diff --git a/src/store/labelStore.test.ts b/src/store/labelStore.test.ts
index b86d11b2..b3a507c1 100644
--- a/src/store/labelStore.test.ts
+++ b/src/store/labelStore.test.ts
@@ -1,8 +1,34 @@
-import { describe, it, expect, beforeEach } from 'vitest';
-import { useLabelStore, currentObjects } from './labelStore';
+import { describe, it, expect, beforeEach, vi } from 'vitest';
+import type * as Labelary from '../lib/labelary';
+import {
+  useLabelStore,
+  currentObjects,
+  __resetPreviewCacheForTests,
+} from './labelStore';
 import { isGroup, type LabelObject } from '../types/Group';
 import { defined, props } from '../test/helpers';
 
+// Mock the Labelary client so cache tests run without network I/O.
+// `fetchPreview` returns a unique blob URL on each call so the test can
+// see when a re-fetch happened vs. a cache hit (same URL = cached).
+vi.mock('../lib/labelary', async (importOriginal) => {
+  const actual = await importOriginal<typeof Labelary>();
+  let counter = 0;
+  return {
+    ...actual,
+    fetchPreview: vi.fn(async () => `blob:mock-${++counter}`),
+  };
+});
+
+// URL.revokeObjectURL is a no-op stub in jsdom by default but emits a
+// warning in some setups; provide an explicit spy so we can also assert
+// the cache revokes the previous URL on miss without flagging warnings.
+// Also drop any cached preview entry so the cache tests stay isolated.
+beforeEach(() => {
+  globalThis.URL.revokeObjectURL = vi.fn();
+  __resetPreviewCacheForTests();
+});
+
 /** Reset store to clean state before each test. */
 function reset() {
   useLabelStore.setState({
@@ -943,4 +969,95 @@ describe('ungroup', () => {
       expect(state().previewMode.status).toBe('idle');
     });
   });
+
+  describe('preview cache', () => {
+    function activeUrl(): string | null {
+      const mode = state().previewMode;
+      return mode.status === 'active' ? mode.url : null;
+    }
+
+    it('skips the fetch when the ZPL is unchanged across toggles', async () => {
+      const labelary = await import('../lib/labelary');
+      const fetchSpy = vi.mocked(labelary.fetchPreview);
+      fetchSpy.mockClear();
+
+      await state().enterPreviewMode();
+      expect(state().previewMode.status).toBe('active');
+      expect(fetchSpy).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1);
+      const firstUrl = activeUrl();
+
+      state().exitPreviewMode();
+      expect(state().previewMode.status).toBe('idle');
+
+      // Re-open with no changes: cache hit, no extra fetch, same URL.
+      await state().enterPreviewMode();
+      expect(fetchSpy).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(1);
+      expect(activeUrl()).toBe(firstUrl);
+    });
+
+    it('discards a stale in-flight fetch when the user exits, edits, and re-enters', async () => {
+      // Scenario: user opens preview (fetch 1 in flight), exits, mutates
+      // design, opens preview again (fetch 2 in flight). Without the
+      // stale-fetch guard, fetch 1 resolves while status is `loading`
+      // (from fetch 2) and would overwrite state with the previous
+      // design's URL.
+      const labelary = await import('../lib/labelary');
+      const fetchSpy = vi.mocked(labelary.fetchPreview);
+      fetchSpy.mockClear();
+
+      // Hand-controlled promises so we can interleave the two fetches.
+      type Resolver = (url: string) => void;
+      const noop: Resolver = () => undefined;
+      let resolveFirst: Resolver = noop;
+      let resolveSecond: Resolver = noop;
+      fetchSpy.mockImplementationOnce(
+        () => new Promise<string>((r) => (resolveFirst = r)),
+      );
+      fetchSpy.mockImplementationOnce(
+        () => new Promise<string>((r) => (resolveSecond = r)),
+      );
+
+      const first = state().enterPreviewMode();
+      state().exitPreviewMode();
+      state().addObject('text'); // changes the ZPL
+      const second = state().enterPreviewMode();
+
+      resolveFirst('blob:stale-1');
+      await first;
+
+      // Status must still be `loading` for fetch 2 — fetch 1's URL was
+      // for the previous design and must have been discarded + revoked.
+      expect(state().previewMode.status).toBe('loading');
+      expect(vi.mocked(globalThis.URL.revokeObjectURL)).toHaveBeenCalledWith(
+        'blob:stale-1',
+      );
+
+      resolveSecond('blob:fresh-2');
+      await second;
+
+      expect(state().previewMode.status).toBe('active');
+      expect(activeUrl()).toBe('blob:fresh-2');
+    });
+
+    it('re-fetches and revokes the stale URL when the ZPL changes', async () => {
+      const labelary = await import('../lib/labelary');
+      const fetchSpy = vi.mocked(labelary.fetchPreview);
+      fetchSpy.mockClear();
+      const revokeSpy = vi.mocked(globalThis.URL.revokeObjectURL);
+
+      await state().enterPreviewMode();
+      const firstUrl = activeUrl();
+      expect(firstUrl).toBeTruthy();
+      state().exitPreviewMode();
+
+      // Mutate the design — the next enterPreviewMode generates different
+      // ZPL and must hit the API again, revoking the prior blob.
+      state().addObject('text');
+      await state().enterPreviewMode();
+
+      expect(fetchSpy).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(2);
+      expect(revokeSpy).toHaveBeenCalledWith(firstUrl);
+      expect(activeUrl()).not.toBe(firstUrl);
+    });
+  });
 });
diff --git a/src/store/labelStore.ts b/src/store/labelStore.ts
index 2c239b7e..d2ad6a60 100644
--- a/src/store/labelStore.ts
+++ b/src/store/labelStore.ts
@@ -250,6 +250,42 @@ function updateCurrentObjects(
  *  multiplies it by pasteCount because the clipboard source stays put. */
 const DUPLICATE_OFFSET_DOTS = 20;
 
+/** Single-entry cache for the Labelary preview blob URL, keyed by the
+ *  exact ZPL string that produced it. Module-level rather than store-
+ *  state because the blob URL is a non-serialisable side-effect handle:
+ *  persisting it through `partialize` would resurrect a stale identifier
+ *  across reloads, and including it in Zustand state would churn every
+ *  selector that observes the store.
+ *
+ *  The closure owns the URL: `set` revokes the previous blob before
+ *  replacing it, so callers can't leak by forgetting to clean up. */
+const previewCache = (() => {
+  let entry: { zpl: string; url: string } | null = null;
+  return {
+    /** Returns the cached URL if `zpl` matches the cached key, else null. */
+    get(zpl: string): string | null {
+      return entry && entry.zpl === zpl ? entry.url : null;
+    },
+    /** Stores a fresh (zpl, url) pair. Revokes the previously held URL
+     *  if any so the browser can reclaim the blob memory. */
+    set(zpl: string, url: string): void {
+      if (entry) URL.revokeObjectURL(entry.url);
+      entry = { zpl, url };
+    },
+    /** Test-only: drop the cached entry without revoking, so a fresh
+     *  test starts from a clean slate. Production callers should never
+     *  need this — `set` handles eviction on its own. */
+    _resetForTests(): void {
+      entry = null;
+    },
+  };
+})();
+
+/** Test-only handle to clear the preview cache between test cases.
+ *  Marked underscored to discourage production use; the cache otherwise
+ *  manages its own lifecycle via the `set` revoke path. */
+export const __resetPreviewCacheForTests = (): void => previewCache._resetForTests();
+
 /** Build offset copies of objects identified by `ids`. Missing ids are
  *  silently dropped. Props are shallow-cloned to match the pattern in
  *  copySelectedObjects — even though no current code path mutates props,
@@ -840,29 +876,47 @@ export const useLabelStore = create<LabelState>()(
         if (state.previewMode.status === 'loading' || state.previewMode.status === 'active') {
           return;
         }
-        set({ previewMode: { status: 'loading' } });
         const objs = currentObjects(state);
         const zpl = generateZPL(state.label, objs);
+        // Toggling preview off then on for a side-by-side pixel compare
+        // shouldn't burn an API call when nothing changed.
+        const cachedUrl = previewCache.get(zpl);
+        if (cachedUrl !== null) {
+          set({ previewMode: { status: 'active', url: cachedUrl } });
+          return;
+        }
+        set({ previewMode: { status: 'loading' } });
+        // Two checks guard against settling a stale request: the status
+        // check catches an exit that happened during the fetch; the
+        // reference-equality check catches the harder case where the
+        // user exited AND re-entered with a different design (so status
+        // is `loading` again — but for a different request whose result
+        // we mustn't overwrite). The store mutates label and objects
+        // immutably, so a reference change is the cheapest, most
+        // precise way to detect a divergent state — no string rebuild
+        // needed, and a page switch is caught too (different array).
+        const isStale = (): boolean =>
+          get().previewMode.status !== 'loading' ||
+          get().label !== state.label ||
+          currentObjects(get()) !== objs;
         try {
           const url = await fetchPreview(zpl, state.label);
-          // Avoid clobbering an exit that happened while the request was in
-          // flight — if the user toggled off, the loading state is gone.
-          if (get().previewMode.status !== 'loading') {
+          if (isStale()) {
             URL.revokeObjectURL(url);
             return;
           }
+          previewCache.set(zpl, url);
           set({ previewMode: { status: 'active', url } });
         } catch (e) {
-          if (get().previewMode.status !== 'loading') return;
+          if (isStale()) return;
           set({ previewMode: { status: 'error', error: labelaryErrorMessage(e) } });
         }
       },
 
       exitPreviewMode: () =>
         set((state) => {
-          if (state.previewMode.status === 'active') {
-            URL.revokeObjectURL(state.previewMode.url);
-          }
+          // The blob URL is owned by `previewCache` and intentionally
+          // kept alive across exits so a re-toggle skips the fetch.
           if (state.previewMode.status === 'idle') return {};
           return { previewMode: { status: 'idle' } };
         }),