diff --git a/.github/workflows/release.yml b/.github/workflows/release.yml
index 49bb0a4..2893f2e 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/release.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/release.yml
@@ -151,6 +151,11 @@ jobs:
       - name: Publish installers + SHA256SUMS to the GitHub Release
         uses: softprops/action-gh-release@b4309332981a82ec1c5618f44dd2e27cc8bfbfda # v3.0.0
         with:
+          # A tag with a `-rc` suffix (e.g. v26.06.01-rc.1) publishes a PRE-RELEASE: it is not
+          # marked "Latest", so the once-a-day in-app update check (which reads /releases/latest)
+          # never offers it to users. Push such a tag to test a real installer build without
+          # announcing a new version; a normal `vX.Y.Z` tag publishes the announced release.
+          prerelease: ${{ contains(github.ref_name, '-rc') }}
           files: |
             dist/*.dmg
             dist/*.msi
diff --git a/CONTRIBUTING.md b/CONTRIBUTING.md
index f28a274..083f3d6 100644
--- a/CONTRIBUTING.md
+++ b/CONTRIBUTING.md
@@ -42,3 +42,10 @@ searchmob-desktop --help              # invoke the CLI
 Releases follow Ubuntu-style `YY.MM.VV` versioning. Bump `__version__` in
 `src/searchmob_desktop/version.py`, tag `vYY.MM.VV`, and push the tag. The release workflow builds
 the native installers and uploads them to the GitHub Release.
+
+**Release candidates (testing without announcing a version).** To build real installers for testing
+without bumping the version that users are told about, push a tag with a `-rc` suffix, for example
+`v26.06.01-rc.1`. The same workflow runs, but the GitHub Release is published as a **pre-release**:
+it is not marked "Latest", so the once-a-day in-app update check (which reads `/releases/latest`)
+never offers it to users. Install the pre-release assets manually to test, then delete the
+pre-release (or let it sit) and cut the normal `vYY.MM.VV` tag when the work is ready to announce.