diff --git a/internal/database/postgres.go b/internal/database/postgres.go
index 8ba552d..2cde849 100644
--- a/internal/database/postgres.go
+++ b/internal/database/postgres.go
@@ -4,6 +4,7 @@ import (
 	"context"
 	"database/sql"
 	"fmt"
+	"strings"
 
 	_ "github.com/lib/pq"
 )
@@ -297,15 +298,29 @@ func (s *PostgresStore) GetChildren(ctx context.Context, revisionID int64, paren
 
 // SearchOptions searches for options matching a query.
 func (s *PostgresStore) SearchOptions(ctx context.Context, revisionID int64, query string, filters SearchFilters) ([]*Option, error) {
-	// Use PostgreSQL full-text search
-	baseQuery := `
-		SELECT id, revision_id, name, parent_path, type, default_value, example, description, read_only
-		FROM options
-		WHERE revision_id = $1
-		AND to_tsvector('english', name || ' ' || COALESCE(description, '')) @@ plainto_tsquery('english', $2)`
+	var baseQuery string
+	var args []interface{}
+	argNum := 1
 
-	args := []interface{}{revisionID, query}
-	argNum := 3
+	// If the query looks like an option path (contains dots), prioritize name-based matching.
+	if strings.Contains(query, ".") {
+		baseQuery = `
+			SELECT id, revision_id, name, parent_path, type, default_value, example, description, read_only
+			FROM options
+			WHERE revision_id = $1
+			AND (name = $2 OR name LIKE $3)`
+		args = []interface{}{revisionID, query, query + ".%"}
+		argNum = 4
+	} else {
+		// For non-path queries, use PostgreSQL full-text search
+		baseQuery = `
+			SELECT id, revision_id, name, parent_path, type, default_value, example, description, read_only
+			FROM options
+			WHERE revision_id = $1
+			AND to_tsvector('english', name || ' ' || COALESCE(description, '')) @@ plainto_tsquery('english', $2)`
+		args = []interface{}{revisionID, query}
+		argNum = 3
+	}
 
 	if filters.Type != "" {
 		baseQuery += fmt.Sprintf(" AND type = $%d", argNum)
diff --git a/internal/database/sqlite.go b/internal/database/sqlite.go
index 1e0e241..e2be387 100644
--- a/internal/database/sqlite.go
+++ b/internal/database/sqlite.go
@@ -316,39 +316,62 @@ func (s *SQLiteStore) GetChildren(ctx context.Context, revisionID int64, parentP
 
 // SearchOptions searches for options matching a query.
 func (s *SQLiteStore) SearchOptions(ctx context.Context, revisionID int64, query string, filters SearchFilters) ([]*Option, error) {
-	// Use SQLite FTS5 for full-text search
-	baseQuery := `
-		SELECT o.id, o.revision_id, o.name, o.parent_path, o.type, o.default_value, o.example, o.description, o.read_only
-		FROM options o
-		INNER JOIN options_fts fts ON o.id = fts.rowid
-		WHERE o.revision_id = ?
-		AND options_fts MATCH ?`
+	var baseQuery string
+	var args []interface{}
 
-	// Escape the query for FTS5 by wrapping in double quotes for literal matching.
-	// This prevents special characters (dots, colons, etc.) from being interpreted as operators.
-	// Also escape any double quotes within the query.
-	escapedQuery := `"` + strings.ReplaceAll(query, `"`, `""`) + `"`
-	args := []interface{}{revisionID, escapedQuery}
+	// If the query looks like an option path (contains dots), prioritize name-based matching.
+	// This ensures "services.nginx" finds "services.nginx.*" options, not random options
+	// that happen to mention "nginx" in their description.
+	if strings.Contains(query, ".") {
+		// Use LIKE-based search for path queries, with ranking:
+		// 1. Exact match
+		// 2. Direct children (query.*)
+		// 3. All descendants (query.*.*)
+		baseQuery = `
+			SELECT id, revision_id, name, parent_path, type, default_value, example, description, read_only
+			FROM options
+			WHERE revision_id = ?
+			AND (name = ? OR name LIKE ?)`
+		args = []interface{}{revisionID, query, query + ".%"}
+	} else {
+		// For non-path queries, use FTS5 for full-text search on name and description
+		baseQuery = `
+			SELECT o.id, o.revision_id, o.name, o.parent_path, o.type, o.default_value, o.example, o.description, o.read_only
+			FROM options o
+			INNER JOIN options_fts fts ON o.id = fts.rowid
+			WHERE o.revision_id = ?
+			AND options_fts MATCH ?`
+
+		// Escape the query for FTS5 by wrapping in double quotes for literal matching.
+		escapedQuery := `"` + strings.ReplaceAll(query, `"`, `""`) + `"`
+		args = []interface{}{revisionID, escapedQuery}
+	}
+
+	// Use table alias for filters (works for both query types)
+	tbl := ""
+	if !strings.Contains(query, ".") {
+		tbl = "o."
+	}
 
 	if filters.Type != "" {
-		baseQuery += " AND o.type = ?"
+		baseQuery += " AND " + tbl + "type = ?"
 		args = append(args, filters.Type)
 	}
 
 	if filters.Namespace != "" {
-		baseQuery += " AND o.name LIKE ?"
+		baseQuery += " AND " + tbl + "name LIKE ?"
 		args = append(args, filters.Namespace+"%")
 	}
 
 	if filters.HasDefault != nil {
 		if *filters.HasDefault {
-			baseQuery += " AND o.default_value IS NOT NULL"
+			baseQuery += " AND " + tbl + "default_value IS NOT NULL"
 		} else {
-			baseQuery += " AND o.default_value IS NULL"
+			baseQuery += " AND " + tbl + "default_value IS NULL"
 		}
 	}
 
-	baseQuery += " ORDER BY o.name"
+	baseQuery += " ORDER BY " + tbl + "name"
 
 	if filters.Limit > 0 {
 		baseQuery += fmt.Sprintf(" LIMIT %d", filters.Limit)