diff --git a/quartz/src/commonMain/kotlin/com/vitorpamplona/quartz/nip01Core/relay/client/single/basic/BasicRelayClient.kt b/quartz/src/commonMain/kotlin/com/vitorpamplona/quartz/nip01Core/relay/client/single/basic/BasicRelayClient.kt
index 5992cecdba..b495d42dbb 100644
--- a/quartz/src/commonMain/kotlin/com/vitorpamplona/quartz/nip01Core/relay/client/single/basic/BasicRelayClient.kt
+++ b/quartz/src/commonMain/kotlin/com/vitorpamplona/quartz/nip01Core/relay/client/single/basic/BasicRelayClient.kt
@@ -136,7 +136,9 @@ open class BasicRelayClient(
             socket?.connect()
         } catch (e: Exception) {
             if (e is CancellationException) throw e
-            listener.onCannotConnect(this, "Error when trying to connect: ${e.message ?: e::class.simpleName}")
+            val typeName = e::class.simpleName
+            val detail = e.message?.let { "$it ($typeName)" } ?: (typeName ?: "unknown error")
+            listener.onCannotConnect(this, "Error when trying to connect: $detail")
             listener.onDisconnected(this)
             dontTryAgainForALongTime()
             markConnectionAsClosed()
@@ -187,9 +189,15 @@ open class BasicRelayClient(
             } else {
                 socket?.disconnect()
 
-                // suppression rules below must match the raw message; displayMsg is for listener output only
+                // suppression rules below must match the raw message; displayMsg is for listener output only.
+                // Always include the exception's class name: message text is
+                // localized and inconsistent across platforms, but the type
+                // (SocketTimeoutException / UnknownHostException / SSLHandshakeException /
+                // ConnectException …) is stable and lets listeners classify a failure
+                // reliably — a busy relay (timeout) vs a dead one (bad domain / TLS).
                 val msg = t.message
-                val displayMsg = msg ?: t::class.simpleName
+                val typeName = t::class.simpleName
+                val displayMsg = if (msg != null) "$msg ($typeName)" else (typeName ?: "unknown error")
 
                 // checks if this is an actual failure. Closing the socket generates an onFailure as well.
                 // ignore tor errors.
diff --git a/quartz/src/commonTest/kotlin/com/vitorpamplona/quartz/nip01Core/relay/client/single/basic/BasicRelayClientTest.kt b/quartz/src/commonTest/kotlin/com/vitorpamplona/quartz/nip01Core/relay/client/single/basic/BasicRelayClientTest.kt
index 065ef0fcaf..7a7caaec58 100644
--- a/quartz/src/commonTest/kotlin/com/vitorpamplona/quartz/nip01Core/relay/client/single/basic/BasicRelayClientTest.kt
+++ b/quartz/src/commonTest/kotlin/com/vitorpamplona/quartz/nip01Core/relay/client/single/basic/BasicRelayClientTest.kt
@@ -72,13 +72,15 @@ class BasicRelayClientTest {
     }
 
     @Test
-    fun onFailureWithMessageKeepsExistingFormat() {
+    fun onFailureWithMessageAppendsExceptionClassName() {
         val (socket, listener) = connectAndCapture()
 
         socket.onFailure(Exception("Connection reset"), null, null)
 
+        // The exception type is appended so listeners can classify the failure by
+        // its stable class name rather than by localized message text.
         assertEquals(
-            listOf("WebSocket Failure: Connection reset"),
+            listOf("WebSocket Failure: Connection reset (Exception)"),
             listener.cannotConnectMessages,
         )
     }