diff --git a/bin/gstack-ios-qa-daemon b/bin/gstack-ios-qa-daemon
index b0ca2c6af..d644a54a8 100755
--- a/bin/gstack-ios-qa-daemon
+++ b/bin/gstack-ios-qa-daemon
@@ -22,6 +22,35 @@
 
 set -euo pipefail
 
+case "${1:-}" in
+  -h|--help)
+    cat <<'EOF'
+Usage:
+  gstack-ios-qa-daemon [--tailnet]
+  gstack-ios-qa-daemon --help
+
+Mac-side broker for /ios-qa and /ios-design-review. By default it binds a
+loopback listener for a USB-connected iPhone running the in-app StateServer.
+Pass --tailnet to also open the Tailscale listener after the local tailscaled
+identity probe succeeds.
+
+Options:
+  --tailnet   Enable the authenticated tailnet listener in addition to loopback.
+  -h, --help  Print this help and exit without starting the daemon.
+
+Environment:
+  GSTACK_IOS_DAEMON_PORT       Loopback listener port. Default: 9099.
+  GSTACK_IOS_TARGET_UDID       Target iOS device UDID. Optional.
+  GSTACK_IOS_TARGET_BUNDLE_ID  Bundle ID hosting StateServer. Default: com.gstack.iosqa.fixture.
+
+Readiness:
+  The daemon prints "READY: port=<n> pid=<pid>" once the listener is bound.
+  Probe local health with: curl -sf http://127.0.0.1:${GSTACK_IOS_DAEMON_PORT:-9099}/healthz
+EOF
+    exit 0
+    ;;
+esac
+
 SCRIPT_DIR="$(cd "$(dirname "$0")" && pwd)"
 GSTACK_DIR="$(cd "$SCRIPT_DIR/.." && pwd)"
 ENTRY="$GSTACK_DIR/ios-qa/daemon/src/index.ts"
diff --git a/test/ios-qa-daemon-cli.test.ts b/test/ios-qa-daemon-cli.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..66b01a61c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/test/ios-qa-daemon-cli.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,38 @@
+/**
+ * G6 rider (#1932): `gstack-ios-qa-daemon --help` started the daemon (it
+ * exec'd bun with every argument). Help must print and exit without ever
+ * reaching the runtime. A stub `bun` first on PATH records any launch.
+ */
+import { describe, expect, test } from 'bun:test';
+import * as fs from 'fs';
+import * as os from 'os';
+import * as path from 'path';
+
+const ROOT = path.resolve(import.meta.dir, '..');
+const DAEMON = `${ROOT}/bin/gstack-ios-qa-daemon`;
+
+describe('gstack-ios-qa-daemon --help', () => {
+  for (const flag of ['--help', '-h']) {
+    test(`${flag} prints usage and never starts the daemon`, () => {
+      const dir = fs.mkdtempSync(path.join(os.tmpdir(), 'ios-qa-daemon-help-'));
+      try {
+        const marker = path.join(dir, 'daemon-started');
+        fs.writeFileSync(path.join(dir, 'bun'), `#!/usr/bin/env bash\necho started > "${marker}"\n`, { mode: 0o755 });
+        const r = Bun.spawnSync(['bash', DAEMON, flag], {
+          env: { ...process.env, PATH: `${dir}${path.delimiter}${process.env.PATH ?? ''}`, HOME: dir },
+          stdout: 'pipe',
+          stderr: 'pipe',
+          timeout: 10_000,
+        });
+        expect(r.exitCode).toBe(0);
+        const out = r.stdout.toString();
+        expect(out).toContain('Usage:');
+        expect(out).toContain('--tailnet');
+        expect(out).toContain('GSTACK_IOS_DAEMON_PORT');
+        expect(fs.existsSync(marker)).toBe(false);
+      } finally {
+        fs.rmSync(dir, { recursive: true, force: true });
+      }
+    });
+  }
+});