ONLY_FALLBACK_CHAIN) {
+      for (const provider of entry.providers) {
+        expect(isFreeOnlyProviderConfiguration([provider])).toBe(true)
+      }
+    }
+  })
+})
+
+describe("isFreeOnlyProviderConfiguration", () => {
+  test("returns true when all providers are in FREE_ONLY_PROVIDER_IDS", () => {
+    expect(isFreeOnlyProviderConfiguration(["opencode"])).toBe(true)
+  })
+
+  test("returns false when any provider is not in FREE_ONLY_PROVIDER_IDS", () => {
+    expect(isFreeOnlyProviderConfiguration(["opencode", "anthropic"])).toBe(false)
+  })
+
+  test("returns false for null", () => {
+    expect(isFreeOnlyProviderConfiguration(null)).toBe(false)
+  })
+
+  test("returns false for empty array", () => {
+    expect(isFreeOnlyProviderConfiguration([])).toBe(false)
+  })
+})
+
+describe("appendFreeModelFallbacks", () => {
+  test("returns FREE_ONLY_FALLBACK_CHAIN when original chain is undefined", () => {
+    const result = appendFreeModelFallbacks(undefined)
+    expect(result).toEqual(FREE_ONLY_FALLBACK_CHAIN)
+  })
+
+  test("returns FREE_ONLY_FALLBACK_CHAIN when original chain is empty", () => {
+    const result = appendFreeModelFallbacks([])
+    expect(result).toEqual(FREE_ONLY_FALLBACK_CHAIN)
+  })
+
+  test("preserves original chain order then appends free models in FREE_ONLY_FALLBACK_CHAIN order", () => {
+    const result = appendFreeModelFallbacks(ultrabrainFallbackChain)
+    expect(result.length).toBeGreaterThan(ultrabrainFallbackChain.length)
+    expect(result.slice(0, ultrabrainFallbackChain.length)).toEqual(ultrabrainFallbackChain)
+
+    const appended = result.slice(ultrabrainFallbackChain.length)
+    const expectedAppended = FREE_ONLY_FALLBACK_CHAIN.filter(
+      (entry) => !ultrabrainFallbackChain.some((e) => e.model === entry.model),
+    )
+    expect(appended).toEqual(expectedAppended)
+  })
+
+  test("does not duplicate free models already present in the chain", () => {
+    const chainWithFreeEntry = [
+      ...ultrabrainFallbackChain,
+      FREE_ONLY_FALLBACK_CHAIN[0],
+    ]
+    const result = appendFreeModelFallbacks(chainWithFreeEntry)
+
+    const modelCounts = new Map<string, number>()
+    for (const entry of result) {
+      modelCounts.set(entry.model, (modelCounts.get(entry.model) ?? 0) + 1)
+    }
+    for (const [model, count] of modelCounts) {
+      expect(count).toBe(1)
+    }
+  })
 })
diff --git a/src/tools/delegate-task/free-model-fallback.ts b/src/tools/delegate-task/free-model-fallback.ts
index 47c0fdd1896..f0314d071ca 100644
--- a/src/tools/delegate-task/free-model-fallback.ts
+++ b/src/tools/delegate-task/free-model-fallback.ts
@@ -31,33 +31,15 @@ export function isFreeOnlyProviderConfiguration(connectedProviders: string[] | n
     && connectedProviders.every((provider) => FREE_ONLY_PROVIDER_IDS.has(provider))
 }
 
-export function getFreeOnlyCategoryDefaultModel(input: {
-  categoryDefaultModel?: string
-  isUserConfiguredCategoryModel?: boolean
-  freeOnlyProviderConfiguration: boolean
-}): string | undefined {
-  if (!input.freeOnlyProviderConfiguration || input.isUserConfiguredCategoryModel) {
-    return input.categoryDefaultModel
-  }
-
-  if (!input.categoryDefaultModel || !isKnownFreeModel(input.categoryDefaultModel)) {
-    return undefined
-  }
-
-  return input.categoryDefaultModel
-}
-
-export function getFallbackChainForFreeOnlyProviders(
+export function appendFreeModelFallbacks(
   fallbackChain: FallbackEntry[] | undefined,
-  freeOnlyProviderConfiguration: boolean,
-): FallbackEntry[] | undefined {
-  if (!freeOnlyProviderConfiguration || !fallbackChain || fallbackChain.length === 0) {
-    return fallbackChain
+): FallbackEntry[] {
+  if (!fallbackChain || fallbackChain.length === 0) {
+    return FREE_ONLY_FALLBACK_CHAIN
   }
 
-  const freeEntries = fallbackChain.filter((entry) =>
-    entry.providers.includes("opencode") && isKnownFreeModel(entry.model),
-  )
-
-  return freeEntries.length > 0 ? freeEntries : FREE_ONLY_FALLBACK_CHAIN
+  // Ordering matters: original chain first, then free models in FREE_ONLY_FALLBACK_CHAIN priority order.
+  const existingModels = new Set(fallbackChain.map((entry) => entry.model))
+  const newEntries = FREE_ONLY_FALLBACK_CHAIN.filter((entry) => !existingModels.has(entry.model))
+  return [...fallbackChain, ...newEntries]
 }
diff --git a/src/tools/delegate-task/model-selection.free-model-fallback.test.ts b/src/tools/delegate-task/model-selection.free-model-fallback.test.ts
index 5671a64b28f..13dcd952bd3 100644
--- a/src/tools/delegate-task/model-selection.free-model-fallback.test.ts
+++ b/src/tools/delegate-task/model-selection.free-model-fallback.test.ts
@@ -3,6 +3,14 @@
 import { beforeEach, describe, expect, mock, spyOn, test } from "bun:test"
 import { resolveModelForDelegateTask } from "./model-selection"
 import * as connectedProvidersCache from "../../shared/connected-providers-cache"
+import { FREE_ONLY_FALLBACK_CHAIN } from "./free-model-fallback"
+import { CATEGORY_MODEL_REQUIREMENTS } from "../../shared/model-requirements"
+
+const ultrabrainFallbackChain = CATEGORY_MODEL_REQUIREMENTS.ultrabrain.fallbackChain
+
+function qualifiedModel(entry: { providers: string[]; model: string }, provider = "opencode"): string {
+  return `${provider}/${entry.model}`
+}
 
 describe("resolveModelForDelegateTask free-only fallback", () => {
   beforeEach(() => {
@@ -12,50 +20,86 @@ describe("resolveModelForDelegateTask free-only fallback", () => {
     spyOn(connectedProvidersCache, "readConnectedProvidersCache").mockReturnValue(["opencode"])
   })
 
-  test("uses a free opencode fallback instead of a paid category default when only free providers are configured", () => {
+  test("resolves to a free model when availableModels contains only free models", () => {
     const result = resolveModelForDelegateTask({
-      categoryDefaultModel: "opencode/gpt-5.4",
-      fallbackChain: [
-        { providers: ["opencode"], model: "gpt-5.4", variant: "medium" },
-        { providers: ["opencode"], model: "big-pickle" },
-      ],
+      categoryDefaultModel: qualifiedModel(ultrabrainFallbackChain[0]),
+      fallbackChain: ultrabrainFallbackChain,
       availableModels: new Set([
-        "opencode/gpt-5.4",
-        "opencode/big-pickle",
-        "opencode/minimax-m2.5-free",
+        qualifiedModel(FREE_ONLY_FALLBACK_CHAIN[0]),
+        qualifiedModel(FREE_ONLY_FALLBACK_CHAIN[1]),
       ]),
     })
 
     expect(result).toEqual({
-      model: "opencode/big-pickle",
-      fallbackEntry: { providers: ["opencode"], model: "big-pickle" },
+      model: qualifiedModel(FREE_ONLY_FALLBACK_CHAIN[0]),
+      fallbackEntry: FREE_ONLY_FALLBACK_CHAIN[0],
       matchedFallback: true,
     })
   })
 
-  test("falls back to a free global opencode model when the hardcoded chain only contains paid models", () => {
+  test("resolves to a free model on cold cache when only free providers are connected", () => {
     const result = resolveModelForDelegateTask({
-      fallbackChain: [
-        { providers: ["opencode"], model: "gpt-5.4", variant: "high" },
-        { providers: ["anthropic"], model: "claude-opus-4-6", variant: "max" },
-      ],
+      fallbackChain: ultrabrainFallbackChain,
       availableModels: new Set(),
     })
 
     expect(result).toEqual({
-      model: "opencode/big-pickle",
-      fallbackEntry: { providers: ["opencode"], model: "big-pickle" },
+      model: qualifiedModel(FREE_ONLY_FALLBACK_CHAIN[0]),
+      fallbackEntry: FREE_ONLY_FALLBACK_CHAIN[0],
       matchedFallback: true,
     })
   })
 
   test("keeps an explicit user-configured category model even in free-only mode", () => {
     const result = resolveModelForDelegateTask({
-      categoryDefaultModel: "opencode/gpt-5.4",
+      categoryDefaultModel: qualifiedModel(ultrabrainFallbackChain[0]),
       isUserConfiguredCategoryModel: true,
-      availableModels: new Set(["opencode/gpt-5.4", "opencode/big-pickle"]),
+      availableModels: new Set([
+        qualifiedModel(ultrabrainFallbackChain[0]),
+        qualifiedModel(FREE_ONLY_FALLBACK_CHAIN[0]),
+      ]),
+    })
+
+    expect(result).toEqual({ model: qualifiedModel(ultrabrainFallbackChain[0]) })
+  })
+
+  test("does not downgrade a paid Zen subscriber whose availableModels contains paid models", () => {
+    const result = resolveModelForDelegateTask({
+      categoryDefaultModel: qualifiedModel(ultrabrainFallbackChain[0]),
+      fallbackChain: ultrabrainFallbackChain,
+      availableModels: new Set([
+        qualifiedModel(ultrabrainFallbackChain[0]),
+        qualifiedModel(FREE_ONLY_FALLBACK_CHAIN[0]),
+        qualifiedModel(FREE_ONLY_FALLBACK_CHAIN[1]),
+      ]),
+    })
+
+    expect(result).toEqual({ model: qualifiedModel(ultrabrainFallbackChain[0]) })
+  })
+
+  test("does not rewrite a paid Zen subscriber's fallback chain to the free-only chain", () => {
+    const result = resolveModelForDelegateTask({
+      fallbackChain: ultrabrainFallbackChain,
+      availableModels: new Set([
+        qualifiedModel(ultrabrainFallbackChain[0]),
+        qualifiedModel(FREE_ONLY_FALLBACK_CHAIN[0]),
+      ]),
+    })
+
+    expect(result).toEqual({
+      model: qualifiedModel(ultrabrainFallbackChain[0]),
+      variant: ultrabrainFallbackChain[0].variant,
+      fallbackEntry: ultrabrainFallbackChain[0],
+      matchedFallback: true,
+    })
+  })
+
+  test("does not silently drop a paid category default when connectedProviders is opencode-only", () => {
+    const result = resolveModelForDelegateTask({
+      categoryDefaultModel: qualifiedModel(ultrabrainFallbackChain[0]),
+      availableModels: new Set([qualifiedModel(ultrabrainFallbackChain[0])]),
     })
 
-    expect(result).toEqual({ model: "opencode/gpt-5.4" })
+    expect(result).toEqual({ model: qualifiedModel(ultrabrainFallbackChain[0]) })
   })
 })
diff --git a/src/tools/delegate-task/model-selection.ts b/src/tools/delegate-task/model-selection.ts
index 48e12df7603..4c72797bf64 100644
--- a/src/tools/delegate-task/model-selection.ts
+++ b/src/tools/delegate-task/model-selection.ts
@@ -5,9 +5,9 @@ import { transformModelForProvider } from "../../shared/provider-model-id-transf
 import { hasConnectedProvidersCache, hasProviderModelsCache, readConnectedProvidersCache } from "../../shared/connected-providers-cache"
 import { log } from "../../shared/logger"
 import {
-  getFallbackChainForFreeOnlyProviders,
-  getFreeOnlyCategoryDefaultModel,
+  appendFreeModelFallbacks,
   isFreeOnlyProviderConfiguration,
+  isKnownFreeModel,
 } from "./free-model-fallback"
 import {
   getExplicitHighBaseModel,
@@ -33,18 +33,13 @@ export function resolveModelForDelegateTask(input: {
     return { model: userModel }
   }
 
-  const connectedProviders = readConnectedProvidersCache()
-  const freeOnlyProviderConfiguration = isFreeOnlyProviderConfiguration(connectedProviders)
+  const connectedProviders = input.availableModels.size === 0 ? readConnectedProvidersCache() : null
 
   if (input.availableModels.size === 0 && !hasProviderModelsCache() && !hasConnectedProvidersCache()) {
     return { skipped: true }
   }
 
-  const categoryDefault = normalizeModel(getFreeOnlyCategoryDefaultModel({
-    categoryDefaultModel: input.categoryDefaultModel,
-    isUserConfiguredCategoryModel: input.isUserConfiguredCategoryModel,
-    freeOnlyProviderConfiguration,
-  }))
+  const categoryDefault = normalizeModel(input.categoryDefaultModel)
   const explicitHighBaseModel = categoryDefault ? getExplicitHighBaseModel(categoryDefault) : null
   const explicitHighModel = explicitHighBaseModel ? categoryDefault : undefined
   if (categoryDefault) {
@@ -113,15 +108,22 @@ export function resolveModelForDelegateTask(input: {
     }
   }
 
-  const fallbackChain = getFallbackChainForFreeOnlyProviders(
-    input.fallbackChain,
-    freeOnlyProviderConfiguration,
-  )
+  const hasModelList = input.availableModels.size > 0
+  const allAvailableModelsAreFree = hasModelList && [...input.availableModels].every((m) => isKnownFreeModel(m))
+  // TODO: connectedProviders can't distinguish free vs paid Zen. Removable once subagent-resolver falls back to a free model instead of matchedAgent.model on cold cache.
+  const onlyFreeProvidersConnected = !hasModelList && isFreeOnlyProviderConfiguration(connectedProviders)
+  const userHasOnlyFreeModels = allAvailableModelsAreFree || onlyFreeProvidersConnected
+
+  const fallbackChain = userHasOnlyFreeModels
+    ? appendFreeModelFallbacks(input.fallbackChain)
+    : input.fallbackChain
   if (fallbackChain && fallbackChain.length > 0) {
     if (input.availableModels.size === 0) {
       if (connectedProviders) {
         const connectedSet = new Set(connectedProviders)
         for (const entry of fallbackChain) {
+          // Cold cache matches by provider, not availability — skip paid models for free-only users.
+          if (userHasOnlyFreeModels && !isKnownFreeModel(entry.model)) continue
           for (const provider of entry.providers) {
             if (connectedSet.has(provider)) {
               const transformedModelId = transformModelForProvider(provider, entry.model)