diff --git a/playwright.config.js b/playwright.config.js
index 808705d..0bc91de 100644
--- a/playwright.config.js
+++ b/playwright.config.js
@@ -4,6 +4,10 @@ module.exports = defineConfig({
 	testDir: './tests/e2e',
 	timeout: 30_000,
 	workers: 1,
+	// Retry in CI so a single transient Playground hiccup (e.g. a slow
+	// wp-admin boot on a loaded runner) self-heals instead of failing the
+	// whole smoke job. Runs against an ephemeral WordPress, so retries are safe.
+	retries: process.env.CI ? 2 : 0,
 	expect: {
 		timeout: 30_000,
 	},