diff --git a/packages/cli/src/commands/knowledge-commands.ts b/packages/cli/src/commands/knowledge-commands.ts
index d0c04a32..d2a93228 100644
--- a/packages/cli/src/commands/knowledge-commands.ts
+++ b/packages/cli/src/commands/knowledge-commands.ts
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-import type { Command } from '@commander-js/extra-typings';
+import { type Command, Option } from '@commander-js/extra-typings';
 import {
   type KtxCliCommandContext,
   parsePositiveIntegerOption,
@@ -27,32 +27,64 @@ export function registerWikiCommands(program: Command, context: KtxCliCommandCon
   wiki
     .command('list')
     .description('List local wiki pages')
-    .option('--json', 'Print JSON output', false)
     .option('--user-id <id>', 'Local user id', 'local')
-    .action(async (options: { userId: string; json?: boolean }, command) => {
-      await runKnowledgeArgs(context, {
-        command: 'list',
-        projectDir: resolveCommandProjectDir(command),
-        userId: options.userId,
-        json: options.json,
-      });
-    });
+    .addOption(
+      new Option('--output <mode>', 'Output mode: pretty (default in TTY), plain (TSV), or json').choices([
+        'pretty',
+        'plain',
+        'json',
+      ]),
+    )
+    .option('--json', 'Shortcut for --output=json (overrides --output)', false)
+    .action(
+      async (
+        options: { userId: string; output?: 'pretty' | 'plain' | 'json'; json?: boolean },
+        command,
+      ) => {
+        await runKnowledgeArgs(context, {
+          command: 'list',
+          projectDir: resolveCommandProjectDir(command),
+          userId: options.userId,
+          output: options.output,
+          json: options.json,
+        });
+      },
+    );
 
   wiki
     .command('search')
     .description('Search local wiki pages')
     .argument('<query>', 'Search query')
-    .option('--json', 'Print JSON output', false)
     .option('--user-id <id>', 'Local user id', 'local')
     .option('--limit <number>', 'Maximum search results', parsePositiveIntegerOption)
-    .action(async (query: string, options: { userId: string; json?: boolean; limit?: number }, command) => {
-      await runKnowledgeArgs(context, {
-        command: 'search',
-        projectDir: resolveCommandProjectDir(command),
-        query,
-        userId: options.userId,
-        json: options.json,
-        ...(options.limit !== undefined ? { limit: options.limit } : {}),
-      });
-    });
+    .addOption(
+      new Option('--output <mode>', 'Output mode: pretty (default in TTY), plain (TSV), or json').choices([
+        'pretty',
+        'plain',
+        'json',
+      ]),
+    )
+    .option('--json', 'Shortcut for --output=json (overrides --output)', false)
+    .action(
+      async (
+        query: string,
+        options: {
+          userId: string;
+          limit?: number;
+          output?: 'pretty' | 'plain' | 'json';
+          json?: boolean;
+        },
+        command,
+      ) => {
+        await runKnowledgeArgs(context, {
+          command: 'search',
+          projectDir: resolveCommandProjectDir(command),
+          query,
+          userId: options.userId,
+          output: options.output,
+          json: options.json,
+          ...(options.limit !== undefined ? { limit: options.limit } : {}),
+        });
+      },
+    );
 }
diff --git a/packages/cli/src/io/print-list.test.ts b/packages/cli/src/io/print-list.test.ts
index 4f413667..543cc71e 100644
--- a/packages/cli/src/io/print-list.test.ts
+++ b/packages/cli/src/io/print-list.test.ts
@@ -46,6 +46,7 @@ describe('printList — plain mode', () => {
       mode: 'plain',
       command: 'sl list',
       emptyMessage: 'No sources',
+      unit: 'source',
       io: r.io,
     });
     expect(r.out()).toBe(
@@ -62,9 +63,30 @@ describe('printList — plain mode', () => {
       mode: 'plain',
       command: 'sl list',
       emptyMessage: 'No sources',
+      unit: 'source',
       io: r.io,
     });
     expect(r.out()).toBe('');
+    expect(r.err()).toBe('');
+  });
+
+  it('routes emptyMessage + emptyHint to stderr when no rows and hint is provided', () => {
+    const r = recorder();
+    printList<SlRow>({
+      rows: [],
+      columns: SL_COLUMNS,
+      mode: 'plain',
+      command: 'sl search',
+      emptyMessage: 'No sources matched "foo"',
+      emptyHint: 'Run `ktx sl list` to see available sources.',
+      unit: 'source',
+      io: r.io,
+    });
+    expect(r.out()).toBe('');
+    expect(r.err()).toBe(
+      'No sources matched "foo"\n' +
+      'Run `ktx sl list` to see available sources.\n',
+    );
   });
 });
 
@@ -77,6 +99,7 @@ describe('printList — json mode', () => {
       mode: 'json',
       command: 'sl list',
       emptyMessage: 'No sources',
+      unit: 'source',
       io: r.io,
     });
     const written = r.out();
@@ -97,6 +120,8 @@ describe('printList — json mode', () => {
       mode: 'json',
       command: 'sl list',
       emptyMessage: 'No sources',
+      emptyHint: 'ignored in json mode',
+      unit: 'source',
       io: r.io,
     });
     expect(JSON.parse(r.out())).toEqual({
@@ -104,6 +129,7 @@ describe('printList — json mode', () => {
       data: { items: [] },
       meta: { command: 'sl list' },
     });
+    expect(r.err()).toBe('');
   });
 });
 
@@ -122,6 +148,7 @@ describe('printList — pretty mode', () => {
       mode: 'pretty',
       command: 'sl list',
       emptyMessage: 'No sources',
+      unit: 'source',
       io: r.io,
     });
     const out = stripAnsi(r.out());
@@ -143,6 +170,7 @@ describe('printList — pretty mode', () => {
       mode: 'pretty',
       command: 'sl list',
       emptyMessage: 'No semantic-layer sources found in /tmp/proj',
+      unit: 'source',
       io: r.io,
     });
     const out = stripAnsi(r.out());
@@ -150,6 +178,25 @@ describe('printList — pretty mode', () => {
     expect(out).toContain(`${SYMBOLS.barEnd}  No semantic-layer sources found in /tmp/proj`);
   });
 
+  it('renders empty-state with hint and zero-count footer when emptyHint is provided', () => {
+    const r = recorder();
+    printList<SlRow>({
+      rows: [],
+      columns: SL_COLUMNS,
+      groupBy: 'connectionId',
+      mode: 'pretty',
+      command: 'sl search',
+      emptyMessage: 'No sources matched "foo"',
+      emptyHint: 'Run `ktx sl list` to see available sources.',
+      unit: 'source',
+      io: r.io,
+    });
+    const out = stripAnsi(r.out());
+    expect(out).toContain(`${SYMBOLS.bar}  No sources matched "foo"`);
+    expect(out).toContain(`${SYMBOLS.bar}  Run \`ktx sl list\` to see available sources.`);
+    expect(out).toContain(`${SYMBOLS.barEnd}  0 sources`);
+  });
+
   it('singularizes the footer when there is one row', () => {
     const r = recorder();
     printList<SlRow>({
@@ -159,11 +206,103 @@ describe('printList — pretty mode', () => {
       mode: 'pretty',
       command: 'sl list',
       emptyMessage: 'No sources',
+      unit: 'source',
       io: r.io,
     });
     const out = stripAnsi(r.out());
     expect(out).toContain(`${SYMBOLS.barEnd}  1 source`);
   });
+
+  it('uses the provided unit in pluralization and group counts', () => {
+    const r = recorder();
+    interface PageRow { scope: string; key: string; summary: string }
+    const PAGE_COLUMNS: ReadonlyArray<PrintListColumn<PageRow>> = [
+      { key: 'scope', label: 'SCOPE', plain: '' },
+      { key: 'key', label: 'KEY', plain: '' },
+      { key: 'summary', label: 'SUMMARY', plain: '', optional: true, dim: true },
+    ];
+    printList<PageRow>({
+      rows: [
+        { scope: 'GLOBAL', key: 'a', summary: 'x' },
+        { scope: 'GLOBAL', key: 'b', summary: '' },
+      ],
+      columns: PAGE_COLUMNS,
+      groupBy: 'scope',
+      mode: 'pretty',
+      command: 'wiki list',
+      emptyMessage: 'No pages',
+      unit: 'page',
+      io: r.io,
+    });
+    const out = stripAnsi(r.out());
+    expect(out).toContain('(2 pages)');
+    expect(out).toContain(`${SYMBOLS.barEnd}  2 pages`);
+  });
+
+  it('renders a leading dim badge column with prettyFormat in pretty mode', () => {
+    const r = recorder();
+    interface SearchRow { score: number; scope: string; key: string; summary: string }
+    const SEARCH_COLUMNS: ReadonlyArray<PrintListColumn<SearchRow>> = [
+      {
+        key: 'score',
+        label: 'SCORE',
+        plain: 'score=',
+        role: 'badge',
+        prettyFormat: (v) => `${Math.round(Number(v) * 100)}%`,
+        dim: true,
+      },
+      { key: 'scope', label: 'SCOPE', plain: '' },
+      { key: 'key', label: 'KEY', plain: '' },
+      { key: 'summary', label: 'SUMMARY', plain: '', optional: true, dim: true },
+    ];
+    const rows: SearchRow[] = [
+      { score: 0.87, scope: 'GLOBAL', key: 'alpha', summary: 'first' },
+      { score: 0.04, scope: 'GLOBAL', key: 'beta', summary: 'second' },
+    ];
+    printList<SearchRow>({
+      rows,
+      columns: SEARCH_COLUMNS,
+      groupBy: 'scope',
+      mode: 'pretty',
+      command: 'wiki search',
+      emptyMessage: 'No matches',
+      unit: 'page',
+      io: r.io,
+    });
+    const out = stripAnsi(r.out());
+    // Badge displays as right-padded percentage before the name column.
+    expect(out).toMatch(new RegExp(`${escapeRegExp(SYMBOLS.item)} 87%\\s+alpha\\s+`));
+    expect(out).toMatch(new RegExp(`${escapeRegExp(SYMBOLS.item)}  4%\\s+beta\\s+`));
+  });
+
+  it('emits the badge column in plain mode using its plain prefix', () => {
+    const r = recorder();
+    interface SearchRow { score: number; scope: string; key: string; summary: string }
+    const SEARCH_COLUMNS: ReadonlyArray<PrintListColumn<SearchRow>> = [
+      {
+        key: 'score',
+        label: 'SCORE',
+        plain: 'score=',
+        role: 'badge',
+        prettyFormat: (v) => `${Math.round(Number(v) * 100)}%`,
+        dim: true,
+      },
+      { key: 'scope', label: 'SCOPE', plain: '' },
+      { key: 'key', label: 'KEY', plain: '' },
+      { key: 'summary', label: 'SUMMARY', plain: '', optional: true, dim: true },
+    ];
+    printList<SearchRow>({
+      rows: [{ score: 0.87, scope: 'GLOBAL', key: 'alpha', summary: 'first' }],
+      columns: SEARCH_COLUMNS,
+      groupBy: 'scope',
+      mode: 'plain',
+      command: 'wiki search',
+      emptyMessage: 'No matches',
+      unit: 'page',
+      io: r.io,
+    });
+    expect(r.out()).toBe('score=0.87\tGLOBAL\talpha\tfirst\n');
+  });
 });
 
 function escapeRegExp(s: string): string {
diff --git a/packages/cli/src/io/print-list.ts b/packages/cli/src/io/print-list.ts
index d2129d7d..bd7ab20a 100644
--- a/packages/cli/src/io/print-list.ts
+++ b/packages/cli/src/io/print-list.ts
@@ -16,6 +16,16 @@ export interface PrintListColumn<Row> {
   optional?: boolean;
   /** Pretty-mode hint: render this column dim. */
   dim?: boolean;
+  /**
+   * Pretty-mode role override. When omitted, role is auto-detected:
+   * - `'badge'`  — leading dim cell before the name column (right-padded across rows).
+   * - `'name'`   — name column. Default: first non-grouped, non-metric, non-optional column.
+   * - `'metric'` — `"N word"` cell. Default: any column with a non-empty `plain` prefix.
+   * - `'suffix'` — trailing em-dash optional value. Default: any column with `optional: true`.
+   */
+  role?: 'name' | 'metric' | 'badge' | 'suffix';
+  /** Custom pretty-mode value formatter (e.g. score → "87%"). Plain/JSON unaffected. */
+  prettyFormat?: (value: Row[keyof Row & string], row: Row) => string;
 }
 
 export interface PrintListArgs<Row> {
@@ -23,6 +33,11 @@ export interface PrintListArgs<Row> {
   columns: ReadonlyArray<PrintListColumn<Row>>;
   groupBy?: keyof Row & string;
   emptyMessage: string;
+  /** Optional second-line hint shown on empty results.
+   *  Plain mode: written to stderr. Pretty mode: dimmed line inside the box. JSON mode: ignored. */
+  emptyHint?: string;
+  /** Singular noun used in counts (`N {unit}s`, `(N {unit}s)`). Defaults to `'result'`. */
+  unit?: string;
   command: string;
   mode: KtxOutputMode;
   io: KtxCliIo;
@@ -57,6 +72,15 @@ function isEmpty(value: unknown): boolean {
 }
 
 function printListPlain<Row extends object>(args: PrintListArgs<Row>): void {
+  if (args.rows.length === 0) {
+    if (args.emptyHint !== undefined && args.emptyHint !== '') {
+      // Plain mode keeps stdout pipe-safe. Send the human-readable empty
+      // state to stderr as two lines (message, then hint).
+      args.io.stderr.write(`${args.emptyMessage}\n`);
+      args.io.stderr.write(`${args.emptyHint}\n`);
+    }
+    return;
+  }
   for (const row of args.rows) {
     const cells: string[] = [];
     for (const col of args.columns) {
@@ -114,52 +138,129 @@ function groupRows<Row extends object>(
   return groups;
 }
 
+interface ResolvedColumns<Row extends object> {
+  badge: ReadonlyArray<PrintListColumn<Row>>;
+  name?: PrintListColumn<Row>;
+  metric: ReadonlyArray<PrintListColumn<Row>>;
+  suffix: ReadonlyArray<PrintListColumn<Row>>;
+}
+
+function resolveColumns<Row extends object>(
+  columns: ReadonlyArray<PrintListColumn<Row>>,
+  groupBy: (keyof Row & string) | undefined,
+): ResolvedColumns<Row> {
+  const badge: PrintListColumn<Row>[] = [];
+  const metric: PrintListColumn<Row>[] = [];
+  const suffix: PrintListColumn<Row>[] = [];
+  let name: PrintListColumn<Row> | undefined;
+
+  for (const col of columns) {
+    if (col.role === 'badge') {
+      badge.push(col);
+      continue;
+    }
+    if (col.role === 'name') {
+      name ??= col;
+      continue;
+    }
+    if (col.role === 'metric') {
+      metric.push(col);
+      continue;
+    }
+    if (col.role === 'suffix') {
+      suffix.push(col);
+      continue;
+    }
+    // Auto-detect when no explicit role.
+    if (col.key === groupBy) continue;
+    if (col.optional === true) {
+      suffix.push(col);
+      continue;
+    }
+    if (typeof col.plain === 'string' && col.plain.length > 0) {
+      metric.push(col);
+      continue;
+    }
+    if (!name && !col.plain && col.plain !== false) {
+      name = col;
+    }
+  }
+
+  return { badge, name, metric, suffix };
+}
+
+function formatCellValue<Row extends object>(col: PrintListColumn<Row>, row: Row): string {
+  const value = row[col.key];
+  if (col.prettyFormat) {
+    return col.prettyFormat(value as Row[keyof Row & string], row);
+  }
+  if (value === undefined || value === null) return '';
+  return String(value);
+}
+
 function printListPretty<Row extends object>(args: PrintListArgs<Row>): void {
-  const { io, command, rows, columns, groupBy, emptyMessage } = args;
+  const { io, command, rows, columns, groupBy, emptyMessage, emptyHint } = args;
+  const unit = args.unit ?? 'result';
 
   io.stdout.write(`${SYMBOLS.barStart}  ${command}\n`);
   io.stdout.write(`${SYMBOLS.bar}\n`);
 
   if (rows.length === 0) {
-    io.stdout.write(`${SYMBOLS.barEnd}  ${emptyMessage}\n`);
+    if (emptyHint !== undefined && emptyHint !== '') {
+      io.stdout.write(`${SYMBOLS.bar}  ${emptyMessage}\n`);
+      io.stdout.write(`${SYMBOLS.bar}  ${dim(emptyHint)}\n`);
+      io.stdout.write(`${SYMBOLS.barEnd}  ${dim(`0 ${unit}s`)}\n`);
+    } else {
+      io.stdout.write(`${SYMBOLS.barEnd}  ${emptyMessage}\n`);
+    }
     return;
   }
 
-  // Identify role of each column.
-  // - First non-grouped, non-metric, non-optional column = "name" column (bolded)
-  // - Columns with a `plain` prefix = metric columns (rendered as "N word")
-  // - optional columns = trailing suffix (em-dash + value), only when value is present
-  const nameCol = columns.find(
-    (c) => c.key !== groupBy && !c.plain && !c.optional && c.plain !== false,
-  );
-  const metricCols = columns.filter((c) => typeof c.plain === 'string' && c.plain.length > 0);
-  const optionalCols = columns.filter((c) => c.optional === true);
+  const resolved = resolveColumns(columns, groupBy);
 
   const buckets = groupBy ? groupRows(rows, groupBy) : new Map<string, Row[]>([['', [...rows]]]);
 
-  const nameWidth = nameCol
-    ? Math.max(...rows.map((r) => String(r[nameCol.key] ?? '').length))
+  const nameWidth = resolved.name
+    ? Math.max(...rows.map((r) => String(r[resolved.name!.key] ?? '').length))
     : 0;
 
+  const badgeWidths = resolved.badge.map((col) =>
+    Math.max(0, ...rows.map((r) => formatCellValue(col, r).length)),
+  );
+
   for (const [groupValue, groupRowList] of buckets) {
     if (groupBy) {
       io.stdout.write(
-        `${SYMBOLS.bar}  ${SYMBOLS.group} ${bold(groupValue)} ${dim(`(${pluralize(groupRowList.length, 'source')})`)}\n`,
+        `${SYMBOLS.bar}  ${SYMBOLS.group} ${bold(groupValue)} ${dim(`(${pluralize(groupRowList.length, unit)})`)}\n`,
       );
     }
     for (const row of groupRowList) {
       const segments: string[] = [];
-      if (nameCol) {
-        segments.push(String(row[nameCol.key] ?? '').padEnd(nameWidth));
+
+      resolved.badge.forEach((col, idx) => {
+        segments.push(dim(formatCellValue(col, row).padStart(badgeWidths[idx] ?? 0)));
+      });
+
+      if (resolved.name) {
+        segments.push(String(row[resolved.name.key] ?? '').padEnd(nameWidth));
       }
-      const metrics = metricCols
-        .map((c) => metricCell(c.label ?? c.key, Number(row[c.key] ?? 0)))
+
+      const metrics = resolved.metric
+        .map((col) => {
+          if (col.prettyFormat) return formatCellValue(col, row);
+          return metricCell(col.label ?? col.key, Number(row[col.key] ?? 0));
+        })
         .join(` ${SYMBOLS.middot} `);
       if (metrics.length > 0) segments.push(dim(metrics));
-      const optionalSuffix = optionalCols
-        .map((c) => row[c.key])
-        .filter((v) => !isEmpty(v))
-        .map((v) => `${SYMBOLS.emDash} ${dim(String(v))}`)
+
+      const optionalSuffix = resolved.suffix
+        .map((col) => {
+          const value = row[col.key];
+          if (isEmpty(value)) return null;
+          const formatted = col.prettyFormat ? formatCellValue(col, row) : String(value);
+          return `${SYMBOLS.emDash} ${dim(formatted)}`;
+        })
+        .filter((s): s is string => s !== null)
         .join(' ');
       if (optionalSuffix.length > 0) segments.push(optionalSuffix);
 
@@ -169,5 +270,5 @@ function printListPretty<Row extends object>(args: PrintListArgs<Row>): void {
   }
 
   io.stdout.write(`${SYMBOLS.bar}\n`);
-  io.stdout.write(`${SYMBOLS.barEnd}  ${pluralize(rows.length, 'source')}\n`);
+  io.stdout.write(`${SYMBOLS.barEnd}  ${pluralize(rows.length, unit)}\n`);
 }
diff --git a/packages/cli/src/knowledge.ts b/packages/cli/src/knowledge.ts
index b4585c0e..66109301 100644
--- a/packages/cli/src/knowledge.ts
+++ b/packages/cli/src/knowledge.ts
@@ -6,17 +6,28 @@ import {
 import { loadKtxProject } from '@ktx/context/project';
 import {
   type LocalKnowledgeScope,
+  type LocalKnowledgeSearchResult,
+  type LocalKnowledgeSummary,
   listLocalKnowledgePages,
   readLocalKnowledgePage,
   searchLocalKnowledgePages,
   writeLocalKnowledgePage,
 } from '@ktx/context/wiki';
-import { writeJsonResult } from './io/print-list.js';
+import { resolveOutputMode } from './io/mode.js';
+import { printList, type PrintListColumn, writeJsonResult } from './io/print-list.js';
 
 export type KtxKnowledgeArgs =
-  | { command: 'list'; projectDir: string; userId: string; json?: boolean }
+  | { command: 'list'; projectDir: string; userId: string; output?: string; json?: boolean }
   | { command: 'read'; projectDir: string; key: string; userId: string; json?: boolean }
-  | { command: 'search'; projectDir: string; query: string; userId: string; json?: boolean; limit?: number }
+  | {
+      command: 'search';
+      projectDir: string;
+      query: string;
+      userId: string;
+      output?: string;
+      json?: boolean;
+      limit?: number;
+    }
   | {
       command: 'write';
       projectDir: string;
@@ -30,10 +41,27 @@ export type KtxKnowledgeArgs =
       slRefs: string[];
     };
 
-interface KtxKnowledgeIo {
-  stdout: { write(chunk: string): void };
-  stderr: { write(chunk: string): void };
-}
+type KtxKnowledgeIo = import('./cli-runtime.js').KtxCliIo;
+
+const WIKI_LIST_COLUMNS: ReadonlyArray<PrintListColumn<LocalKnowledgeSummary>> = [
+  { key: 'scope', label: 'SCOPE', plain: '' },
+  { key: 'key', label: 'KEY', plain: '' },
+  { key: 'summary', label: 'SUMMARY', plain: '', optional: true, dim: true },
+];
+
+const WIKI_SEARCH_COLUMNS: ReadonlyArray<PrintListColumn<LocalKnowledgeSearchResult>> = [
+  {
+    key: 'score',
+    label: 'SCORE',
+    plain: 'score=',
+    role: 'badge',
+    prettyFormat: (value) => `${Math.round(Number(value) * 100)}%`,
+    dim: true,
+  },
+  { key: 'scope', label: 'SCOPE', plain: '' },
+  { key: 'key', label: 'KEY', plain: '' },
+  { key: 'summary', label: 'SUMMARY', plain: '', optional: true, dim: true },
+];
 
 interface KtxKnowledgeDeps {
   embeddingService?: KtxEmbeddingPort | null;
@@ -62,17 +90,18 @@ export async function runKtxKnowledge(
     const project = await loadKtxProject({ projectDir: args.projectDir });
     if (args.command === 'list') {
       const pages = await listLocalKnowledgePages(project, { userId: args.userId });
-      if (args.json) {
-        writeJsonResult(io, {
-          kind: 'list',
-          data: { items: pages },
-          meta: { command: 'wiki list' },
-        });
-        return 0;
-      }
-      for (const page of pages) {
-        io.stdout.write(`${page.scope}\t${page.key}\t${page.summary}\n`);
-      }
+      const mode = resolveOutputMode({ explicit: args.output, json: args.json, io });
+      printList<LocalKnowledgeSummary>({
+        rows: pages,
+        columns: WIKI_LIST_COLUMNS,
+        groupBy: 'scope',
+        emptyMessage: `No local wiki pages found in ${project.projectDir}`,
+        emptyHint: 'Add Markdown files under wiki/ or run `ktx ingest <connectionId>`.',
+        unit: 'page',
+        command: 'wiki list',
+        mode,
+        io,
+      });
       return 0;
     }
     if (args.command === 'read') {
@@ -101,30 +130,27 @@ export async function runKtxKnowledge(
         embeddingService: wikiSearchEmbeddingService(project, deps),
         limit: args.limit,
       });
-      if (args.json) {
-        writeJsonResult(io, {
-          kind: 'list',
-          data: { items: results },
-          meta: { command: 'wiki search' },
-        });
-        return 0;
-      }
-      if (results.length === 0) {
+      const mode = resolveOutputMode({ explicit: args.output, json: args.json, io });
+      let emptyMessage = `No local wiki pages matched "${args.query}"`;
+      let emptyHint = 'Run `ktx wiki list` to inspect available pages.';
+      if (results.length === 0 && mode !== 'json') {
         const pages = await listLocalKnowledgePages(project, { userId: args.userId });
         if (pages.length === 0) {
-          io.stderr.write(
-            `No local wiki pages found in ${project.projectDir}. Add Markdown files under wiki/ or run \`ktx ingest <connectionId>\`.\n`,
-          );
-        } else {
-          io.stderr.write(
-            `No local wiki pages matched "${args.query}". Run \`ktx wiki list\` to inspect available pages.\n`,
-          );
+          emptyMessage = `No local wiki pages found in ${project.projectDir}`;
+          emptyHint = 'Add Markdown files under wiki/ or run `ktx ingest <connectionId>`.';
         }
-        return 0;
-      }
-      for (const result of results) {
-        io.stdout.write(`${result.score}\t${result.scope}\t${result.key}\t${result.summary}\n`);
       }
+      printList<LocalKnowledgeSearchResult>({
+        rows: results,
+        columns: WIKI_SEARCH_COLUMNS,
+        groupBy: 'scope',
+        emptyMessage,
+        emptyHint,
+        unit: 'page',
+        command: 'wiki search',
+        mode,
+        io,
+      });
       return 0;
     }
 
diff --git a/packages/cli/src/sl.ts b/packages/cli/src/sl.ts
index baff239b..59c2a6f5 100644
--- a/packages/cli/src/sl.ts
+++ b/packages/cli/src/sl.ts
@@ -17,6 +17,7 @@ import {
   type LocalSlSourceSummary,
   type SemanticLayerQueryInput,
 } from '@ktx/context/sl';
+import type { PrintListColumn } from './io/print-list.js';
 import {
   createManagedPythonSemanticLayerComputePort,
   type KtxManagedPythonInstallPolicy,
@@ -80,6 +81,24 @@ function slSearchEmbeddingService(project: KtxLocalProject, deps: KtxSlDeps): Kt
   return provider ? new KtxIngestEmbeddingPortAdapter(provider) : null;
 }
 
+async function printSlSources(input: {
+  rows: ReadonlyArray<LocalSlSourceSummary>;
+  command: 'sl list';
+  output?: string;
+  json?: boolean;
+  io: KtxSlIo;
+  emptyMessage: string;
+  emptyHint?: string;
+}): Promise<void>;
+async function printSlSources(input: {
+  rows: ReadonlyArray<LocalSlSourceSearchResult>;
+  command: 'sl search';
+  output?: string;
+  json?: boolean;
+  io: KtxSlIo;
+  emptyMessage: string;
+  emptyHint?: string;
+}): Promise<void>;
 async function printSlSources(input: {
   rows: ReadonlyArray<LocalSlSourceSummary | LocalSlSourceSearchResult>;
   command: 'sl list' | 'sl search';
@@ -87,22 +106,58 @@ async function printSlSources(input: {
   json?: boolean;
   io: KtxSlIo;
   emptyMessage: string;
+  emptyHint?: string;
 }): Promise<void> {
   const { resolveOutputMode } = await import('./io/mode.js');
   const { printList } = await import('./io/print-list.js');
   const mode = resolveOutputMode({ explicit: input.output, json: input.json, io: input.io });
-  printList({
-    rows: input.rows,
-    columns: [
+
+  if (input.command === 'sl search') {
+    const searchColumns: ReadonlyArray<PrintListColumn<LocalSlSourceSearchResult>> = [
+      {
+        key: 'score',
+        label: 'SCORE',
+        plain: 'score=',
+        role: 'badge',
+        prettyFormat: (value) => `${Math.round(Number(value) * 100)}%`,
+        dim: true,
+      },
       { key: 'connectionId', label: 'CONNECTION', plain: '' },
       { key: 'name', label: 'NAME', plain: '' },
       { key: 'columnCount', label: 'COLS', plain: 'columns=', dim: true },
       { key: 'measureCount', label: 'MEASURES', plain: 'measures=', dim: true },
       { key: 'joinCount', label: 'JOINS', plain: 'joins=', dim: true },
       { key: 'description', label: 'DESCRIPTION', plain: false, optional: true, dim: true },
-    ],
+    ];
+    printList<LocalSlSourceSearchResult>({
+      rows: input.rows as ReadonlyArray<LocalSlSourceSearchResult>,
+      columns: searchColumns,
+      groupBy: 'connectionId',
+      emptyMessage: input.emptyMessage,
+      emptyHint: input.emptyHint,
+      unit: 'source',
+      command: input.command,
+      mode,
+      io: input.io,
+    });
+    return;
+  }
+
+  const listColumns: ReadonlyArray<PrintListColumn<LocalSlSourceSummary>> = [
+    { key: 'connectionId', label: 'CONNECTION', plain: '' },
+    { key: 'name', label: 'NAME', plain: '' },
+    { key: 'columnCount', label: 'COLS', plain: 'columns=', dim: true },
+    { key: 'measureCount', label: 'MEASURES', plain: 'measures=', dim: true },
+    { key: 'joinCount', label: 'JOINS', plain: 'joins=', dim: true },
+    { key: 'description', label: 'DESCRIPTION', plain: false, optional: true, dim: true },
+  ];
+  printList<LocalSlSourceSummary>({
+    rows: input.rows as ReadonlyArray<LocalSlSourceSummary>,
+    columns: listColumns,
     groupBy: 'connectionId',
     emptyMessage: input.emptyMessage,
+    emptyHint: input.emptyHint,
+    unit: 'source',
     command: input.command,
     mode,
     io: input.io,
@@ -142,6 +197,7 @@ export async function runKtxSl(args: KtxSlArgs, io: KtxSlIo = process, deps: Ktx
       await printSlSources({
         rows: sources,
         emptyMessage: `No semantic-layer sources matched "${args.query}" in ${project.projectDir}`,
+        emptyHint: 'Run `ktx sl list` to inspect available sources.',
         command: 'sl search',
         output: args.output,
         json: args.json,