diff --git a/sites/scouting/index.html b/sites/scouting/index.html
index b9b4e12..8883915 100644
--- a/sites/scouting/index.html
+++ b/sites/scouting/index.html
@@ -72,7 +72,7 @@
             <li>Open your browser's developer tools (<kbd class="kbd kbd-sm">F12</kbd>, or right-click → Inspect) and switch to the <span class="font-semibold">Network</span> tab.</li>
             <li>Back on BCP, open any event or your profile so the page makes a new request — refreshing the page works.</li>
             <li>In the Network tab, click any request to <span class="font-mono">newprod-api.bestcoastpairings.com</span>.</li>
-            <li>Find the <span class="font-mono">authorization</span> request header. Copy everything after <span class="font-mono">Bearer </span> — that's your token.</li>
+            <li>Find the <span class="font-mono">authorization</span> request header and copy its value (pasting the whole thing, including the leading "Bearer ", is fine).</li>
             <li>Paste it into the field above and click <span class="font-semibold">Save</span>.</li>
           </ol>
           <p class="text-xs opacity-50 mt-3">
diff --git a/sites/scouting/src/main.js b/sites/scouting/src/main.js
index f01a7dd..d82712c 100644
--- a/sites/scouting/src/main.js
+++ b/sites/scouting/src/main.js
@@ -144,7 +144,10 @@ async function loadItcRanks(userIds) {
    never committed, never part of the deployed bundle. */
 const TOKEN_KEY = "bcp_auth_token";
 const getToken = () => { try { return localStorage.getItem(TOKEN_KEY) || ""; } catch { return ""; } };
-const setToken = t => { try { t ? localStorage.setItem(TOKEN_KEY, t) : localStorage.removeItem(TOKEN_KEY); } catch {} };
+const setToken = t => {
+  t = t.replace(/^bearer\s+/i, "");
+  try { t ? localStorage.setItem(TOKEN_KEY, t) : localStorage.removeItem(TOKEN_KEY); } catch {}
+};
 
 // This event tracks the five ITC-standard mission dispositions. Hand-typed
 // sources (a "Dispositions Used:" line in a submitted list, BCP's own free
@@ -829,6 +832,7 @@ $("disposition-toggle").addEventListener("click", () => {
 $("bcp-token-input").value = getToken();
 $("bcp-token-save").addEventListener("click", () => {
   setToken($("bcp-token-input").value.trim());
+  $("bcp-token-input").value = getToken();
   if (state) startBackfill(state.event);
 });
 $("bcp-token-clear").addEventListener("click", () => {