diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
index c6a804327..d3449dfdf 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -29,6 +29,8 @@ and this project adheres to [Semantic Versioning](https://semver.org/spec/v2.0.0
 
 ### Fixed
 
+- **E2E sidebar tests failing due to missing auth** (`e2e`): The `sidebar-text-visibility.spec.ts` tests failed because the MSW mock environment returns `auth.enabled: true` in its discovery response, causing `AuthGuard` to redirect unauthenticated users to the login page where no sidebar exists. Added `e2e/helpers/auth.ts` with a `registerAndLogin()` helper that signs up a test user via the register form, and updated both sidebar tests to authenticate before asserting sidebar visibility.
+
 - **Changesets release bump escalation** (`release`): Added `___experimentalUnsafeOptions_WILL_CHANGE_IN_PATCH.onlyUpdatePeerDependentsWhenOutOfRange` in `.changeset/config.json` and moved internal `@object-ui/*` entries in `@object-ui/plugin-designer` from `peerDependencies` to `dependencies` to prevent minor release PRs from incorrectly escalating fixed-group packages to a major version.
 
 - **Home page star/favorite not reactive** (`@object-ui/console`): Migrated `useFavorites` from standalone hook to React Context (`FavoritesProvider`) so all consumers (HomePage, AppCard, AppSidebar, UnifiedSidebar) share a single state instance. Previously, each component calling `useFavorites()` created independent state, so toggling a favorite in AppCard did not trigger re-render in HomePage. localStorage persistence is retained as the storage layer.
diff --git a/e2e/helpers/auth.ts b/e2e/helpers/auth.ts
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..9f379befe
--- /dev/null
+++ b/e2e/helpers/auth.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,36 @@
+import type { Page } from '@playwright/test';
+import { CONSOLE_BASE } from './index';
+
+/** Shared timeout for waiting on React rendering and MSW boot. */
+const REACT_READY_TIMEOUT = 30_000;
+
+/**
+ * Register a new test user and wait for redirect to the home page.
+ *
+ * MSW auth handlers run in-memory, so each browser context starts
+ * without a session.  This helper creates a fresh user via the
+ * register form so that subsequent navigation hits authenticated
+ * routes (HomeLayout with sidebar, etc.).
+ */
+export async function registerAndLogin(page: Page) {
+  await page.goto(`${CONSOLE_BASE}/register`);
+
+  // Wait for React to mount and the register form to render
+  await page.waitForFunction(
+    () => (document.getElementById('root')?.children.length ?? 0) > 0,
+    { timeout: REACT_READY_TIMEOUT },
+  );
+  // Wait for the form inputs to be present (MSW boot + React render)
+  await page.locator('input[type="email"]').waitFor({ state: 'visible', timeout: 15_000 });
+
+  // Fill in the registration form
+  const ts = Date.now();
+  await page.locator('input[type="text"]').fill('E2E Test User');
+  await page.locator('input[type="email"]').fill(`e2e-${ts}@test.local`);
+  await page.locator('input[type="password"]').first().fill('Test1234!');
+  await page.locator('input[type="password"]').nth(1).fill('Test1234!');
+
+  // Submit and wait for navigation away from the register page
+  await page.locator('button[type="submit"]').click();
+  await page.waitForURL(/\/console\/(home|apps\/)/, { timeout: REACT_READY_TIMEOUT });
+}
diff --git a/e2e/sidebar-text-visibility.spec.ts b/e2e/sidebar-text-visibility.spec.ts
index dfe091f44..89800fe0d 100644
--- a/e2e/sidebar-text-visibility.spec.ts
+++ b/e2e/sidebar-text-visibility.spec.ts
@@ -1,25 +1,33 @@
 import { test, expect } from '@playwright/test';
-import { waitForReactMount, CONSOLE_BASE } from './helpers';
+import { CONSOLE_BASE } from './helpers';
+import { registerAndLogin } from './helpers/auth';
+
+/** Timeout for sidebar elements to become visible after auth + page render. */
+const SIDEBAR_VISIBLE_TIMEOUT = 15_000;
 
 /**
  * Sidebar text visibility tests
  *
  * These tests validate that the sidebar displays text correctly
  * when toggled between collapsed (icon mode) and expanded states.
+ *
+ * The MSW mock environment requires authentication, so each test
+ * registers a fresh user before navigating to the home page.
  */
 
 test.describe('Sidebar Text Visibility', () => {
   test('should show all text labels when sidebar is expanded in icon mode', async ({ page }) => {
-    await page.goto(`${CONSOLE_BASE}/`);
-    await waitForReactMount(page);
+    // registerAndLogin navigates to /register, signs up, and waits for the
+    // redirect to /home — the page is already authenticated & on the home route.
+    await registerAndLogin(page);
 
-    // Wait for sidebar to be visible
+    // Wait for sidebar to be visible (page needs time to render after auth redirect)
     const sidebar = page.locator('[data-sidebar="sidebar"]').first();
-    await expect(sidebar).toBeVisible();
+    await expect(sidebar).toBeVisible({ timeout: SIDEBAR_VISIBLE_TIMEOUT });
 
-    // Find the sidebar toggle button
+    // Find the sidebar toggle button (desktop trigger rendered by AppShell)
     const toggleButton = page.locator('[data-sidebar="trigger"]').first();
-    await expect(toggleButton).toBeVisible();
+    await expect(toggleButton).toBeVisible({ timeout: SIDEBAR_VISIBLE_TIMEOUT });
 
     // Get the parent sidebar element that has data-state attribute
     const sidebarGroup = page.locator('.group[data-collapsible="icon"]').first();
@@ -92,14 +100,13 @@ test.describe('Sidebar Text Visibility', () => {
   });
 
   test('should hide text labels when sidebar is collapsed in icon mode', async ({ page }) => {
-    await page.goto(`${CONSOLE_BASE}/`);
-    await waitForReactMount(page);
+    await registerAndLogin(page);
 
     const sidebar = page.locator('[data-sidebar="sidebar"]').first();
-    await expect(sidebar).toBeVisible();
+    await expect(sidebar).toBeVisible({ timeout: SIDEBAR_VISIBLE_TIMEOUT });
 
     const toggleButton = page.locator('[data-sidebar="trigger"]').first();
-    await expect(toggleButton).toBeVisible();
+    await expect(toggleButton).toBeVisible({ timeout: SIDEBAR_VISIBLE_TIMEOUT });
 
     const sidebarGroup = page.locator('.group[data-collapsible="icon"]').first();