diff --git a/plugins/config-audit/commands/manifest.md b/plugins/config-audit/commands/manifest.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..072438a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/plugins/config-audit/commands/manifest.md
@@ -0,0 +1,78 @@
+---
+name: config-audit:manifest
+description: Show ranked token-source manifest — every CLAUDE.md, plugin, skill, MCP server, and hook ordered DESC by estimated tokens
+argument-hint: "[path] [--json]"
+allowed-tools: Read, Bash
+model: sonnet
+---
+
+# Config-Audit: Manifest
+
+Produce a ranked, single-table view of every token source loaded for a given repo path. Where `whats-active` shows separate tables per category, `manifest` collapses everything into one ordered list — making it easy to see what's costing the most regardless of category.
+
+## UX Rules (MANDATORY — from `.claude/rules/ux-rules.md`)
+
+1. **Never show raw JSON or stderr output.** Always use `--output-file` + `2>/dev/null`.
+2. **Narrate before acting.** Tell the user what you're about to do.
+3. **Read, don't dump.** Read the JSON file and render a formatted table.
+4. **End with context-sensitive next steps.**
+
+## Implementation
+
+### Step 1: Parse `$ARGUMENTS`
+
+First non-flag argument is the path (default `.`). Recognized flags:
+
+- `--json` — emit raw JSON instead of the rendered table.
+
+### Step 2: Run the CLI silently
+
+Tell the user: **"Building token-source manifest for `<path>`..."**
+
+```bash
+TMPFILE="/tmp/ca-manifest-$$.json"
+node ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/scanners/manifest.mjs <path> --output-file "$TMPFILE" 2>/dev/null; echo $?
+```
+
+**Exit code handling:**
+- `0` → continue
+- `3` → tell user: "Couldn't read configuration. Check that the path exists and is a directory." Stop.
+
+### Step 3: If `--json` was requested, cat the file and stop
+
+```bash
+cat "$TMPFILE"
+```
+
+Do NOT render the table in JSON mode.
+
+### Step 4: Read JSON and render
+
+Use the Read tool on `$TMPFILE`. Extract `meta.repoPath`, `total`, and `sources[]`. Render the top 20 sources (or fewer if the manifest is shorter):
+
+```markdown
+**Token-source manifest for `<repoPath>`** — ~{total} tokens at startup
+
+| Rank | Kind | Name | Source | Tokens |
+|------|------|------|--------|--------|
+| 1 | {kind} | `<name>` | {source} | ~{estimated_tokens} |
+| ... | ... | ... | ... | ... |
+
+_Estimates assume ~4 chars/token (Claude ballpark). Real token count varies ±15%._
+```
+
+If `sources.length > 20`, follow the table with: _"Showing top 20 of {N} sources. Run with `--json` to see the full list."_
+
+### Step 5: Suggest next steps
+
+```markdown
+**Next steps:**
+- `/config-audit tokens` — Opus-4.7 token-hotspot patterns (cache-breaking, redundant perms, deep imports, MCP budget)
+- `/config-audit whats-active` — same data grouped by category, with disable suggestions
+- `/config-audit feature-gap` — what *could* improve here, grouped by impact
+```
+
+Tone:
+- High total (>50k): empathetic — "That's a heavy startup cost; tokens bullet anything you'd otherwise spend on the actual conversation."
+- Moderate (10–50k): neutral — "Reasonable. Skim the top 5 to see if anything is unexpectedly large."
+- Low (<10k): encouraging — "Tight setup. The model has plenty of room for the actual work."
diff --git a/plugins/config-audit/scanners/manifest.mjs b/plugins/config-audit/scanners/manifest.mjs
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..986a185
--- /dev/null
+++ b/plugins/config-audit/scanners/manifest.mjs
@@ -0,0 +1,157 @@
+#!/usr/bin/env node
+
+/**
+ * Manifest scanner CLI (v5 N2) — produce a ranked list of every token source
+ * loaded for a given repo path. Built on top of readActiveConfig so the source
+ * inventory is identical to whats-active; this CLI flattens and ranks them.
+ *
+ * Output JSON shape:
+ *   {
+ *     meta: { repoPath, generatedAt, durationMs },
+ *     sources: [
+ *       { kind: 'claude-md'|'plugin'|'skill'|'mcp-server'|'hook',
+ *         name: string, source: string, estimated_tokens: number },
+ *       ...
+ *     ],
+ *     total: <sum of sources.estimated_tokens>
+ *   }
+ *
+ * Usage:
+ *   node manifest.mjs [path] [--json] [--output-file <path>]
+ *
+ * Exit codes: 0=ok, 3=unrecoverable error.
+ * Zero external dependencies.
+ */
+
+import { resolve } from 'node:path';
+import { writeFile, stat } from 'node:fs/promises';
+import { readActiveConfig } from './lib/active-config-reader.mjs';
+
+/**
+ * Flatten an activeConfig snapshot into a single ranked array of sources.
+ */
+export function buildManifest(activeConfig) {
+  const sources = [];
+
+  for (const f of activeConfig.claudeMd?.files || []) {
+    const tokens = estimateClaudeMdEntryTokens(f, activeConfig);
+    sources.push({
+      kind: 'claude-md',
+      name: f.path,
+      source: f.scope,
+      estimated_tokens: tokens,
+    });
+  }
+
+  for (const p of activeConfig.plugins || []) {
+    sources.push({
+      kind: 'plugin',
+      name: p.name,
+      source: p.path,
+      estimated_tokens: p.estimatedTokens || 0,
+    });
+  }
+
+  for (const s of activeConfig.skills || []) {
+    sources.push({
+      kind: 'skill',
+      name: s.name,
+      source: s.pluginName ? `plugin:${s.pluginName}` : s.source || 'user',
+      estimated_tokens: s.estimatedTokens || 0,
+    });
+  }
+
+  for (const m of activeConfig.mcpServers || []) {
+    if (m && m.enabled === false) continue;
+    sources.push({
+      kind: 'mcp-server',
+      name: m.name,
+      source: m.source || 'unknown',
+      estimated_tokens: m.estimatedTokens || 0,
+    });
+  }
+
+  for (const h of activeConfig.hooks || []) {
+    sources.push({
+      kind: 'hook',
+      name: `${h.event}${h.matcher ? `:${h.matcher}` : ''}`,
+      source: h.source || h.sourcePath || 'unknown',
+      estimated_tokens: h.estimatedTokens || 0,
+    });
+  }
+
+  sources.sort((a, b) => b.estimated_tokens - a.estimated_tokens);
+  const total = sources.reduce((s, x) => s + (x.estimated_tokens || 0), 0);
+  return { sources, total };
+}
+
+/**
+ * Distribute the cascade-level estimated tokens across the individual files
+ * proportional to their byte size. claudeMd.estimatedTokens is computed for
+ * the cascade as a whole, but for ranking we want per-file figures.
+ */
+function estimateClaudeMdEntryTokens(file, activeConfig) {
+  const totalBytes = activeConfig.claudeMd?.totalBytes || 0;
+  const totalTokens = activeConfig.claudeMd?.estimatedTokens || 0;
+  if (totalBytes === 0 || totalTokens === 0) return 0;
+  const share = (file.bytes || 0) / totalBytes;
+  return Math.round(totalTokens * share);
+}
+
+async function main() {
+  const args = process.argv.slice(2);
+  let targetPath = '.';
+  let outputFile = null;
+  let jsonMode = false;
+
+  for (let i = 0; i < args.length; i++) {
+    if (args[i] === '--json') jsonMode = true;
+    else if (args[i] === '--output-file' && args[i + 1]) outputFile = args[++i];
+    else if (!args[i].startsWith('-')) targetPath = args[i];
+  }
+
+  const absPath = resolve(targetPath);
+  try {
+    const s = await stat(absPath);
+    if (!s.isDirectory()) {
+      process.stderr.write(`Error: ${absPath} is not a directory\n`);
+      process.exit(3);
+    }
+  } catch {
+    process.stderr.write(`Error: path does not exist: ${absPath}\n`);
+    process.exit(3);
+  }
+
+  const start = Date.now();
+  const activeConfig = await readActiveConfig(absPath, { verbose: true });
+  const manifest = buildManifest(activeConfig);
+
+  const output = {
+    meta: {
+      tool: 'config-audit:manifest',
+      repoPath: absPath,
+      generatedAt: new Date().toISOString(),
+      durationMs: Date.now() - start,
+    },
+    sources: manifest.sources,
+    total: manifest.total,
+  };
+
+  const json = JSON.stringify(output, null, 2);
+
+  if (outputFile) {
+    await writeFile(outputFile, json, 'utf-8');
+  }
+
+  if (jsonMode || !outputFile) {
+    process.stdout.write(json + '\n');
+  }
+}
+
+const isDirectRun = process.argv[1] && resolve(process.argv[1]) === resolve(new URL(import.meta.url).pathname);
+if (isDirectRun) {
+  main().catch(err => {
+    process.stderr.write(`Fatal: ${err.message}\n`);
+    process.exit(3);
+  });
+}
diff --git a/plugins/config-audit/tests/scanners/manifest.test.mjs b/plugins/config-audit/tests/scanners/manifest.test.mjs
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..1164eed
--- /dev/null
+++ b/plugins/config-audit/tests/scanners/manifest.test.mjs
@@ -0,0 +1,201 @@
+import { describe, it, before, after } from 'node:test';
+import assert from 'node:assert/strict';
+import { spawnSync } from 'node:child_process';
+import { resolve, join, dirname } from 'node:path';
+import { fileURLToPath } from 'node:url';
+import { mkdir, writeFile, rm } from 'node:fs/promises';
+import { tmpdir } from 'node:os';
+
+const __dirname = fileURLToPath(new URL('.', import.meta.url));
+const PLUGIN_ROOT = resolve(__dirname, '../..');
+const CLI = join(PLUGIN_ROOT, 'scanners', 'manifest.mjs');
+
+function uniqueDir(suffix) {
+  return join(tmpdir(), `config-audit-manifest-${suffix}-${Date.now()}-${Math.random().toString(36).slice(2, 8)}`);
+}
+
+function runCli(args, env = {}) {
+  const proc = spawnSync('node', [CLI, ...args], {
+    encoding: 'utf-8',
+    env: { ...process.env, ...env },
+  });
+  return proc;
+}
+
+describe('manifest CLI — real-config path (plugin root)', () => {
+  let output;
+
+  before(() => {
+    const proc = runCli([PLUGIN_ROOT, '--json']);
+    assert.equal(proc.status, 0, `expected exit 0, got ${proc.status}; stderr: ${proc.stderr}`);
+    output = JSON.parse(proc.stdout);
+  });
+
+  it('emits non-empty sources array', () => {
+    assert.ok(Array.isArray(output.sources));
+    assert.ok(output.sources.length > 0,
+      `expected sources.length > 0, got ${output.sources.length}`);
+  });
+
+  it('sources are sorted DESC by estimated_tokens', () => {
+    for (let i = 1; i < output.sources.length; i++) {
+      const prev = output.sources[i - 1].estimated_tokens;
+      const curr = output.sources[i].estimated_tokens;
+      assert.ok(prev >= curr,
+        `sources[${i - 1}] (${prev}) should be >= sources[${i}] (${curr})`);
+    }
+  });
+
+  it('total ≈ sum(sources.estimated_tokens) (within rounding tolerance)', () => {
+    const sum = output.sources.reduce((s, x) => s + (x.estimated_tokens || 0), 0);
+    assert.ok(output.total >= sum - 1 && output.total <= sum + 1,
+      `expected total ≈ ${sum}, got ${output.total}`);
+  });
+
+  it('every source has kind/name/source/estimated_tokens', () => {
+    for (const s of output.sources) {
+      assert.ok(typeof s.kind === 'string' && s.kind.length > 0, 's.kind missing');
+      assert.ok(typeof s.name === 'string' && s.name.length > 0, 's.name missing');
+      assert.ok(typeof s.source === 'string', 's.source missing');
+      assert.equal(typeof s.estimated_tokens, 'number', 's.estimated_tokens not a number');
+    }
+  });
+
+  it('meta.repoPath matches the requested path', () => {
+    assert.equal(output.meta.repoPath, PLUGIN_ROOT);
+  });
+});
+
+describe('manifest CLI — fixture path (rich-repo with patched HOME)', () => {
+  let fixture;
+
+  before(async () => {
+    fixture = await buildRichManifestRepo(uniqueDir('rich'));
+  });
+
+  after(async () => {
+    if (fixture) await rm(fixture.root, { recursive: true, force: true });
+  });
+
+  it('discovers ≥5 sources (CLAUDE.md cascade + plugins + skills + MCP)', () => {
+    const proc = runCli([fixture.root, '--json'], { HOME: fixture.fakeHome });
+    assert.equal(proc.status, 0, `stderr: ${proc.stderr}`);
+    const out = JSON.parse(proc.stdout);
+    assert.ok(out.sources.length >= 5,
+      `expected sources.length >= 5, got ${out.sources.length}: ${out.sources.map(s => `${s.kind}:${s.name}`).join(', ')}`);
+  });
+
+  it('includes both plugins (manifest-plugin-a + manifest-plugin-b)', () => {
+    const proc = runCli([fixture.root, '--json'], { HOME: fixture.fakeHome });
+    const out = JSON.parse(proc.stdout);
+    const pluginNames = out.sources.filter(s => s.kind === 'plugin').map(s => s.name);
+    assert.ok(pluginNames.includes('manifest-plugin-a'),
+      `expected manifest-plugin-a in plugins; got: ${pluginNames.join(', ')}`);
+    assert.ok(pluginNames.includes('manifest-plugin-b'),
+      `expected manifest-plugin-b in plugins; got: ${pluginNames.join(', ')}`);
+  });
+
+  it('includes 3 fixture skills (alpha-skill, beta-skill, gamma-skill)', () => {
+    const proc = runCli([fixture.root, '--json'], { HOME: fixture.fakeHome });
+    const out = JSON.parse(proc.stdout);
+    const skillNames = out.sources.filter(s => s.kind === 'skill').map(s => s.name);
+    for (const expected of ['alpha-skill', 'beta-skill', 'gamma-skill']) {
+      assert.ok(skillNames.includes(expected),
+        `expected skill ${expected}; got skills: ${skillNames.join(', ')}`);
+    }
+  });
+
+  it('includes the project .mcp.json server (manifest-mcp)', () => {
+    const proc = runCli([fixture.root, '--json'], { HOME: fixture.fakeHome });
+    const out = JSON.parse(proc.stdout);
+    const mcpNames = out.sources.filter(s => s.kind === 'mcp-server').map(s => s.name);
+    assert.ok(mcpNames.includes('manifest-mcp'),
+      `expected manifest-mcp in mcp-servers; got: ${mcpNames.join(', ')}`);
+  });
+});
+
+describe('manifest CLI — error handling', () => {
+  it('exits 3 for nonexistent path', () => {
+    const proc = runCli(['/nonexistent/path/should/not/exist', '--json']);
+    assert.equal(proc.status, 3);
+  });
+
+  it('--output-file writes JSON to the path', async () => {
+    const outPath = join(tmpdir(), `manifest-output-${Date.now()}.json`);
+    try {
+      const proc = runCli([PLUGIN_ROOT, '--output-file', outPath]);
+      assert.equal(proc.status, 0);
+      const { readFile } = await import('node:fs/promises');
+      const content = await readFile(outPath, 'utf-8');
+      const parsed = JSON.parse(content);
+      assert.ok(Array.isArray(parsed.sources));
+    } finally {
+      await rm(outPath, { force: true });
+    }
+  });
+});
+
+/**
+ * Build a richer fixture for manifest tests: 2 plugins + 3 skills + project
+ * .mcp.json. Mirrors buildRichRepo from active-config-reader.test.mjs but
+ * gives every plugin/skill a unique, recognizable name so assertions can be
+ * substring-based instead of count-based.
+ */
+async function buildRichManifestRepo(root) {
+  const fakeHome = join(root, 'fake-home');
+  await mkdir(join(root, '.git'), { recursive: true });
+  await writeFile(join(root, '.git', 'HEAD'), 'ref: refs/heads/main\n');
+
+  await writeFile(
+    join(root, 'CLAUDE.md'),
+    '# Project\n\nManifest fixture.\n',
+  );
+
+  await mkdir(join(fakeHome, '.claude'), { recursive: true });
+  await writeFile(
+    join(fakeHome, '.claude', 'CLAUDE.md'),
+    '# User\n\nFake home for manifest tests.\n',
+  );
+
+  await writeFile(
+    join(root, '.mcp.json'),
+    JSON.stringify({
+      mcpServers: {
+        'manifest-mcp': { command: 'npx', args: ['fake-pkg'] },
+      },
+    }, null, 2),
+  );
+
+  // Plugin A — has alpha-skill + beta-skill
+  const pluginA = join(fakeHome, '.claude', 'plugins', 'marketplaces', 'mp', 'plugins', 'manifest-plugin-a');
+  await mkdir(join(pluginA, '.claude-plugin'), { recursive: true });
+  await writeFile(
+    join(pluginA, '.claude-plugin', 'plugin.json'),
+    JSON.stringify({ name: 'manifest-plugin-a', version: '1.0.0', description: 'plugin a' }, null, 2),
+  );
+  await mkdir(join(pluginA, 'skills', 'alpha-skill'), { recursive: true });
+  await writeFile(
+    join(pluginA, 'skills', 'alpha-skill', 'SKILL.md'),
+    '---\nname: alpha-skill\ndescription: alpha skill from plugin a\n---\n\nAlpha body.\n',
+  );
+  await mkdir(join(pluginA, 'skills', 'beta-skill'), { recursive: true });
+  await writeFile(
+    join(pluginA, 'skills', 'beta-skill', 'SKILL.md'),
+    '---\nname: beta-skill\ndescription: beta skill from plugin a\n---\n\nBeta body.\n',
+  );
+
+  // Plugin B — has gamma-skill
+  const pluginB = join(fakeHome, '.claude', 'plugins', 'marketplaces', 'mp', 'plugins', 'manifest-plugin-b');
+  await mkdir(join(pluginB, '.claude-plugin'), { recursive: true });
+  await writeFile(
+    join(pluginB, '.claude-plugin', 'plugin.json'),
+    JSON.stringify({ name: 'manifest-plugin-b', version: '1.0.0', description: 'plugin b' }, null, 2),
+  );
+  await mkdir(join(pluginB, 'skills', 'gamma-skill'), { recursive: true });
+  await writeFile(
+    join(pluginB, 'skills', 'gamma-skill', 'SKILL.md'),
+    '---\nname: gamma-skill\ndescription: gamma skill from plugin b\n---\n\nGamma body.\n',
+  );
+
+  return { root, fakeHome };
+}