diff --git a/src/relays.rs b/src/relays.rs
index 51b26ba..3a6ecfb 100644
--- a/src/relays.rs
+++ b/src/relays.rs
@@ -14,6 +14,21 @@ pub fn default_relays() -> Vec<RelayConfig> {
     ]
 }
 
+/// Extra relays always included in the NIP-46 *pairing* set (on top of the
+/// user's enabled relays). Signer apps (Amber et al.) are free to pick any
+/// relay listed in the nostrconnect:// URI, and relays differ wildly in
+/// reliability for ephemeral kind-24133 traffic; listening on a few extra
+/// well-known relays costs nothing and makes pairing robust whichever one
+/// the signer happens to choose.
+pub fn pairing_relays() -> Vec<String> {
+    vec![
+        "wss://relay.damus.io".to_string(),
+        "wss://relay.primal.net".to_string(),
+        "wss://purplepag.es".to_string(),
+        "wss://relay.nostr.band".to_string(),
+    ]
+}
+
 /// Validate that a string is a well-formed relay URL.
 pub fn validate_url(raw: &str) -> Result<(), AppError> {
     let cleaned = raw.trim().trim_end_matches('/');
diff --git a/src/signer/nip46_client.rs b/src/signer/nip46_client.rs
index ae64c33..7cbd046 100644
--- a/src/signer/nip46_client.rs
+++ b/src/signer/nip46_client.rs
@@ -430,8 +430,13 @@ impl Nip46ClientSigner {
             }
         }
 
-        // Pair over the user's enabled relays; fall back to the app defaults
-        // when none are configured.
+        // Pair over the user's enabled relays UNION a curated fallback set:
+        // signer apps (Amber et al.) pick whichever relay they like from the
+        // nostrconnect:// URI, and relays vary wildly in reliability for
+        // ephemeral kind-24133 traffic. Listening on a few extra well-known
+        // relays costs nothing and covers whichever one the signer chooses.
+        // Loopback-only relay sets (the e2e harness) skip widening so test
+        // pairing traffic never touches the real network.
         let relays: Vec<RelayUrl> = {
             let app = self.app.lock().await;
             let mut urls: Vec<String> = app
@@ -441,11 +446,17 @@ impl Nip46ClientSigner {
                 .filter(|r| r.enabled)
                 .map(|r| r.url.clone())
                 .collect();
-            if urls.is_empty() {
-                urls = crate::relays::default_relays()
-                    .into_iter()
-                    .map(|r| r.url)
-                    .collect();
+            let loopback_only = !urls.is_empty()
+                && urls.iter().all(|u| {
+                    let u = u.to_lowercase();
+                    u.contains("127.0.0.1") || u.contains("localhost") || u.contains("[::1]")
+                });
+            if !loopback_only {
+                for extra in crate::relays::pairing_relays() {
+                    if !urls.contains(&extra) {
+                        urls.push(extra);
+                    }
+                }
             }
             urls
         }
diff --git a/tests/nip46_e2e.rs b/tests/nip46_e2e.rs
index bf8771e..90d50c6 100644
--- a/tests/nip46_e2e.rs
+++ b/tests/nip46_e2e.rs
@@ -138,6 +138,11 @@ async fn start_relay() -> String {
                                         ])
                                         .to_string();
                                         if let Some(sess) = s.sessions.get(session_idx) {
+                                            eprintln!(
+                                                "[relay] replay {} to new sub {}",
+                                                &ev.id.to_hex()[..16],
+                                                sub_id
+                                            );
                                             let _ = sess.tx.send(out);
                                         }
                                         break;
@@ -526,8 +531,13 @@ async fn run_fake_scanner(
             continue;
         }
         let Some(plain) = nip44_dec(&conversation, &ev.content) else {
+            eprintln!(
+                "[scanner] event from {} not decryptable",
+                &ev.pubkey.to_hex()[..16]
+            );
             continue;
         };
+        eprintln!("[scanner] decrypted: {}", &plain[..plain.len().min(120)]);
         let Ok(req) = serde_json::from_str::<Value>(&plain) else {
             continue;
         };
@@ -641,6 +651,8 @@ async fn nip46_qr_pairing_handshake_and_sign() {
     else {
         panic!("pairing URI must be the client variant");
     };
+    // The e2e relay set is loopback-only, and loopback sets skip the curated
+    // pairing-relay widening, so the token carries exactly our relay.
     assert_eq!(relays.len(), 1);
     assert!(!secret.is_empty());