diff --git a/src/research_handler.py b/src/research_handler.py
index b996f089f..b3af3b8e5 100644
--- a/src/research_handler.py
+++ b/src/research_handler.py
@@ -390,7 +390,6 @@ class ResearchHandler:
 
     def get_status(self, session_id: str) -> Optional[dict]:
         """Get current research status for a session."""
-        avg = self.get_avg_duration()
         if session_id in self._active_tasks:
             entry = self._active_tasks[session_id]
             result = {
@@ -399,6 +398,14 @@ class ResearchHandler:
                 "query": entry["query"],
                 "started_at": entry["started_at"],
             }
+            # avg_duration is a historical figure over completed reports on
+            # disk; get_avg_duration() globs and JSON-parses the whole research
+            # dir, so compute it at most once per active stream (memoized on the
+            # entry) instead of on every ~1s SSE poll. The disk branch below
+            # never used it, so it no longer pays that cost at all.
+            if "_avg_duration" not in entry:
+                entry["_avg_duration"] = self.get_avg_duration()
+            avg = entry["_avg_duration"]
             if avg is not None:
                 result["avg_duration"] = round(avg, 1)
             return result
diff --git a/tests/test_research_status_avg_duration.py b/tests/test_research_status_avg_duration.py
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..d44c63242
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/test_research_status_avg_duration.py
@@ -0,0 +1,41 @@
+"""get_status must not rescan the whole research dir on every SSE poll.
+
+get_avg_duration() globs and JSON-parses every file under the research data dir.
+get_status() called it unconditionally on each poll, including for sessions that
+are not active (the common case while a client polls a finished report). It is
+now computed only for active sessions and memoized on the entry.
+"""
+from src.research_handler import ResearchHandler
+
+
+def _handler():
+    h = ResearchHandler.__new__(ResearchHandler)
+    h._active_tasks = {}
+    return h
+
+
+def test_inactive_session_does_not_compute_avg(monkeypatch):
+    h = _handler()
+    calls = []
+    monkeypatch.setattr(h, "get_avg_duration", lambda: (calls.append(1), 5.0)[1])
+    # Unknown session, no disk file -> None, and no expensive avg scan.
+    assert h.get_status("missing-session") is None
+    assert calls == []
+
+
+def test_active_session_memoizes_avg(monkeypatch):
+    h = _handler()
+    h._active_tasks["s1"] = {
+        "status": "running", "progress": {}, "query": "q", "started_at": 0,
+    }
+    calls = []
+    monkeypatch.setattr(h, "get_avg_duration", lambda: (calls.append(1), 12.0)[1])
+
+    r1 = h.get_status("s1")
+    r2 = h.get_status("s1")
+    r3 = h.get_status("s1")
+
+    assert r1["avg_duration"] == 12.0
+    assert r2["avg_duration"] == 12.0 and r3["avg_duration"] == 12.0
+    # Computed once across many polls, not once per poll.
+    assert len(calls) == 1