diff --git a/src/agent/context.rs b/src/agent/context.rs
index 3ca6b1b..6042fea 100644
--- a/src/agent/context.rs
+++ b/src/agent/context.rs
@@ -230,13 +230,15 @@ pub struct ContextState {
     /// Conversation entries — messages and memory, interleaved in order.
     /// Does NOT include system prompt, personality, or journal.
     pub entries: Vec<ConversationEntry>,
+    /// Cached token budget — recomputed when entries change, not every frame.
+    pub budget: ContextBudget,
 }
 
 impl ContextState {
-    /// Compute the context budget from typed sources.
-    pub fn budget(&self, count_str: &dyn Fn(&str) -> usize,
+    /// Compute the context budget from typed sources and cache the result.
+    pub fn recompute_budget(&mut self, count_str: &dyn Fn(&str) -> usize,
                    count_msg: &dyn Fn(&Message) -> usize,
-                   window_tokens: usize) -> ContextBudget {
+                   window_tokens: usize) -> &ContextBudget {
         let id = count_str(&self.system_prompt)
             + self.personality.iter().map(|(_, c)| count_str(c)).sum::<usize>();
         let jnl: usize = self.journal.iter().map(|e| count_str(&e.content)).sum();
@@ -246,13 +248,14 @@ impl ContextState {
             let tokens = count_msg(entry.api_message());
             if entry.is_memory() { mem += tokens } else { conv += tokens }
         }
-        ContextBudget {
+        self.budget = ContextBudget {
             identity_tokens: id,
             memory_tokens: mem,
             journal_tokens: jnl,
             conversation_tokens: conv,
             window_tokens,
-        }
+        };
+        &self.budget
     }
 
     pub fn render_context_message(&self) -> String {
diff --git a/src/agent/mod.rs b/src/agent/mod.rs
index 91f7451..7cf7c40 100644
--- a/src/agent/mod.rs
+++ b/src/agent/mod.rs
@@ -215,6 +215,7 @@ impl Agent {
             journal: Vec::new(),
             working_stack: Vec::new(),
             entries: Vec::new(),
+            budget: ContextBudget::default(),
         };
         let session_id = format!("consciousness-{}", chrono::Utc::now().format("%Y%m%d-%H%M%S"));
         let agent_cycles = crate::subconscious::subconscious::AgentCycleState::new(&session_id);
@@ -297,6 +298,7 @@ impl Agent {
             }
         }
         self.context.entries.push(entry);
+        self.recompute_budget();
         self.changed.notify_one();
     }
 
@@ -318,11 +320,11 @@ impl Agent {
         self.changed.notify_one();
     }
 
-    pub fn budget(&self) -> ContextBudget {
+    pub fn recompute_budget(&mut self) -> &ContextBudget {
         let count_str = |s: &str| self.tokenizer.encode_with_special_tokens(s).len();
         let count_msg = |m: &Message| crate::agent::context::msg_token_count(&self.tokenizer, m);
         let window = crate::agent::context::context_window();
-        self.context.budget(&count_str, &count_msg, window)
+        self.context.recompute_budget(&count_str, &count_msg, window)
     }
 
     /// Send a user message and run the agent loop until the model
@@ -1040,8 +1042,8 @@ impl Agent {
         dbglog!("[compact] entries: {} → {} (mem: {} → {}, conv: {} → {})",
             before, after, before_mem, after_mem, before_conv, after_conv);
 
-        let budget = self.budget();
-        dbglog!("[compact] budget: {}", budget.status_string());
+        self.recompute_budget();
+        dbglog!("[compact] budget: {}", self.context.budget.status_string());
 
         self.load_startup_journal();
         self.generation += 1;
@@ -1073,8 +1075,8 @@ impl Agent {
         self.context.entries = all;
         self.compact();
         // Estimate prompt tokens from budget so status bar isn't 0 on startup
-        let b = self.budget();
-        self.last_prompt_tokens = b.used() as u32;
+        self.recompute_budget();
+        self.last_prompt_tokens = self.context.budget.used() as u32;
         true
     }
 
diff --git a/src/user/chat.rs b/src/user/chat.rs
index ad8c8fe..0510662 100644
--- a/src/user/chat.rs
+++ b/src/user/chat.rs
@@ -828,7 +828,7 @@ impl ScreenView for InteractScreen {
             agent.expire_activities();
             app.status.prompt_tokens = agent.last_prompt_tokens();
             app.status.model = agent.model().to_string();
-            app.status.context_budget = agent.budget().status_string();
+            app.status.context_budget = agent.context.budget.status_string();
             app.activity = agent.activities.last()
                 .map(|a| a.label.clone())
                 .unwrap_or_default();