diff --git a/docs/usage.md b/docs/usage.md
index a0ac06ddc..7c7894768 100644
--- a/docs/usage.md
+++ b/docs/usage.md
@@ -636,6 +636,13 @@ Create a loose layout package from a build output folder, register it with Windo
 - **Folder mode** — the input is a build-output folder (contains a `Package.appxmanifest`/`AppxManifest.xml`).
 - **Project mode** — the input is a `.csproj`, a `.sln`/`.slnx` solution, or a directory containing one. `winapp run` builds the project and launches it, supporting both **packaged** and **unpackaged** WinUI apps. See [Project mode](#project-mode-net-sdk-projects) below.
 
+> [!TIP]
+> Mode selection is silent by default. If a directory was treated as a build-output folder when you
+> expected it to be built as a project, re-run with `--verbose` — folder mode reports why it was
+> chosen (`No .csproj/.sln/.slnx with a runnable app found in '<path>' — running it as a
+> build-output folder.`). A directory is only built as a project when a `.csproj`/`.sln`/`.slnx`
+> with a runnable app sits at its **top level**; it is not searched recursively.
+
 > **This is the preferred command for debugging with package identity** for most frameworks (.NET, C++, Rust, Flutter, Tauri). Unlike [`create-debug-identity`](#create-debug-identity) which registers a sparse package for a single exe, `winapp run` registers the entire folder as a loose layout package, just like a real MSIX install. See the [Debugging Guide](debugging.md) for common debugging workflows.
 
 ```bash
diff --git a/src/winapp-CLI/WinApp.Cli.Tests/RunCommandTests.cs b/src/winapp-CLI/WinApp.Cli.Tests/RunCommandTests.cs
index 02f915e29..97c1e5121 100644
--- a/src/winapp-CLI/WinApp.Cli.Tests/RunCommandTests.cs
+++ b/src/winapp-CLI/WinApp.Cli.Tests/RunCommandTests.cs
@@ -25,7 +25,7 @@ public class RunCommandTests : BaseCommandTests
     private static readonly string[] SupportedArchitectures = ["x64", "arm64", "x86"];
     private static readonly string[] ForcedUnpackagedProperties = ["WindowsPackageType=None", "Foo=Bar"];
 
-    private const string TestManifestContent = """
+    internal const string TestManifestContent = """
         <?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
         <Package xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/appx/manifest/foundation/windows10"
                  xmlns:uap="http://schemas.microsoft.com/appx/manifest/uap/windows10"
@@ -2249,6 +2249,25 @@ public void CanCurrentOsRunArchitecture_UnknownMoniker_TreatedAsRunnable()
         Assert.IsTrue(RunCommand.Handler.CanCurrentOsRunArchitecture("sparc"));
     }
 
+    [TestMethod]
+    public async Task RunCommand_FolderMode_AtDebugVerbosity_PrintsDiscoveryBreadcrumb()
+    {
+        // This class runs at LogLevel.Debug — the level `--verbose` selects — so the breadcrumb
+        // must still be emitted here. It is how a user who pointed at a source directory expecting
+        // a build finds out why nothing was built. The companion class
+        // RunCommandFolderModeBreadcrumbTests asserts it is hidden at default verbosity.
+        await CreateTestManifestAsync();
+        var command = GetRequiredService<RunCommand>();
+
+        var exitCode = await ParseAndInvokeWithCaptureAsync(command, [_tempDirectory.FullName]);
+
+        Assert.AreEqual(0, exitCode);
+        StringAssert.Contains(
+            TestAnsiConsole.Output,
+            "No .csproj/.sln/.slnx with a runnable app found",
+            "Debug/verbose output should explain why a directory fell back to build-output folder mode.");
+    }
+
     [TestMethod]
     public void CanCurrentOsRunArchitecture_IsCaseInsensitive()
     {
@@ -2259,3 +2278,42 @@ public void CanCurrentOsRunArchitecture_IsCaseInsensitive()
 
     #endregion
 }
+
+/// <summary>
+/// Covers the folder-mode discovery breadcrumb at the CLI's DEFAULT verbosity.
+/// <see cref="RunCommandTests"/> runs at <see cref="LogLevel.Debug"/> (the harness default), which
+/// is the level <c>--verbose</c> selects, so it cannot observe what a normal run prints. This class
+/// pins the level to <see cref="LogLevel.Information"/> — what <c>winapp run</c> uses with no
+/// verbosity flags — to assert the breadcrumb stays hidden.
+/// </summary>
+[TestClass]
+public class RunCommandFolderModeBreadcrumbTests() : BaseCommandTests(logLevel: LogLevel.Information)
+{
+    protected override IServiceCollection ConfigureServices(IServiceCollection services)
+        => services
+            .AddSingleton<IMsixService>(new FakeMsixService())
+            .AddSingleton<IAppLauncherService>(new FakeAppLauncherService())
+            .AddSingleton<IDebugOutputService>(new FakeDebugOutputService())
+            .AddSingleton<IPackageRegistrationService>(new FakePackageRegistrationService())
+            .AddSingleton<INugetService, FakeNugetService>();
+
+    [TestMethod]
+    public async Task RunCommand_FolderMode_AtDefaultVerbosity_OmitsDiscoveryBreadcrumb()
+    {
+        // Running a build-output folder is the normal path — it is what every `dotnet run` through
+        // the NuGet package does, since the targets point winapp at $(OutputPath). Announcing it at
+        // Information made a routine, successful run look like something had gone wrong.
+        await File.WriteAllTextAsync(
+            Path.Join(_tempDirectory.FullName, "appxmanifest.xml"),
+            RunCommandTests.TestManifestContent,
+            TestContext.CancellationToken);
+        var command = GetRequiredService<RunCommand>();
+
+        var exitCode = await ParseAndInvokeWithCaptureAsync(command, [_tempDirectory.FullName]);
+
+        Assert.AreEqual(0, exitCode, "Folder mode should succeed");
+        Assert.IsFalse(
+            TestAnsiConsole.Output.Contains("No .csproj/.sln/.slnx with a runnable app found", StringComparison.Ordinal),
+            "The folder-mode breadcrumb is a troubleshooting aid and must not appear at default verbosity");
+    }
+}
diff --git a/src/winapp-CLI/WinApp.Cli/Commands/RunCommand.cs b/src/winapp-CLI/WinApp.Cli/Commands/RunCommand.cs
index a44924695..c249b5fa4 100644
--- a/src/winapp-CLI/WinApp.Cli/Commands/RunCommand.cs
+++ b/src/winapp-CLI/WinApp.Cli/Commands/RunCommand.cs
@@ -442,10 +442,12 @@ public override async Task<int> InvokeAsync(ParseResult parseResult, Cancellatio
 
             // Breadcrumb: we reached folder mode because no top-level .csproj/.sln/.slnx with a runnable
             // app was found, so the path is treated as a pre-built layout (nothing is built). Without
-            // this, a user who pointed at a source directory expecting a build only sees a later
-            // "manifest not found" and can't tell why nothing built. Only meaningful when the input was a
-            // directory; suppressed for --json (pure stdout) and --quiet (Info off).
-            if (!isJson && inputFsi is DirectoryInfo && logger.IsEnabled(LogLevel.Information))
+            // this, a user troubleshooting why a source directory was not built only sees a later
+            // "manifest not found" and can't tell why nothing built. Keep this at debug level: folder
+            // mode is the normal, expected path for a build-output directory — including every
+            // `dotnet run` through the NuGet package, which always points winapp at the output
+            // folder — so at Info it reads as a warning about a situation that is entirely routine.
+            if (!isJson && inputFsi is DirectoryInfo && logger.IsEnabled(LogLevel.Debug))
             {
                 ansiConsole.MarkupLineInterpolated(
                     $"{UiSymbols.Search} No .csproj/.sln/.slnx with a runnable app found in '{inputFolder.FullName}' — running it as a build-output folder.");