diff --git a/src/platform/assets/composables/useAssetBrowserDialog.stories.ts b/src/platform/assets/composables/useAssetBrowserDialog.stories.ts
index e0095b6196..aa23fa583d 100644
--- a/src/platform/assets/composables/useAssetBrowserDialog.stories.ts
+++ b/src/platform/assets/composables/useAssetBrowserDialog.stories.ts
@@ -175,11 +175,17 @@ export default {
         onAssetSelected: (assetPath) => {
           console.log('Selected:', assetPath)
           // Update your component state
+          // Dialog auto-closes with animation via animateHide()
         }
       })
     }
 
-    return { openBrowser }
+    // Manual close with animation (if needed)
+    const closeBrowser = () => {
+      assetBrowserDialog.hide() // Triggers animateHide() internally
+    }
+
+    return { openBrowser, closeBrowser }
   }
 }</code></pre>
           </div>
@@ -188,6 +194,12 @@ export default {
               <strong>💡 Try it:</strong> Use the interactive buttons above to see this code in action!
             </p>
           </div>
+          <div class="mt-4 p-3 bg-green-50 border border-green-200 rounded">
+            <p class="text-sm text-green-800">
+              <strong>✨ Animation:</strong> The close button now uses <code>animateHide()</code> for smooth transitions,
+              just like pressing ESC. Both auto-close on selection and manual close trigger proper animations.
+            </p>
+          </div>
         </div>
       </div>
     `
diff --git a/src/platform/assets/composables/useAssetBrowserDialog.ts b/src/platform/assets/composables/useAssetBrowserDialog.ts
index cc2a217a80..f76998546f 100644
--- a/src/platform/assets/composables/useAssetBrowserDialog.ts
+++ b/src/platform/assets/composables/useAssetBrowserDialog.ts
@@ -20,15 +20,21 @@ interface AssetBrowserDialogProps {
 export const useAssetBrowserDialog = () => {
   const dialogStore = useDialogStore()
   const dialogKey = 'global-asset-browser'
+  let onHideComplete: (() => void) | null = null
 
-  function hide() {
-    dialogStore.closeDialog({ key: dialogKey })
+  function hide(): Promise<void> {
+    return new Promise((resolve) => {
+      onHideComplete = resolve
+      dialogStore.animateHide({ key: dialogKey })
+    })
   }
 
   async function show(props: AssetBrowserDialogProps) {
-    const handleAssetSelected = (assetPath: string) => {
-      hide() // Auto-close on selection before async operations
+    const handleAssetSelected = async (assetPath: string) => {
+      // Update the widget value immediately - don't wait for animation
       props.onAssetSelected?.(assetPath)
+      // Then trigger the hide animation
+      await hide()
     }
 
     // Default dialog configuration for AssetBrowserModal
@@ -36,6 +42,13 @@ export const useAssetBrowserDialog = () => {
       headless: true,
       modal: true,
       closable: true,
+      onAfterHide: () => {
+        // Resolve the hide() promise when animation completes
+        if (!onHideComplete) return
+
+        onHideComplete()
+        onHideComplete = null
+      },
       pt: {
         root: {
           class: 'rounded-2xl overflow-hidden'
diff --git a/src/stores/dialogStore.ts b/src/stores/dialogStore.ts
index f74e44c7d2..754fb67ad2 100644
--- a/src/stores/dialogStore.ts
+++ b/src/stores/dialogStore.ts
@@ -104,6 +104,39 @@ export const useDialogStore = defineStore('dialog', () => {
     }
   }
 
+  /**
+   * Triggers the dialog hide animation without immediately removing from stack.
+   * This is the preferred way to hide dialogs as it provides smooth visual transitions.
+   *
+   * Flow: animateHide() → PrimeVue animation → PrimeVue calls onAfterHide → closeDialog()
+   *
+   * Use this when:
+   * - User clicks close button
+   * - Programmatically hiding a dialog
+   * - You want the same smooth animation as ESC key
+   */
+  function animateHide(options?: { key: string }) {
+    const targetDialog = options
+      ? dialogStack.value.find((d) => d.key === options.key)
+      : dialogStack.value.find((d) => d.key === activeKey.value)
+    if (!targetDialog) return
+
+    // Set visible to false to trigger PrimeVue's close animation
+    // PrimeVue will call onAfterHide when animation completes, which calls closeDialog()
+    targetDialog.visible = false
+  }
+
+  /**
+   * Immediately removes dialog from stack without animation.
+   * This is called internally after animations complete.
+   *
+   * Use this when:
+   * - Called from onAfterHide callback (PrimeVue animation already done)
+   * - Force-closing without animation (rare)
+   * - Cleaning up dialog state
+   *
+   * For user-initiated closes, prefer animateClose() instead.
+   */
   function closeDialog(options?: { key: string }) {
     const targetDialog = options
       ? dialogStack.value.find((d) => d.key === options.key)
@@ -246,6 +279,7 @@ export const useDialogStore = defineStore('dialog', () => {
     dialogStack,
     riseDialog,
     showDialog,
+    animateHide,
     closeDialog,
     showExtensionDialog,
     isDialogOpen,
diff --git a/tests-ui/platform/assets/composables/useAssetBrowserDialog.test.ts b/tests-ui/platform/assets/composables/useAssetBrowserDialog.test.ts
index 06bbbd71a7..e947fdc3cd 100644
--- a/tests-ui/platform/assets/composables/useAssetBrowserDialog.test.ts
+++ b/tests-ui/platform/assets/composables/useAssetBrowserDialog.test.ts
@@ -6,6 +6,13 @@ import { useDialogStore } from '@/stores/dialogStore'
 // Mock the dialog store
 vi.mock('@/stores/dialogStore')
 
+// Mock the asset service
+vi.mock('@/platform/assets/services/assetService', () => ({
+  assetService: {
+    getAssetsForNodeType: vi.fn().mockResolvedValue([])
+  }
+}))
+
 // Test factory functions
 interface AssetBrowserProps {
   nodeType: string
@@ -25,14 +32,14 @@ function createAssetBrowserProps(
 
 describe('useAssetBrowserDialog', () => {
   describe('Asset Selection Flow', () => {
-    it('auto-closes dialog when asset is selected', () => {
+    it('auto-closes dialog when asset is selected', async () => {
       // Create fresh mocks for this test
       const mockShowDialog = vi.fn()
-      const mockCloseDialog = vi.fn()
+      const mockAnimateHide = vi.fn()
 
       vi.mocked(useDialogStore).mockReturnValue({
         showDialog: mockShowDialog,
-        closeDialog: mockCloseDialog
+        animateHide: mockAnimateHide
       } as Partial<ReturnType<typeof useDialogStore>> as ReturnType<
         typeof useDialogStore
       >)
@@ -41,7 +48,7 @@ describe('useAssetBrowserDialog', () => {
       const onAssetSelected = vi.fn()
       const props = createAssetBrowserProps({ onAssetSelected })
 
-      assetBrowserDialog.show(props)
+      await assetBrowserDialog.show(props)
 
       // Get the onSelect handler that was passed to the dialog
       const dialogCall = mockShowDialog.mock.calls[0][0]
@@ -50,21 +57,21 @@ describe('useAssetBrowserDialog', () => {
       // Simulate asset selection
       onSelectHandler('selected-asset-path')
 
-      // Should call the original callback and close dialog
+      // Should call the original callback and trigger hide animation
       expect(onAssetSelected).toHaveBeenCalledWith('selected-asset-path')
-      expect(mockCloseDialog).toHaveBeenCalledWith({
+      expect(mockAnimateHide).toHaveBeenCalledWith({
         key: 'global-asset-browser'
       })
     })
 
-    it('closes dialog when close handler is called', () => {
+    it('closes dialog when close handler is called', async () => {
       // Create fresh mocks for this test
       const mockShowDialog = vi.fn()
-      const mockCloseDialog = vi.fn()
+      const mockAnimateHide = vi.fn()
 
       vi.mocked(useDialogStore).mockReturnValue({
         showDialog: mockShowDialog,
-        closeDialog: mockCloseDialog
+        animateHide: mockAnimateHide
       } as Partial<ReturnType<typeof useDialogStore>> as ReturnType<
         typeof useDialogStore
       >)
@@ -72,7 +79,7 @@ describe('useAssetBrowserDialog', () => {
       const assetBrowserDialog = useAssetBrowserDialog()
       const props = createAssetBrowserProps()
 
-      assetBrowserDialog.show(props)
+      await assetBrowserDialog.show(props)
 
       // Get the onClose handler that was passed to the dialog
       const dialogCall = mockShowDialog.mock.calls[0][0]
@@ -81,10 +88,9 @@ describe('useAssetBrowserDialog', () => {
       // Simulate dialog close
       onCloseHandler()
 
-      expect(mockCloseDialog).toHaveBeenCalledWith({
+      expect(mockAnimateHide).toHaveBeenCalledWith({
         key: 'global-asset-browser'
       })
     })
-
   })
 })
diff --git a/tests-ui/tests/store/dialogStore.test.ts b/tests-ui/tests/store/dialogStore.test.ts
index 3d21ff695b..64260822c9 100644
--- a/tests-ui/tests/store/dialogStore.test.ts
+++ b/tests-ui/tests/store/dialogStore.test.ts
@@ -146,6 +146,21 @@ describe('dialogStore', () => {
       expect(store.isDialogOpen('test-dialog')).toBe(false)
     })
 
+    it('should hide dialog by setting visible to false', () => {
+      const store = useDialogStore()
+      store.showDialog({ key: 'test-dialog', component: MockComponent })
+
+      const dialog = store.dialogStack[0]
+      expect(dialog.visible).toBe(true)
+
+      store.animateHide({ key: 'test-dialog' })
+
+      // Dialog should be hidden but still in stack
+      expect(dialog.visible).toBe(false)
+      expect(store.dialogStack).toHaveLength(1)
+      expect(store.isDialogOpen('test-dialog')).toBe(true)
+    })
+
     it('should reuse existing dialog when showing with same key', () => {
       const store = useDialogStore()