diff --git a/src-tauri/src/musicbrainz/client.rs b/src-tauri/src/musicbrainz/client.rs
index baf8b7b50..ea569e48a 100644
--- a/src-tauri/src/musicbrainz/client.rs
+++ b/src-tauri/src/musicbrainz/client.rs
@@ -16,18 +16,29 @@ const MUSICBRAINZ_PROXY_URL: &str = "https://qbz-api-proxy.blitzkriegfc.workers.
 /// Direct MusicBrainz API URL (fallback)
 const MUSICBRAINZ_API_URL: &str = "https://musicbrainz.org/ws/2";
 
-/// Rate limiter for MusicBrainz API (1 request per second)
+/// Rate limiter for MusicBrainz API
 pub struct RateLimiter {
     last_request: Mutex<Instant>,
     min_interval: Duration,
 }
 
 impl RateLimiter {
+    /// Create rate limiter for direct MusicBrainz API (1 req/sec)
     pub fn new() -> Self {
+        Self::with_interval(Duration::from_millis(1100))
+    }
+
+    /// Create rate limiter for proxy (faster, proxy handles actual rate limiting)
+    pub fn for_proxy() -> Self {
+        Self::with_interval(Duration::from_millis(200))
+    }
+
+    /// Create rate limiter with custom interval
+    pub fn with_interval(min_interval: Duration) -> Self {
         Self {
             // Start in the past so first request doesn't wait
             last_request: Mutex::new(Instant::now() - Duration::from_secs(2)),
-            min_interval: Duration::from_millis(1100), // Slightly over 1 second for safety
+            min_interval,
         }
     }
 
@@ -96,9 +107,16 @@ impl MusicBrainzClient {
             .build()
             .unwrap_or_else(|_| Client::new());
 
+        // Use faster rate limiter when using proxy (proxy handles actual rate limiting)
+        let rate_limiter = if config.use_proxy {
+            RateLimiter::for_proxy()
+        } else {
+            RateLimiter::new()
+        };
+
         Self {
             client,
-            rate_limiter: Arc::new(RateLimiter::new()),
+            rate_limiter: Arc::new(rate_limiter),
             config: Arc::new(Mutex::new(config)),
         }
     }
diff --git a/src/lib/components/PlaylistSuggestions.svelte b/src/lib/components/PlaylistSuggestions.svelte
index ccb5ae162..bb232d376 100644
--- a/src/lib/components/PlaylistSuggestions.svelte
+++ b/src/lib/components/PlaylistSuggestions.svelte
@@ -97,7 +97,7 @@
         artists,
         excludeTrackIds,
         showReasons,
-        { max_pool_size: poolSize, skip_vector_build: true }
+        { max_pool_size: poolSize }
       );
       const elapsed = ((performance.now() - startTime) / 1000).toFixed(2);
       log(`Backend returned in ${elapsed}s:`, {
diff --git a/src/lib/components/views/PlaylistDetailView.svelte b/src/lib/components/views/PlaylistDetailView.svelte
index fd48b5191..7cff4e4b1 100644
--- a/src/lib/components/views/PlaylistDetailView.svelte
+++ b/src/lib/components/views/PlaylistDetailView.svelte
@@ -8,7 +8,7 @@
   import { open } from '@tauri-apps/plugin-dialog';
   import TrackRow from '../TrackRow.svelte';
   import PlaylistSuggestions from '../PlaylistSuggestions.svelte';
-  import { extractUniqueArtists } from '$lib/services/playlistSuggestionsService';
+  import { extractTopArtists } from '$lib/services/playlistSuggestionsService';
   import { type OfflineCacheStatus } from '$lib/stores/offlineCacheState';
   import {
     subscribe as subscribeOffline,
@@ -194,9 +194,9 @@
   let localTracksDuration = $derived(localTracks.reduce((sum, t) => sum + t.duration_secs, 0));
   let totalDuration = $derived((playlist?.duration ?? 0) + localTracksDuration);
 
-  // Playlist suggestions: extract unique artists from Qobuz tracks (not local)
+  // Playlist suggestions: extract top 5 artists by track count (not local tracks)
   const playlistArtists = $derived(
-    extractUniqueArtists(tracks.filter(t => !t.isLocal))
+    extractTopArtists(tracks.filter(t => !t.isLocal), 5)
   );
   // Track IDs to exclude from suggestions (already in playlist)
   const excludeTrackIds = $derived(
diff --git a/src/lib/services/playlistSuggestionsService.ts b/src/lib/services/playlistSuggestionsService.ts
index 1d4543e41..159ab821e 100644
--- a/src/lib/services/playlistSuggestionsService.ts
+++ b/src/lib/services/playlistSuggestionsService.ts
@@ -157,26 +157,52 @@ export async function cleanupVectorStore(maxAgeDays?: number): Promise<number> {
 
 // ============ Helpers ============
 
+/** Default number of top artists to use for suggestions */
+const DEFAULT_TOP_ARTISTS = 5;
+
 /**
- * Extract unique artists from playlist tracks
+ * Extract top artists from playlist tracks, sorted by frequency (track count)
+ *
+ * @param tracks - Playlist tracks
+ * @param limit - Maximum number of artists to return (default: 5)
+ */
+export function extractTopArtists(
+  tracks: Array<{ artist?: string; artistId?: number }>,
+  limit: number = DEFAULT_TOP_ARTISTS
+): PlaylistArtist[] {
+  // Count tracks per artist
+  const artistCounts = new Map<string, { count: number; qobuzId?: number }>();
+
+  for (const track of tracks) {
+    if (track.artist) {
+      const existing = artistCounts.get(track.artist);
+      if (existing) {
+        existing.count++;
+      } else {
+        artistCounts.set(track.artist, { count: 1, qobuzId: track.artistId });
+      }
+    }
+  }
+
+  // Sort by count descending, take top N
+  const sorted = [...artistCounts.entries()]
+    .sort((a, b) => b[1].count - a[1].count)
+    .slice(0, limit);
+
+  return sorted.map(([name, data]) => ({
+    name,
+    qobuzId: data.qobuzId
+  }));
+}
+
+/**
+ * Extract unique artists from playlist tracks (legacy, use extractTopArtists instead)
+ * @deprecated Use extractTopArtists for better performance
  */
 export function extractUniqueArtists(
   tracks: Array<{ artist?: string; artistId?: number }>
 ): PlaylistArtist[] {
-  const seen = new Set<string>();
-  const artists: PlaylistArtist[] = [];
-
-  for (const track of tracks) {
-    if (track.artist && !seen.has(track.artist)) {
-      seen.add(track.artist);
-      artists.push({
-        name: track.artist,
-        qobuzId: track.artistId
-      });
-    }
-  }
-
-  return artists;
+  return extractTopArtists(tracks, Infinity);
 }
 
 /**