diff --git a/apps/desktop/src-tauri/tauri.conf.json b/apps/desktop/src-tauri/tauri.conf.json
index d9fb877..8085c38 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src-tauri/tauri.conf.json
+++ b/apps/desktop/src-tauri/tauri.conf.json
@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 {
   "$schema": "https://schema.tauri.app/config/2",
   "productName": "ChatApp",
-  "version": "0.3.4",
+  "version": "0.3.5",
   "identifier": "com.meinname.chatapp",
   "build": {
     "beforeDevCommand": "pnpm vite:dev",
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/lib/useConversationMessages.ts b/apps/desktop/src/lib/useConversationMessages.ts
index ff3a51a..601c575 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/lib/useConversationMessages.ts
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/lib/useConversationMessages.ts
@@ -10,7 +10,7 @@ import {
   type MessageWithCipher,
   sendEncryptedMessage,
 } from '@chat-app/shared/chat';
-import { bytesToPgHex, pgHexToBytes } from '@chat-app/shared/supabase';
+import { bytesToPgHex, pgBytesToBytes } from '@chat-app/shared/supabase';
 import { useCallback, useEffect, useMemo, useRef, useState } from 'react';
 
 import { devLocalSecretStore } from './secretStore';
@@ -44,8 +44,8 @@ function rowToMessage(row: Record<string, unknown>): MessageWithCipher {
     editedAt: row.edited_at ? String(row.edited_at) : null,
     deletedAt: row.deleted_at ? String(row.deleted_at) : null,
     createdAt: String(row.created_at),
-    ciphertext: pgHexToBytes(String(row.ciphertext ?? '\\x')),
-    nonce: pgHexToBytes(String(row.nonce ?? '\\x')),
+    ciphertext: pgBytesToBytes(String(row.ciphertext ?? '\\x')),
+    nonce: pgBytesToBytes(String(row.nonce ?? '\\x')),
     keyVersion: typeof row.key_version === 'number' ? row.key_version : 1,
   };
 }
diff --git a/packages/shared/src/supabase/bytea.ts b/packages/shared/src/supabase/bytea.ts
index 285e0e3..cf94112 100644
--- a/packages/shared/src/supabase/bytea.ts
+++ b/packages/shared/src/supabase/bytea.ts
@@ -23,3 +23,20 @@ export function pgHexToBytes(hex: string): Uint8Array {
   }
   return out;
 }
+
+// Accepts either:
+//   - PostgREST/REST `\x<hex>` strings (what the .from('table').select() path
+//     returns for bytea), or
+//   - Realtime `postgres_changes` payloads, which encode bytea as plain
+//     base64 (no `\x` prefix).
+// Useful when the same row can arrive through both paths in the same UI.
+export function pgBytesToBytes(value: string): Uint8Array {
+  if (value.startsWith('\\x')) {
+    return pgHexToBytes(value);
+  }
+  // Assume base64 (the realtime serializer's default for bytea).
+  const bin = atob(value);
+  const out = new Uint8Array(bin.length);
+  for (let i = 0; i < bin.length; i++) out[i] = bin.charCodeAt(i);
+  return out;
+}