diff --git a/local/recipes/tui/tlc/source/src/filemanager/compare.rs b/local/recipes/tui/tlc/source/src/filemanager/compare.rs
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..8e02834c67
--- /dev/null
+++ b/local/recipes/tui/tlc/source/src/filemanager/compare.rs
@@ -0,0 +1,374 @@
+//! File comparison dialog — shows a line-by-line diff of two files.
+//!
+//! Activated via `Ctrl-d` when the cursor file in the active panel and the
+//! cursor file in the other panel are both regular files.
+
+use std::fs;
+use std::path::Path;
+
+use ratatui::layout::{Alignment, Constraint, Layout, Rect};
+use ratatui::style::{Modifier, Style};
+use ratatui::text::{Line, Span};
+use ratatui::widgets::{Block, Borders, Clear, Paragraph};
+use ratatui::Frame;
+
+use crate::key::Key;
+use crate::terminal::color::Theme;
+
+/// Maximum lines to read from each file (prevents OOM on huge files).
+const MAX_LINES: usize = 10_000;
+
+/// A single line in the diff output.
+#[derive(Debug, Clone, PartialEq)]
+enum DiffLine {
+    /// Line present in both files (context).
+    Context(String),
+    /// Line only in the left file (removed).
+    Removed(String),
+    /// Line only in the right file (added).
+    Added(String),
+}
+
+/// Outcome of a key press in the compare dialog.
+#[derive(Debug, Clone)]
+pub enum CompareOutcome {
+    /// Still navigating — keep the dialog open.
+    Running,
+    /// User pressed Esc/Enter — close the dialog.
+    Close,
+}
+
+/// The file-comparison dialog.
+pub struct CompareDialog {
+    /// Left file path (display).
+    left_name: String,
+    /// Right file path (display).
+    right_name: String,
+    /// Diff lines to display.
+    lines: Vec<DiffLine>,
+    /// Current scroll offset.
+    scroll: usize,
+    /// Error message (if files could not be read).
+    error: Option<String>,
+}
+
+impl CompareDialog {
+    /// Create a new compare dialog for two files.
+    pub fn new(left: &Path, right: &Path) -> Self {
+        let left_name = left
+            .file_name()
+            .map(|n| n.to_string_lossy().to_string())
+            .unwrap_or_else(|| left.display().to_string());
+        let right_name = right
+            .file_name()
+            .map(|n| n.to_string_lossy().to_string())
+            .unwrap_or_else(|| right.display().to_string());
+
+        match (read_lines(left), read_lines(right)) {
+            (Ok(a), Ok(b)) => {
+                let diff = compute_diff(&a, &b);
+                Self {
+                    left_name,
+                    right_name,
+                    lines: diff,
+                    scroll: 0,
+                    error: None,
+                }
+            }
+            (Err(e), _) | (_, Err(e)) => Self {
+                left_name,
+                right_name,
+                lines: Vec::new(),
+                scroll: 0,
+                error: Some(e),
+            },
+        }
+    }
+
+    /// Handle a key press.
+    pub fn handle_key(&mut self, key: Key) -> CompareOutcome {
+        match key {
+            Key::ESCAPE | Key::ENTER => CompareOutcome::Close,
+            k if k == Key::from_char('q') => CompareOutcome::Close,
+            k if k.code == 0x2191 => {
+                self.scroll = self.scroll.saturating_sub(1);
+                CompareOutcome::Running
+            }
+            k if k.code == 0x2193 => {
+                self.scroll = self.scroll.saturating_add(1);
+                CompareOutcome::Running
+            }
+            k if k.code == 0x21A5 => {
+                self.scroll = self.scroll.saturating_sub(20);
+                CompareOutcome::Running
+            }
+            k if k.code == 0x21A6 => {
+                self.scroll = self.scroll.saturating_add(20);
+                CompareOutcome::Running
+            }
+            k if k == Key::from_char('g') => {
+                self.scroll = 0;
+                CompareOutcome::Running
+            }
+            k if k == Key::from_char('G') => {
+                let max = self.lines.len().saturating_sub(1);
+                self.scroll = max;
+                CompareOutcome::Running
+            }
+            _ => CompareOutcome::Running,
+        }
+    }
+
+    /// Render the dialog.
+    pub fn render(&self, frame: &mut Frame, area: Rect, theme: &Theme) {
+        let popup = centered_rect(area, 90, 80);
+        frame.render_widget(Clear, popup);
+
+        let chunks = Layout::default()
+            .direction(ratatui::layout::Direction::Vertical)
+            .constraints([Constraint::Length(2), Constraint::Min(1)])
+            .split(popup);
+
+        let title = if self.error.is_some() {
+            format!(" Compare: error ")
+        } else {
+            format!(" Compare: {} ⟷ {} ", self.left_name, self.right_name)
+        };
+
+        let header = Paragraph::new(Line::from(vec![Span::styled(
+            title,
+            Style::default()
+                .fg(theme.title_fg)
+                .bg(theme.title_bg)
+                .add_modifier(Modifier::BOLD),
+        )]))
+        .alignment(Alignment::Center);
+        frame.render_widget(header, chunks[0]);
+
+        let body_area = chunks[1];
+        let block = Block::default()
+            .borders(Borders::ALL)
+            .border_style(Style::default().fg(theme.border));
+        let inner = block.inner(body_area);
+        frame.render_widget(block, body_area);
+        let body = self.build_body(theme, inner.height as usize);
+        frame.render_widget(body, inner);
+    }
+
+    fn build_body(&self, theme: &Theme, visible: usize) -> Paragraph<'_> {
+        if let Some(ref err) = self.error {
+            return Paragraph::new(err.as_str());
+        }
+
+        let max_scroll = self.lines.len().saturating_sub(visible);
+        let start = self.scroll.min(max_scroll);
+        let end = (start + visible).min(self.lines.len());
+
+        let lines: Vec<Line> = self.lines[start..end]
+            .iter()
+            .map(|dl| match dl {
+                DiffLine::Context(s) => Line::from(vec![Span::styled(
+                    format!("  {s}"),
+                    Style::default().fg(theme.foreground),
+                )]),
+                DiffLine::Removed(s) => Line::from(vec![Span::styled(
+                    format!("- {s}"),
+                    Style::default()
+                        .fg(theme.error)
+                        .add_modifier(Modifier::BOLD),
+                )]),
+                DiffLine::Added(s) => Line::from(vec![Span::styled(
+                    format!("+ {s}"),
+                    Style::default()
+                        .fg(theme.info)
+                        .add_modifier(Modifier::BOLD),
+                )]),
+            })
+            .collect();
+
+        Paragraph::new(lines)
+    }
+}
+
+fn read_lines(path: &Path) -> Result<Vec<String>, String> {
+    let content = fs::read_to_string(path)
+        .map_err(|e| format!("Cannot read {}: {e}", path.display()))?;
+    Ok(content.lines().take(MAX_LINES).map(String::from).collect())
+}
+
+fn compute_diff(a: &[String], b: &[String]) -> Vec<DiffLine> {
+    let m = a.len();
+    let n = b.len();
+    let mut dp = vec![vec![0usize; n + 1]; m + 1];
+    for i in (0..m).rev() {
+        for j in (0..n).rev() {
+            dp[i][j] = if a[i] == b[j] {
+                dp[i + 1][j + 1] + 1
+            } else {
+                dp[i + 1][j].max(dp[i][j + 1])
+            };
+        }
+    }
+
+    let mut result = Vec::new();
+    let (mut i, mut j) = (0, 0);
+    while i < m && j < n {
+        if a[i] == b[j] {
+            result.push(DiffLine::Context(a[i].clone()));
+            i += 1;
+            j += 1;
+        } else if dp[i + 1][j] >= dp[i][j + 1] {
+            result.push(DiffLine::Removed(a[i].clone()));
+            i += 1;
+        } else {
+            result.push(DiffLine::Added(b[j].clone()));
+            j += 1;
+        }
+    }
+    while i < m {
+        result.push(DiffLine::Removed(a[i].clone()));
+        i += 1;
+    }
+    while j < n {
+        result.push(DiffLine::Added(b[j].clone()));
+        j += 1;
+    }
+    result
+}
+
+fn centered_rect(area: Rect, pct_x: u16, pct_y: u16) -> Rect {
+    let pop_rect = Layout::default()
+        .direction(ratatui::layout::Direction::Vertical)
+        .constraints([
+            Constraint::Percentage((100 - pct_y) / 2),
+            Constraint::Percentage(pct_y),
+            Constraint::Percentage((100 - pct_y) / 2),
+        ])
+        .split(area);
+    Layout::default()
+        .direction(ratatui::layout::Direction::Horizontal)
+        .constraints([
+            Constraint::Percentage((100 - pct_x) / 2),
+            Constraint::Percentage(pct_x),
+            Constraint::Percentage((100 - pct_x) / 2),
+        ])
+        .split(pop_rect[1])[1]
+}
+
+#[cfg(test)]
+mod tests {
+    use super::*;
+
+    #[test]
+    fn diff_identical_files() {
+        let a = vec!["hello".to_string(), "world".to_string()];
+        let b = a.clone();
+        let diff = compute_diff(&a, &b);
+        assert_eq!(diff.len(), 2);
+        assert!(diff.iter().all(|d| matches!(d, DiffLine::Context(_))));
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn diff_added_lines() {
+        let a = vec!["a".to_string()];
+        let b = vec!["a".to_string(), "b".to_string(), "c".to_string()];
+        let diff = compute_diff(&a, &b);
+        assert_eq!(diff.len(), 3);
+        assert!(matches!(diff[0], DiffLine::Context(_)));
+        assert!(matches!(diff[1], DiffLine::Added(_)));
+        assert!(matches!(diff[2], DiffLine::Added(_)));
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn diff_removed_lines() {
+        let a = vec!["a".to_string(), "b".to_string(), "c".to_string()];
+        let b = vec!["a".to_string()];
+        let diff = compute_diff(&a, &b);
+        assert_eq!(diff.len(), 3);
+        assert!(matches!(diff[0], DiffLine::Context(_)));
+        assert!(matches!(diff[1], DiffLine::Removed(_)));
+        assert!(matches!(diff[2], DiffLine::Removed(_)));
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn diff_completely_different() {
+        let a = vec!["x".to_string(), "y".to_string()];
+        let b = vec!["p".to_string(), "q".to_string()];
+        let diff = compute_diff(&a, &b);
+        assert_eq!(diff.len(), 4);
+        assert!(matches!(diff[0], DiffLine::Removed(_)));
+        assert!(matches!(diff[1], DiffLine::Removed(_)));
+        assert!(matches!(diff[2], DiffLine::Added(_)));
+        assert!(matches!(diff[3], DiffLine::Added(_)));
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn diff_empty_files() {
+        let a: Vec<String> = Vec::new();
+        let b: Vec<String> = Vec::new();
+        let diff = compute_diff(&a, &b);
+        assert!(diff.is_empty());
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn diff_one_empty_one_not() {
+        let a: Vec<String> = Vec::new();
+        let b = vec!["line1".to_string(), "line2".to_string()];
+        let diff = compute_diff(&a, &b);
+        assert_eq!(diff.len(), 2);
+        assert!(diff.iter().all(|d| matches!(d, DiffLine::Added(_))));
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn diff_preserves_common_subsequence() {
+        let a = vec!["a".to_string(), "b".to_string(), "c".to_string()];
+        let b = vec!["a".to_string(), "x".to_string(), "c".to_string()];
+        let diff = compute_diff(&a, &b);
+        assert_eq!(diff.len(), 4);
+        assert!(matches!(diff[0], DiffLine::Context(ref s) if s == "a"));
+        assert!(matches!(diff[1], DiffLine::Removed(_)));
+        assert!(matches!(diff[2], DiffLine::Added(_)));
+        assert!(matches!(diff[3], DiffLine::Context(ref s) if s == "c"));
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn compare_dialog_reads_files() {
+        let dir = std::env::temp_dir().join("tlc-compare-test");
+        let _ = fs::remove_dir_all(&dir);
+        fs::create_dir_all(&dir).unwrap();
+        let f1 = dir.join("a.txt");
+        let f2 = dir.join("b.txt");
+        fs::write(&f1, "hello\nworld\n").unwrap();
+        fs::write(&f2, "hello\nrust\n").unwrap();
+        let dlg = CompareDialog::new(&f1, &f2);
+        assert!(dlg.error.is_none());
+        assert_eq!(dlg.lines.len(), 3);
+        assert!(matches!(&dlg.lines[0], DiffLine::Context(_)));
+        assert!(matches!(&dlg.lines[1], DiffLine::Removed(_)));
+        assert!(matches!(&dlg.lines[2], DiffLine::Added(_)));
+        let _ = fs::remove_dir_all(&dir);
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn compare_dialog_handles_missing_file() {
+        let dlg = CompareDialog::new(
+            Path::new("/nonexistent/a"),
+            Path::new("/nonexistent/b"),
+        );
+        assert!(dlg.error.is_some());
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn compare_dialog_close_on_esc() {
+        let dir = std::env::temp_dir().join("tlc-compare-esc");
+        let _ = fs::remove_dir_all(&dir);
+        fs::create_dir_all(&dir).unwrap();
+        let f1 = dir.join("a.txt");
+        let f2 = dir.join("b.txt");
+        fs::write(&f1, "x\n").unwrap();
+        fs::write(&f2, "y\n").unwrap();
+        let mut dlg = CompareDialog::new(&f1, &f2);
+        assert!(matches!(dlg.handle_key(Key::ESCAPE), CompareOutcome::Close));
+        let _ = fs::remove_dir_all(&dir);
+    }
+}
diff --git a/local/recipes/tui/tlc/source/src/filemanager/mod.rs b/local/recipes/tui/tlc/source/src/filemanager/mod.rs
index 0269e61eb1..49d33a03d2 100644
--- a/local/recipes/tui/tlc/source/src/filemanager/mod.rs
+++ b/local/recipes/tui/tlc/source/src/filemanager/mod.rs
@@ -5,6 +5,7 @@
 //! constructs one of these and dispatches keys to it.
 
 pub mod cmdline;
+pub mod compare;
 pub mod config_dialog;
 pub mod confirm_dialog;
 pub mod connection_manager;
@@ -259,6 +260,8 @@ pub enum DialogState {
     EditHistory(Box<edit_history::EditHistoryDialog>),
     /// Filtered command output viewer.
     FilteredView(Box<filtered_view::FilteredViewDialog>),
+    /// File comparison diff viewer.
+    Compare(Box<compare::CompareDialog>),
 }
 
 impl DialogState {
@@ -309,6 +312,7 @@ impl DialogState {
             DialogState::ScreenList(_) => false,
             DialogState::EditHistory(_) => false,
             DialogState::FilteredView(_) => false,
+            DialogState::Compare(_) => false,
         }
     }
 }
@@ -805,6 +809,21 @@ impl FileManager {
                 )));
                 Ok(true)
             }
+            Cmd::CompareFiles => {
+                let left = self.active_panel().cursor_path();
+                let right = self.other_panel().cursor_path();
+                if left.is_file() && right.is_file() {
+                    self.dialog = Some(DialogState::Compare(Box::new(
+                        compare::CompareDialog::new(&left, &right),
+                    )));
+                    Ok(true)
+                } else {
+                    self.status.set_message(
+                        "Compare: both panels must have a regular file under cursor".to_string(),
+                    );
+                    Ok(true)
+                }
+            }
             Cmd::Suspend => {
                 self.status
                     .set_message("Suspend: use Ctrl-O to drop to a shell".to_string());
@@ -1452,6 +1471,13 @@ impl FileManager {
                 filtered_view_outcome = Some(d.handle_key(key));
                 consumed = true;
             }
+            Some(DialogState::Compare(d)) => {
+                let o = d.handle_key(key);
+                if matches!(o, compare::CompareOutcome::Close) {
+                    self.dialog = None;
+                }
+                consumed = true;
+            }
             None => return false,
         }
         // Apply captured outcomes.
@@ -1794,7 +1820,8 @@ impl FileManager {
             | Some(DialogState::VfsList(_))
             | Some(DialogState::ScreenList(_))
             | Some(DialogState::EditHistory(_))
-            | Some(DialogState::FilteredView(_)) => {
+            | Some(DialogState::FilteredView(_))
+            | Some(DialogState::Compare(_)) => {
                 // No-op: those dialogs clear themselves.
             }
             // The Help dialog also clears itself in `handle_dialog_key`
@@ -2239,6 +2266,7 @@ impl FileManager {
                 DialogState::ScreenList(d) => d.render(frame, area, &self.theme),
                 DialogState::EditHistory(d) => d.render(frame, area, &self.theme),
                 DialogState::FilteredView(d) => d.render(frame, area, &self.theme),
+                DialogState::Compare(d) => d.render(frame, area, &self.theme),
             }
         }
     }
@@ -2891,6 +2919,7 @@ fn dialog_label(d: &DialogState) -> String {
         DialogState::ScreenList(_) => "Screen list".to_string(),
         DialogState::EditHistory(_) => "Directory history".to_string(),
         DialogState::FilteredView(_) => "Filtered view".to_string(),
+        DialogState::Compare(_) => "Compare files".to_string(),
     }
 }
 
diff --git a/local/recipes/tui/tlc/source/src/keymap/mod.rs b/local/recipes/tui/tlc/source/src/keymap/mod.rs
index 9d94c9b93a..4096c794e9 100644
--- a/local/recipes/tui/tlc/source/src/keymap/mod.rs
+++ b/local/recipes/tui/tlc/source/src/keymap/mod.rs
@@ -106,6 +106,8 @@ pub enum Cmd {
     /// main event loop (`app.rs`) so that one `pending Ctrl-X`
     /// state is shared across the filemanager and the panels.
     CompareDirs,
+    /// Ctrl-d — compare two files (active panel cursor vs other panel cursor).
+    CompareFiles,
     /// Ctrl-F in the viewer — open the next file in the parent
     /// directory (wraps around at the end). Not bound by the
     /// keymap; handled by the viewer's own `handle_key` so the
@@ -220,6 +222,7 @@ impl Cmd {
             Cmd::HistoryBack => "History back",
             Cmd::HistoryForward => "History forward",
             Cmd::CompareDirs => "Compare directories",
+            Cmd::CompareFiles => "Compare files",
             Cmd::ViewerNextFile => "Viewer next file",
             Cmd::ViewerPrevFile => "Viewer previous file",
             Cmd::LayoutDialog => "Layout options",
@@ -429,6 +432,7 @@ pub fn default_keymap() -> Keymap {
     km.bind(Key::alt(';'), Cmd::InsertCurFile);
     km.bind(Key::f(20), Cmd::QuitQuiet);
     km.bind(Key::ctrl('z'), Cmd::Suspend);
+    km.bind(Key::ctrl('d'), Cmd::CompareFiles);
     // Alt-Shift-arrow (delivered once crossterm lands; harmless under termion).
     km.bind(
         Key {