diff --git a/src/hooks/moderation/useModerationQueueManager.ts b/src/hooks/moderation/useModerationQueueManager.ts
index 0333112d..317c9cac 100644
--- a/src/hooks/moderation/useModerationQueueManager.ts
+++ b/src/hooks/moderation/useModerationQueueManager.ts
@@ -484,25 +484,10 @@ export function useModerationQueueManager(config: ModerationQueueManagerConfig):
               break;
           }
         } else {
-          // Manual refresh
-          const mergeResult = smartMergeArray(itemsRef.current, moderationItems, {
-            compareFields: [
-              "status",
-              "content",
-              "reviewed_at",
-              "reviewed_by",
-              "reviewer_notes",
-              "assigned_to",
-              "locked_until",
-            ],
-            preserveOrder: false,
-            addToTop: false,
-          });
-
-          if (mergeResult.hasChanges) {
-            setItems(mergeResult.items);
-            console.log("🔄 Queue updated (manual refresh)");
-          }
+          // Manual refresh - ALWAYS update items for user-initiated changes (sort/filter)
+          // Don't use smartMerge here because it won't detect order changes
+          setItems(moderationItems);
+          console.log("🔄 Queue updated (manual refresh) - items:", moderationItems.length);
 
           setPendingNewItems([]);
           setNewItemsCount(0);