diff --git a/TODO.md b/TODO.md
index 629196f..9ecadd4 100644
--- a/TODO.md
+++ b/TODO.md
@@ -8,7 +8,7 @@
 - [x] for merging (command line flag) -> if not present, treat each file as separate output (--merge | -m)
 - [x] for merge + separate output -> if present, treat each file as separate output and also output a merged version (--merge-and-separate)
 - [x] set speaker-names per input-file -> prompt user for each file if flag is set (--set-speaker-names)
-- fix cli output for model display
+- [x] fix cli output for model display
 - refactor into proper cli app
 - add support for video files -> use ffmpeg to extract audio
 - detect gpus and use them
diff --git a/src/models.rs b/src/models.rs
index 47b8081..29fb87c 100644
--- a/src/models.rs
+++ b/src/models.rs
@@ -270,59 +270,131 @@ fn fetch_all_models(client: &Client) -> Result<Vec<ModelEntry>> {
 }
 
 
-fn prompt_select_models(models: &[ModelEntry]) -> Result<Vec<ModelEntry>> {
-    // Build a flat list but show group headers; indices count only models
-    println!("Available ggml Whisper models:");
+fn format_model_list(models: &[ModelEntry]) -> String {
+    let mut out = String::new();
+    out.push_str("Available ggml Whisper models:\n");
+
+    // Compute alignment widths
+    let idx_width = std::cmp::max(2, models.len().to_string().len());
+    let name_width = models.iter().map(|m| m.name.len()).max().unwrap_or(0);
+
     let mut idx = 1usize;
-    let mut current = "".to_string();
-    // We'll record mapping from index -> position in models
-    let mut index_map: Vec<usize> = Vec::with_capacity(models.len());
-    for (pos, m) in models.iter().enumerate() {
+    let mut current = String::new();
+    for m in models.iter() {
         if m.base != current {
             current = m.base.clone();
-            println!("\n{}:", current);
+            out.push_str("\n");
+            out.push_str(&format!("{}:\n", current));
         }
-        let short_hash = m
-            .sha256
-            .as_ref()
-            .map(|h| h.chars().take(8).collect::<String>())
-            .unwrap_or_else(|| "-".to_string());
-        println!("  {}) {}  [{} | {} | {}]", idx, m.name, m.repo, human_size(m.size), short_hash);
-        index_map.push(pos);
+        // Format without hash and with aligned columns
+        out.push_str(&format!(
+            "  {i:>iw$}) {name:<nw$} [{repo} | {size}]\n",
+            i = idx,
+            iw = idx_width,
+            name = m.name,
+            nw = name_width,
+            repo = m.repo,
+            size = human_size(m.size),
+        ));
         idx += 1;
     }
-    println!("\nEnter selection by indices (e.g., 1 3 5-7), or 'all', '*' for all, 'q' to cancel.");
+    out.push_str("\nEnter selection by indices (e.g., 1 3 5-7), or 'all', '*' for all, 'q' to cancel.\n");
+    out
+}
+
+fn prompt_select_models_two_stage(models: &[ModelEntry]) -> Result<Vec<ModelEntry>> {
+    // 1) Choose base (tiny, small, medium, etc.)
+    let mut bases: Vec<String> = Vec::new();
+    let mut last = String::new();
+    for m in models.iter() {
+        if m.base != last {
+            // models are sorted by base; avoid duplicates while preserving order
+            if bases.last().map(|b| b == &m.base).unwrap_or(false) == false {
+                bases.push(m.base.clone());
+            }
+            last = m.base.clone();
+        }
+    }
+    if bases.is_empty() {
+        return Ok(Vec::new());
+    }
+
+    // Print base selection on stderr
+    eprintln!("Available base model families:");
+    for (i, b) in bases.iter().enumerate() {
+        eprintln!("  {}) {}", i + 1, b);
+    }
     loop {
-        eprint!("Selection: ");
+        eprint!("Select base (number or name, 'q' to cancel): ");
         io::stderr().flush().ok();
         let mut line = String::new();
-        io::stdin().read_line(&mut line).context("Failed to read selection")?;
-        let s = line.trim().to_lowercase();
-        if s == "q" || s == "quit" || s == "exit" { return Ok(Vec::new()); }
-        let mut selected: Vec<usize> = Vec::new();
-        if s == "all" || s == "*" {
-            selected = (1..idx).collect();
-        } else if !s.is_empty() {
-            for part in s.split(|c| c == ',' || c == ' ' || c == ';') {
-                let part = part.trim();
-                if part.is_empty() { continue; }
-                if let Some((a, b)) = part.split_once('-') {
-                    if let (Ok(ia), Ok(ib)) = (a.parse::<usize>(), b.parse::<usize>()) {
-                        if ia >= 1 && ib < idx && ia <= ib { selected.extend(ia..=ib); }
-                    }
-                } else if let Ok(i) = part.parse::<usize>() {
-                    if i >= 1 && i < idx { selected.push(i); }
-                }
-            }
+        io::stdin().read_line(&mut line).context("Failed to read base selection")?;
+        let s = line.trim();
+        if s.eq_ignore_ascii_case("q") || s.eq_ignore_ascii_case("quit") || s.eq_ignore_ascii_case("exit") {
+            return Ok(Vec::new());
         }
-        selected.sort_unstable();
-        selected.dedup();
-        if selected.is_empty() {
-            eprintln!("No valid selection. Please try again or 'q' to cancel.");
+        let chosen_base = if let Ok(i) = s.parse::<usize>() {
+            if i >= 1 && i <= bases.len() { Some(bases[i - 1].clone()) } else { None }
+        } else if !s.is_empty() {
+            // accept exact name match (case-insensitive)
+            bases.iter().find(|b| b.eq_ignore_ascii_case(s)).cloned()
+        } else { None };
+
+        if let Some(base) = chosen_base {
+            // 2) Choose sub-type(s) within that base
+            let filtered: Vec<ModelEntry> = models.iter().filter(|m| m.base == base).cloned().collect();
+            if filtered.is_empty() {
+                eprintln!("No models found for base '{}'.", base);
+                continue;
+            }
+            // Reuse the formatter but only for the chosen base list
+            let listing = format_model_list(&filtered);
+            eprint!("{}", listing);
+
+            // Build index map for filtered list
+            let mut index_map: Vec<usize> = Vec::with_capacity(filtered.len());
+            let mut idx = 1usize;
+            for (pos, _m) in filtered.iter().enumerate() {
+                index_map.push(pos);
+                idx += 1;
+            }
+            // Second prompt: sub-type selection
+            loop {
+                eprint!("Selection: ");
+                io::stderr().flush().ok();
+                let mut line2 = String::new();
+                io::stdin().read_line(&mut line2).context("Failed to read selection")?;
+                let s2 = line2.trim().to_lowercase();
+                if s2 == "q" || s2 == "quit" || s2 == "exit" { return Ok(Vec::new()); }
+                let mut selected: Vec<usize> = Vec::new();
+                if s2 == "all" || s2 == "*" {
+                    selected = (1..idx).collect();
+                } else if !s2.is_empty() {
+                    for part in s2.split(|c| c == ',' || c == ' ' || c == ';') {
+                        let part = part.trim();
+                        if part.is_empty() { continue; }
+                        if let Some((a, b)) = part.split_once('-') {
+                            if let (Ok(ia), Ok(ib)) = (a.parse::<usize>(), b.parse::<usize>()) {
+                                if ia >= 1 && ib < idx && ia <= ib { selected.extend(ia..=ib); }
+                            }
+                        } else if let Ok(i) = part.parse::<usize>() {
+                            if i >= 1 && i < idx { selected.push(i); }
+                        }
+                    }
+                }
+                selected.sort_unstable();
+                selected.dedup();
+                if selected.is_empty() {
+                    eprintln!("No valid selection. Please try again or 'q' to cancel.");
+                    continue;
+                }
+                let chosen: Vec<ModelEntry> = selected.into_iter().map(|i| filtered[index_map[i - 1]].clone()).collect();
+                return Ok(chosen);
+            }
+        } else {
+            eprintln!("Invalid base selection. Please enter a number from 1-{} or a base name.", bases.len());
             continue;
         }
-        let chosen: Vec<ModelEntry> = selected.into_iter().map(|i| models[index_map[i - 1]].clone()).collect();
-        return Ok(chosen);
     }
 }
 
@@ -385,7 +457,7 @@ pub fn run_interactive_model_downloader() -> Result<()> {
         eprintln!("No models found on Hugging Face listing. Please try again later.");
         return Ok(());
     }
-    let selected = prompt_select_models(&models)?;
+    let selected = prompt_select_models_two_stage(&models)?;
     if selected.is_empty() {
         eprintln!("No selection. Aborting download.");
         return Ok(());
@@ -631,6 +703,38 @@ mod tests {
     use std::fs;
     use std::io::Write;
 
+    #[test]
+    fn test_format_model_list_spacing_and_structure() {
+        let models = vec![
+            ModelEntry { name: "tiny.en-q5_1".to_string(), base: "tiny".to_string(), subtype: "en-q5_1".to_string(), size: 1024*1024, sha256: Some("0123456789abcdef0123456789abcdef0123456789abcdef0123456789abcdef".to_string()), repo: "ggerganov/whisper.cpp".to_string() },
+            ModelEntry { name: "tiny-q5_1".to_string(), base: "tiny".to_string(), subtype: "q5_1".to_string(), size: 2048, sha256: None, repo: "ggerganov/whisper.cpp".to_string() },
+            ModelEntry { name: "base.en-q5_1".to_string(), base: "base".to_string(), subtype: "en-q5_1".to_string(), size: 10, sha256: Some("aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa".to_string()), repo: "akashmjn/tinydiarize-whisper.cpp".to_string() },
+        ];
+        let s = format_model_list(&models);
+        // Header present
+        assert!(s.starts_with("Available ggml Whisper models:\n"));
+        // Group headers and blank line before header
+        assert!(s.contains("\ntiny:\n"));
+        assert!(s.contains("\nbase:\n"));
+        // No immediate double space before a bracket after parenthesis
+        assert!(!s.contains(")  ["), "should not have double space immediately before bracket");
+        // Lines contain normalized spacing around pipes and no hash
+        assert!(s.contains("[ggerganov/whisper.cpp | 1.00 MiB]"));
+        assert!(s.contains("[ggerganov/whisper.cpp | 2.00 KiB]"));
+        // Verify alignment: the '[' position should match across multiple lines
+        let bracket_positions: Vec<usize> = s
+            .lines()
+            .filter(|l| l.contains("ggerganov/whisper.cpp"))
+            .map(|l| l.find('[').unwrap())
+            .collect();
+        assert!(bracket_positions.len() >= 2);
+        for w in bracket_positions.windows(2) {
+            assert_eq!(w[0], w[1], "bracket columns should align");
+        }
+        // Footer instruction present
+        assert!(s.contains("Enter selection by indices"));
+    }
+
     fn sha256_hex(data: &[u8]) -> String {
         use sha2::{Digest, Sha256};
         let mut hasher = Sha256::new();