diff --git a/esphome/core/application.cpp b/esphome/core/application.cpp
index 4fc28e092e..8a771a1dd0 100644
--- a/esphome/core/application.cpp
+++ b/esphome/core/application.cpp
@@ -214,11 +214,16 @@ void Application::process_dump_config_() {
 
 void Application::feed_wdt() {
   // Cold entry: callers without a millis() timestamp in hand. Fetches the
-  // time and takes the same rate-limit path as feed_wdt_with_time().
+  // time and takes the same rate-limit paths as feed_wdt_with_time().
   uint32_t now = millis();
   if (now - this->last_wdt_feed_ > WDT_FEED_INTERVAL_MS) {
     this->feed_wdt_slow_(now);
   }
+#ifdef USE_STATUS_LED
+  if (now - this->last_status_led_service_ > STATUS_LED_DISPATCH_INTERVAL_MS) {
+    this->service_status_led_slow_(now);
+  }
+#endif
 }
 
 void HOT Application::feed_wdt_slow_(uint32_t time) {
@@ -226,27 +231,36 @@ void HOT Application::feed_wdt_slow_(uint32_t time) {
   // confirmed the WDT_FEED_INTERVAL_MS rate limit was exceeded.
   arch_feed_wdt();
   this->last_wdt_feed_ = time;
-#ifdef USE_STATUS_LED
-  if (status_led::global_status_led != nullptr) {
-    auto *sl = status_led::global_status_led;
-    uint8_t sl_state = sl->get_component_state() & COMPONENT_STATE_MASK;
-    if (sl_state == COMPONENT_STATE_LOOP_DONE) {
-      // status_led only transitions to LOOP_DONE from inside its own loop() (after the
-      // first idle-path dispatch), so its pin is already initialized by pre_setup() and
-      // its setup() has already run. Re-dispatch only if an error or warning bit has been
-      // set since; otherwise skip entirely.
-      if ((this->app_state_ & STATUS_LED_MASK) == 0)
-        return;
-      sl->enable_loop();
-    } else if (sl_state != COMPONENT_STATE_LOOP) {
-      // CONSTRUCTION/SETUP/FAILED: not our job — App::setup() drives the lifecycle.
-      return;
-    }
-    sl->loop();
-  }
-#endif
 }
 
+#ifdef USE_STATUS_LED
+void HOT Application::service_status_led_slow_(uint32_t time) {
+  // Callers (feed_wdt(), feed_wdt_with_time()) have already confirmed the
+  // STATUS_LED_DISPATCH_INTERVAL_MS rate limit was exceeded. Rate-limited
+  // separately from arch_feed_wdt() so the LED blink pattern stays readable
+  // (status_led error blink period is 250 ms) while HAL watchdog pokes can
+  // still run at the much coarser WDT_FEED_INTERVAL_MS cadence.
+  this->last_status_led_service_ = time;
+  if (status_led::global_status_led == nullptr)
+    return;
+  auto *sl = status_led::global_status_led;
+  uint8_t sl_state = sl->get_component_state() & COMPONENT_STATE_MASK;
+  if (sl_state == COMPONENT_STATE_LOOP_DONE) {
+    // status_led only transitions to LOOP_DONE from inside its own loop() (after the
+    // first idle-path dispatch), so its pin is already initialized by pre_setup() and
+    // its setup() has already run. Re-dispatch only if an error or warning bit has been
+    // set since; otherwise skip entirely.
+    if ((this->app_state_ & STATUS_LED_MASK) == 0)
+      return;
+    sl->enable_loop();
+  } else if (sl_state != COMPONENT_STATE_LOOP) {
+    // CONSTRUCTION/SETUP/FAILED: not our job — App::setup() drives the lifecycle.
+    return;
+  }
+  sl->loop();
+}
+#endif
+
 bool Application::any_component_has_status_flag_(uint8_t flag) const {
   // Walk all components (not just looping ones) so non-looping components'
   // status bits are respected. Only called from the slow-path clear helpers
diff --git a/esphome/core/application.h b/esphome/core/application.h
index 65fb8b1e4e..5ac6d020ab 100644
--- a/esphome/core/application.h
+++ b/esphome/core/application.h
@@ -237,7 +237,8 @@ class Application {
   /// this threshold triggers a real feed naturally.
   /// Safety margins vs. platform watchdog timeouts:
   ///   - ESP32 task WDT default (5 s): ~16x
-  ///   - ESP8266 soft WDT (~1.6 s):    ~5x
+  ///   - ESP8266 soft WDT (~1.6 s):    ~5x  <-- floor case; any future change
+  ///                                             must keep comfortable margin here
   ///   - ESP8266 HW WDT (~6 s):        ~20x
   static constexpr uint32_t WDT_FEED_INTERVAL_MS = 300;
 
@@ -245,14 +246,33 @@ class Application {
   /// timestamp in hand. Out of line to keep call sites tiny.
   void feed_wdt();
 
+#ifdef USE_STATUS_LED
+  /// Dispatch interval for the status LED update. Deliberately shorter than
+  /// WDT_FEED_INTERVAL_MS because the status LED error blink has a 250 ms
+  /// period (status_led.cpp:ERROR_PERIOD_MS) and a 150 ms on-window; the
+  /// dispatch cadence must be short enough to render that blink without
+  /// aliasing. Sampling every 100 ms yields an on/off observation inside
+  /// every error period with headroom for the 250 ms warning on-window.
+  static constexpr uint32_t STATUS_LED_DISPATCH_INTERVAL_MS = 100;
+#endif
+
   /// Feed the task watchdog, hot entry. Callers that already have a
   /// millis() timestamp pay only a load + sub + branch on the common
-  /// (no-op) path. The actual arch feed + status LED update live in
-  /// feed_wdt_slow_.
+  /// (no-op) path. The actual arch feed lives in feed_wdt_slow_.
+  /// When USE_STATUS_LED is compiled in, also gates a separate (shorter)
+  /// interval for dispatching status_led so the LED blink pattern stays
+  /// readable even though arch_feed_wdt pokes are now rate-limited at
+  /// 300 ms. The two rate limits are independent so raising
+  /// WDT_FEED_INTERVAL_MS does not distort the LED cadence.
   void ESPHOME_ALWAYS_INLINE feed_wdt_with_time(uint32_t time) {
     if (static_cast<uint32_t>(time - this->last_wdt_feed_) > WDT_FEED_INTERVAL_MS) [[unlikely]] {
       this->feed_wdt_slow_(time);
     }
+#ifdef USE_STATUS_LED
+    if (static_cast<uint32_t>(time - this->last_status_led_service_) > STATUS_LED_DISPATCH_INTERVAL_MS) [[unlikely]] {
+      this->service_status_led_slow_(time);
+    }
+#endif
   }
 
   void reboot();
@@ -418,11 +438,21 @@ class Application {
   /// Caller must ensure dump_config_at_ < components_.size().
   void __attribute__((noinline)) process_dump_config_();
 
-  /// Slow path for feed_wdt(): actually calls arch_feed_wdt(), updates
-  /// last_wdt_feed_, and re-dispatches the status LED. Out of line so the
-  /// inline wrapper stays tiny.
+  /// Slow path for feed_wdt(): actually calls arch_feed_wdt() and updates
+  /// last_wdt_feed_. Out of line so the inline wrapper stays tiny. Does NOT
+  /// touch status_led — that's gated separately via service_status_led_slow_
+  /// because the two rate limits have very different safe ranges (~ seconds
+  /// for WDT, < 250 ms for LED blink rendering).
   void feed_wdt_slow_(uint32_t time);
 
+#ifdef USE_STATUS_LED
+  /// Slow path for the status_led dispatch rate limit. Runs the status_led
+  /// component's loop() based on its state (LOOP / LOOP_DONE with status
+  /// bits set), and updates last_status_led_service_. Out of line to keep
+  /// the feed_wdt_with_time hot path a couple of load+branch sequences.
+  void service_status_led_slow_(uint32_t time);
+#endif
+
   /// Perform a delay while also monitoring socket file descriptors for readiness
 #ifdef USE_HOST
   // select() fallback path is too complex to inline (host platform)
@@ -476,6 +506,10 @@ class Application {
   uint32_t last_loop_{0};
   uint32_t loop_component_start_time_{0};
   uint32_t last_wdt_feed_{0};  // millis() of most recent arch_feed_wdt(); rate-limits feed_wdt() hot path
+#ifdef USE_STATUS_LED
+  // millis() of most recent status_led dispatch; rate-limits independently of last_wdt_feed_
+  uint32_t last_status_led_service_{0};
+#endif
 
 #ifdef USE_HOST
   int max_fd_{-1};  // Highest file descriptor number for select()
@@ -620,7 +654,9 @@ inline void ESPHOME_ALWAYS_INLINE Application::loop() {
 #ifdef USE_RUNTIME_STATS
   uint32_t loop_before_end_us = micros();
   uint64_t loop_before_scheduled_us = ComponentRuntimeStats::global_recorded_us - loop_recorded_snap;
-  // Default tail_start to end-of-before so tail_us == 0 on Phase A-only ticks.
+  // Default tail_start to end-of-before so tail_us on Phase A-only ticks
+  // captures only the small gate-check + record_loop_active prefix between
+  // here and the loop_now_us sample below (not strictly zero, but tiny).
   uint32_t loop_tail_start_us = loop_before_end_us;
 #endif