diff --git a/crates/cli/build.rs b/crates/cli/build.rs
index 1754c3f4c99..6b4aca48fbf 100644
--- a/crates/cli/build.rs
+++ b/crates/cli/build.rs
@@ -196,20 +196,29 @@ fn generate_template_files() {
     write_if_changed(&dest_path, generated_code.as_bytes()).expect("Failed to write embedded_templates.rs");
 }
 
-#[derive(Debug)]
+#[derive(Debug, serde::Serialize)]
 struct TemplateInfo {
     id: String,
     description: String,
+    #[serde(serialize_with = "serialize_option_string_as_empty")]
     server_source: Option<String>,
+    #[serde(serialize_with = "serialize_option_string_as_empty")]
     client_source: Option<String>,
     server_lang: Option<String>,
     client_lang: Option<String>,
+    client_framework: Option<String>,
+}
+
+#[derive(serde::Serialize)]
+struct TemplatesJson<'a> {
+    templates: &'a [TemplateInfo],
 }
 
 #[derive(serde::Deserialize)]
 struct TemplateMetadata {
     description: String,
     client_lang: Option<String>,
+    client_framework: Option<String>,
     server_lang: Option<String>,
 }
 
@@ -267,6 +276,7 @@ fn discover_templates(templates_dir: &Path) -> Vec<TemplateInfo> {
                 client_source,
                 server_lang: metadata.server_lang,
                 client_lang: metadata.client_lang,
+                client_framework: metadata.client_framework,
             });
         }
     }
@@ -276,57 +286,15 @@ fn discover_templates(templates_dir: &Path) -> Vec<TemplateInfo> {
 }
 
 fn generate_templates_json(templates: &[TemplateInfo]) -> String {
-    let mut json = String::from("{\n  \"highlights\": [\n");
-
-    for template in templates {
-        if template.id.contains("react") {
-            json.push_str("    { \"name\": \"React\", \"template_id\": \"");
-            json.push_str(&template.id);
-            json.push_str("\" }\n");
-            break;
-        }
-    }
-
-    json.push_str("  ],\n  \"templates\": [\n");
-
-    for (i, template) in templates.iter().enumerate() {
-        json.push_str("    {\n");
-        json.push_str(&format!("      \"id\": \"{}\",\n", template.id));
-        json.push_str(&format!("      \"description\": \"{}\",\n", template.description));
-
-        if let Some(ref server_source) = template.server_source {
-            json.push_str(&format!("      \"server_source\": \"{}\",\n", server_source));
-        } else {
-            json.push_str("      \"server_source\": \"\",\n");
-        }
-
-        if let Some(ref client_source) = template.client_source {
-            json.push_str(&format!("      \"client_source\": \"{}\",\n", client_source));
-        } else {
-            json.push_str("      \"client_source\": \"\",\n");
-        }
-
-        if let Some(ref server_lang) = template.server_lang {
-            json.push_str(&format!("      \"server_lang\": \"{}\",\n", server_lang));
-        } else {
-            json.push_str("      \"server_lang\": \"\",\n");
-        }
-
-        if let Some(ref client_lang) = template.client_lang {
-            json.push_str(&format!("      \"client_lang\": \"{}\"", client_lang));
-        } else {
-            json.push_str("      \"client_lang\": \"\"");
-        }
-
-        json.push_str("\n    }");
-        if i < templates.len() - 1 {
-            json.push(',');
-        }
-        json.push('\n');
-    }
+    let payload = TemplatesJson { templates };
+    serde_json::to_string_pretty(&payload).expect("Failed to serialize templates JSON")
+}
 
-    json.push_str("  ]\n}");
-    json
+fn serialize_option_string_as_empty<S>(value: &Option<String>, serializer: S) -> Result<S::Ok, S::Error>
+where
+    S: serde::Serializer,
+{
+    serializer.serialize_str(value.as_deref().unwrap_or(""))
 }
 
 fn generate_template_entry(code: &mut String, template_path: &Path, source: &str, manifest_dir: &Path) {
diff --git a/crates/cli/src/subcommands/init.rs b/crates/cli/src/subcommands/init.rs
index 58d567ef85d..a873ee2324f 100644
--- a/crates/cli/src/subcommands/init.rs
+++ b/crates/cli/src/subcommands/init.rs
@@ -5,12 +5,13 @@ use anyhow::Context;
 use clap::{Arg, ArgMatches};
 use colored::Colorize;
 use convert_case::{Case, Casing};
-use dialoguer::{theme::ColorfulTheme, Confirm, Input, Select};
+use dialoguer::{theme::ColorfulTheme, Confirm, FuzzySelect, Input, Select};
 use reqwest::Url;
 use serde::{Deserialize, Serialize};
 use serde_json::json;
 use spacetimedb_client_api_messages::name::parse_database_name;
 use spacetimedb_data_structures::map::{HashCollectionExt as _, HashMap};
+use std::collections::BTreeMap;
 use std::fs;
 use std::path::{Path, PathBuf};
 use std::time::{SystemTime, UNIX_EPOCH};
@@ -35,17 +36,12 @@ pub struct TemplateDefinition {
     pub server_lang: Option<String>,
     #[serde(default)]
     pub client_lang: Option<String>,
-}
-
-#[derive(Debug, Clone, Deserialize, Serialize)]
-pub struct HighlightDefinition {
-    pub name: String,
-    pub template_id: String,
+    #[serde(default)]
+    pub client_framework: Option<String>,
 }
 
 #[derive(Debug, Deserialize)]
 struct TemplatesList {
-    highlights: Vec<HighlightDefinition>,
     templates: Vec<TemplateDefinition>,
 }
 
@@ -195,11 +191,11 @@ pub fn cli() -> clap::Command {
         )
 }
 
-pub async fn fetch_templates_list() -> anyhow::Result<(Vec<HighlightDefinition>, Vec<TemplateDefinition>)> {
+pub async fn fetch_templates_list() -> anyhow::Result<Vec<TemplateDefinition>> {
     let content = embedded::get_templates_json();
     let templates_list: TemplatesList = serde_json::from_str(content).context("Failed to parse templates list JSON")?;
 
-    Ok((templates_list.highlights, templates_list.templates))
+    Ok(templates_list.templates)
 }
 
 pub async fn check_and_prompt_login(config: &mut Config) -> anyhow::Result<bool> {
@@ -680,7 +676,7 @@ async fn get_template_config_non_interactive(
     // Check if template is provided
     if let Some(template_str) = options.template.as_ref() {
         // Check if it's a builtin template
-        let (_, templates) = fetch_templates_list().await?;
+        let templates = fetch_templates_list().await?;
         return create_template_config_from_template_str(project_name, project_path, template_str, &templates);
     }
 
@@ -745,7 +741,7 @@ async fn get_template_config_interactive(
     if let Some(template_str) = options.template.as_ref() {
         println!("{} {}", "Template:".bold(), template_str);
 
-        let (_, templates) = fetch_templates_list().await?;
+        let templates = fetch_templates_list().await?;
         return create_template_config_from_template_str(project_name, project_path, template_str, &templates);
     }
 
@@ -769,36 +765,72 @@ async fn get_template_config_interactive(
     }
 
     // Fully interactive mode - prompt for template/language selection
-    let (highlights, templates) = fetch_templates_list().await?;
+    let templates = fetch_templates_list().await?;
+
+    // First menu: all language combinations from templates + GitHub + None.
+    let mut templates_by_lang: BTreeMap<String, Vec<usize>> = BTreeMap::new();
+    for (idx, template) in templates.iter().enumerate() {
+        let server_lang = template.server_lang.as_deref();
+        let client_lang = template.client_framework.as_deref().or(template.client_lang.as_deref());
+        let lang = if server_lang == client_lang {
+            format_language_label(server_lang)
+        } else {
+            format!(
+                "{}/{}",
+                format_language_label(server_lang),
+                format_language_label(client_lang),
+            )
+        };
+        templates_by_lang.entry(lang).or_default().push(idx);
+    }
 
-    let mut client_choices: Vec<String> = highlights
+    let lang_keys: Vec<String> = templates_by_lang.keys().cloned().collect();
+    let mut lang_items: Vec<String> = templates_by_lang
         .iter()
-        .map(|h| {
-            let template = templates.iter().find(|t| t.id == h.template_id);
-            match template {
-                Some(t) => format!("{} - {}", h.name, t.description),
-                None => h.name.clone(),
-            }
+        .map(|(lang, template_indices)| {
+            let count = template_indices.len();
+            let template_word = if count == 1 { "template" } else { "templates" };
+            format!("{lang} ({count} {template_word})")
         })
         .collect();
-    client_choices.push("Use Template - Choose from a list of built-in template projects or clone an existing SpacetimeDB project from GitHub".to_string());
-    client_choices.push("None".to_string());
+    lang_items.push("Clone from GitHub (owner/repo or git URL)".to_string());
+    lang_items.push("None".to_string());
 
-    let client_selection = Select::with_theme(&theme)
-        .with_prompt("Select a client type for your project (you can add other clients later)")
-        .items(&client_choices)
+    let client_selection = FuzzySelect::with_theme(&theme)
+        .with_prompt("Select a language (type to filter)")
+        .items(&lang_items)
         .default(0)
         .interact()?;
 
-    let other_index = highlights.len();
-    let none_index = highlights.len() + 1;
-
-    if client_selection < highlights.len() {
-        let highlight = &highlights[client_selection];
-        let template = templates
-            .iter()
-            .find(|t| t.id == highlight.template_id)
-            .ok_or_else(|| anyhow::anyhow!("Template {} not found", highlight.template_id))?;
+    let github_clone_index = lang_keys.len();
+    let none_index = lang_keys.len() + 1;
+
+    if client_selection < lang_keys.len() {
+        let selected_lang = &lang_keys[client_selection];
+        let template_indices = templates_by_lang
+            .get(selected_lang)
+            .ok_or_else(|| anyhow::anyhow!("No templates found for selected language"))?;
+
+        let template = if template_indices.len() > 1 {
+            let template_items: Vec<String> = template_indices
+                .iter()
+                .map(|&idx| {
+                    let template = &templates[idx];
+                    format!("{} - {}", template.id, template.description)
+                })
+                .collect();
+
+            let pair_prompt = format!("Templates available for {selected_lang} (type to filter)");
+            let template_selection = FuzzySelect::with_theme(&theme)
+                .with_prompt(&pair_prompt)
+                .items(&template_items)
+                .default(0)
+                .interact()?;
+
+            &templates[template_indices[template_selection]]
+        } else {
+            &templates[template_indices[0]]
+        };
 
         Ok(TemplateConfig {
             project_name,
@@ -810,44 +842,23 @@ async fn get_template_config_interactive(
             template_def: Some(template.clone()),
             use_local: true,
         })
-    } else if client_selection == other_index {
-        println!("\n{}", "Available built-in templates:".bold());
-        for template in &templates {
-            println!("  {} - {}", template.id, template.description);
-        }
-        println!();
-
+    } else if client_selection == github_clone_index {
         loop {
-            let template_id = Input::<String>::with_theme(&theme)
-                .with_prompt("Template ID or GitHub repository (owner/repo) or git URL")
+            let repo_input = Input::<String>::with_theme(&theme)
+                .with_prompt("GitHub repository (owner/repo) or git URL")
                 .interact_text()?
                 .trim()
                 .to_string();
-            let template_config = create_template_config_from_template_str(
+            if repo_input.is_empty() {
+                eprintln!("{}", "Please enter a GitHub repository.".bold());
+                continue;
+            }
+            break create_template_config_from_template_str(
                 project_name.clone(),
                 project_path.clone(),
-                &template_id,
+                &repo_input,
                 &templates,
             );
-            // If template_id looks like a builtin template ID (e.g. kebab-case, all lowercase, no slashes, alphanumeric and dashes only)
-            // then ensure that it is a valid builtin template ID, if not reprompt
-            let is_builtin_like = |s: &str| {
-                !s.is_empty()
-                    && !s.contains('/')
-                    && s.chars()
-                        .all(|c| c.is_ascii_lowercase() || c.is_ascii_digit() || c == '-')
-            };
-            if !is_builtin_like(&template_id) {
-                break template_config;
-            }
-            if templates.iter().any(|t| t.id == template_id) {
-                break template_config;
-            }
-            eprintln!(
-                "{}",
-                "Unrecognized format. Enter a built-in ID (e.g. \"rust-chat\"), a GitHub repo (\"owner/repo\"), or a git URL."
-                    .bold()
-            );
         }
     } else if client_selection == none_index {
         // Ask for server language only
@@ -880,6 +891,17 @@ async fn get_template_config_interactive(
     }
 }
 
+fn format_language_label(lang: Option<&str>) -> String {
+    match lang {
+        Some(value) if value.eq_ignore_ascii_case("rust") => "Rust".to_string(),
+        Some(value) if value.eq_ignore_ascii_case("csharp") || value.eq_ignore_ascii_case("c#") => "C#".to_string(),
+        Some(value) if value.eq_ignore_ascii_case("typescript") => "TypeScript".to_string(),
+        Some(value) if value.eq_ignore_ascii_case("cpp") || value.eq_ignore_ascii_case("c++") => "C++".to_string(),
+        Some(value) if !value.trim().is_empty() => value.to_string(),
+        _ => "None".to_string(),
+    }
+}
+
 fn clone_github_template(repo_input: &str, target: &Path, is_server_only: bool) -> anyhow::Result<()> {
     let is_git_url = |s: &str| {
         s.starts_with("git@") || s.starts_with("ssh://") || s.starts_with("http://") || s.starts_with("https://")
diff --git a/templates/angular-ts/.template.json b/templates/angular-ts/.template.json
index afc15dbf0e5..06c3ea9a227 100644
--- a/templates/angular-ts/.template.json
+++ b/templates/angular-ts/.template.json
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 {
   "description": "Angular web app with TypeScript server",
+  "client_framework": "Angular",
   "client_lang": "typescript",
   "server_lang": "typescript"
 }
diff --git a/templates/bun-ts/.template.json b/templates/bun-ts/.template.json
index f6a2ab3b67e..2d523dc53b8 100644
--- a/templates/bun-ts/.template.json
+++ b/templates/bun-ts/.template.json
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 {
   "description": "Bun TypeScript client and server template",
+  "client_framework": "Bun",
   "client_lang": "typescript",
   "server_lang": "typescript"
 }
diff --git a/templates/nextjs-ts/.template.json b/templates/nextjs-ts/.template.json
index 19b5fb62be2..85589e54e1c 100644
--- a/templates/nextjs-ts/.template.json
+++ b/templates/nextjs-ts/.template.json
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 {
   "description": "Next.js App Router with TypeScript server",
+  "client_framework": "Next.js",
   "client_lang": "typescript",
   "server_lang": "typescript"
 }
diff --git a/templates/nodejs-ts/.template.json b/templates/nodejs-ts/.template.json
index af38af2c866..bb21899d82f 100644
--- a/templates/nodejs-ts/.template.json
+++ b/templates/nodejs-ts/.template.json
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 {
   "description": "Node.js TypeScript client and server template",
+  "client_framework": "Node.js",
   "client_lang": "typescript",
   "server_lang": "typescript"
 }
diff --git a/templates/nuxt-ts/.template.json b/templates/nuxt-ts/.template.json
index 812ba61c574..ea34667b01e 100644
--- a/templates/nuxt-ts/.template.json
+++ b/templates/nuxt-ts/.template.json
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 {
   "description": "Nuxt web app with TypeScript server",
+  "client_framework": "Nuxt",
   "client_lang": "typescript",
   "server_lang": "typescript"
 }
diff --git a/templates/react-ts/.template.json b/templates/react-ts/.template.json
index a11db218e11..6dc635a7ccf 100644
--- a/templates/react-ts/.template.json
+++ b/templates/react-ts/.template.json
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 {
   "description": "React web app with TypeScript server",
+  "client_framework": "React",
   "client_lang": "typescript",
   "server_lang": "typescript"
 }
diff --git a/templates/remix-ts/.template.json b/templates/remix-ts/.template.json
index 924245a1bc9..6a2c68072c3 100644
--- a/templates/remix-ts/.template.json
+++ b/templates/remix-ts/.template.json
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 {
   "description": "Remix with TypeScript server",
+  "client_framework": "Remix",
   "client_lang": "typescript",
   "server_lang": "typescript"
 }
diff --git a/templates/svelte-ts/.template.json b/templates/svelte-ts/.template.json
index 2f7d4081e89..31bbd725c6a 100644
--- a/templates/svelte-ts/.template.json
+++ b/templates/svelte-ts/.template.json
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 {
   "description": "Svelte web app with TypeScript server",
+  "client_framework": "Svelte",
   "client_lang": "typescript",
   "server_lang": "typescript"
 }
diff --git a/templates/tanstack-ts/.template.json b/templates/tanstack-ts/.template.json
index d8cc9052acb..76ab7261836 100644
--- a/templates/tanstack-ts/.template.json
+++ b/templates/tanstack-ts/.template.json
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 {
   "description": "TanStack Start (React + TanStack Query/Router) with TypeScript server",
+  "client_framework": "TanStack",
   "client_lang": "typescript",
   "server_lang": "typescript"
 }
diff --git a/templates/vue-ts/.template.json b/templates/vue-ts/.template.json
index ea14a0674ad..e66e510a0b0 100644
--- a/templates/vue-ts/.template.json
+++ b/templates/vue-ts/.template.json
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 {
   "description": "Vue.js web app with TypeScript server",
+  "client_framework": "Vue.js",
   "client_lang": "typescript",
   "server_lang": "typescript"
 }