diff --git a/pkg/cmd/cmdutil.go b/pkg/cmd/cmdutil.go
index aee3b10..285df03 100644
--- a/pkg/cmd/cmdutil.go
+++ b/pkg/cmd/cmdutil.go
@@ -130,6 +130,24 @@ func streamOutput(label string, generateOutput func(w *os.File) error) error {
 	return streamOutputOSSpecific(label, generateOutput)
 }
 
+// pagerCommand splits PAGER into an executable and its arguments. $PAGER is written
+// as a command line by the tools this CLI is used beside (git, gh, man), so
+// "less -R" has to reach less rather than be resolved as a single executable name.
+// When the first word does not resolve, the whole value is kept, so a configuration
+// that works today keeps working, including an executable path that contains spaces.
+func pagerCommand() []string {
+	pager := strings.TrimSpace(os.Getenv("PAGER"))
+	if pager == "" {
+		return []string{"less"}
+	}
+	if command := strings.Fields(pager); len(command) > 1 {
+		if _, err := exec.LookPath(command[0]); err == nil {
+			return command
+		}
+	}
+	return []string{pager}
+}
+
 func streamToPagerWithPipe(label string, generateOutput func(w *os.File) error) error {
 	r, w, err := os.Pipe()
 	if err != nil {
@@ -138,16 +156,12 @@ func streamToPagerWithPipe(label string, generateOutput func(w *os.File) error)
 	defer r.Close()
 	defer w.Close()
 
-	pagerProgram := os.Getenv("PAGER")
-	if pagerProgram == "" {
-		pagerProgram = "less"
-	}
-
-	if _, err := exec.LookPath(pagerProgram); err != nil {
+	command := pagerCommand()
+	if _, err := exec.LookPath(command[0]); err != nil {
 		return err
 	}
 
-	cmd := exec.Command(pagerProgram)
+	cmd := exec.Command(command[0], command[1:]...)
 	cmd.Stdin = r
 	cmd.Stdout = os.Stdout
 	cmd.Stderr = os.Stderr
diff --git a/pkg/cmd/cmdutil_pager_unix_test.go b/pkg/cmd/cmdutil_pager_unix_test.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..614c423
--- /dev/null
+++ b/pkg/cmd/cmdutil_pager_unix_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,83 @@
+//go:build !windows
+
+package cmd
+
+import (
+	"os"
+	"path/filepath"
+	"testing"
+
+	"github.com/stretchr/testify/require"
+)
+
+// pagerCommand must split a command line while keeping the configurations that work
+// today: an unset PAGER, a bare program, and an executable path containing spaces.
+func TestPagerCommand(t *testing.T) {
+	tempDir := t.TempDir()
+	pagerPath := filepath.Join(tempDir, "pager")
+	require.NoError(t, os.WriteFile(pagerPath, []byte("#!/bin/sh\n"), 0700))
+
+	spacedDir := filepath.Join(tempDir, "bin dir")
+	require.NoError(t, os.Mkdir(spacedDir, 0700))
+	spacedPath := filepath.Join(spacedDir, "pager")
+	require.NoError(t, os.WriteFile(spacedPath, []byte("#!/bin/sh\n"), 0700))
+
+	missingPath := filepath.Join(tempDir, "missing")
+
+	for _, tc := range []struct {
+		name  string
+		pager string
+		want  []string
+	}{
+		{name: "unset falls back to less", pager: "", want: []string{"less"}},
+		{name: "blank falls back to less", pager: " \t ", want: []string{"less"}},
+		{name: "bare program", pager: pagerPath, want: []string{pagerPath}},
+		{name: "bare program is trimmed", pager: "  " + pagerPath + " ", want: []string{pagerPath}},
+		{name: "arguments are split off", pager: pagerPath + " -R --no-init", want: []string{pagerPath, "-R", "--no-init"}},
+		{name: "trimmed value with arguments", pager: " " + pagerPath + " -R", want: []string{pagerPath, "-R"}},
+		{name: "path with spaces stays one program", pager: spacedPath, want: []string{spacedPath}},
+		{name: "unresolvable first word keeps the whole value", pager: missingPath + " -R", want: []string{missingPath + " -R"}},
+	} {
+		t.Run(tc.name, func(t *testing.T) {
+			t.Setenv("PAGER", tc.pager)
+			require.Equal(t, tc.want, pagerCommand())
+		})
+	}
+}
+
+// PAGER is written as a command line by the tools this CLI is used beside
+// (PAGER="less -R" is common), so both pager implementations have to pass the
+// arguments through instead of resolving the whole value as one executable name.
+func TestStreamToPagerPassesPagerArguments(t *testing.T) {
+	paths := map[string]func(string, func(*os.File) error) error{
+		"pipe":   streamToPagerWithPipe,
+		"socket": streamOutputOSSpecific,
+	}
+	for name, stream := range paths {
+		t.Run(name, func(t *testing.T) {
+			dir := t.TempDir()
+			argPath, outputPath := filepath.Join(dir, "arg"), filepath.Join(dir, "output")
+			pager := filepath.Join(dir, "pager")
+			require.NoError(t, os.WriteFile(pager, []byte("#!/bin/sh\nprintf '%s\\n' \"$1\" > \"$OPENAI_TEST_PAGER_ARG\"\ncat > \"$OPENAI_TEST_PAGER_OUTPUT\"\n"), 0700))
+			t.Setenv("PAGER", pager+" --no-init")
+			t.Setenv("OPENAI_TEST_PAGER_ARG", argPath)
+			t.Setenv("OPENAI_TEST_PAGER_OUTPUT", outputPath)
+
+			require.NoError(t, stream("pager arguments", func(w *os.File) error {
+				if name == "socket" {
+					require.Equal(t, "parent-socket", w.Name(), "socket pager must not fall back to the pipe")
+				}
+				_, err := w.WriteString("payload\n")
+				return err
+			}))
+
+			arg, err := os.ReadFile(argPath)
+			require.NoError(t, err)
+			require.Equal(t, "--no-init\n", string(arg))
+
+			output, err := os.ReadFile(outputPath)
+			require.NoError(t, err)
+			require.Equal(t, "payload\n", string(output))
+		})
+	}
+}
diff --git a/pkg/cmd/cmdutil_unix.go b/pkg/cmd/cmdutil_unix.go
index 4902563..26a0fbb 100644
--- a/pkg/cmd/cmdutil_unix.go
+++ b/pkg/cmd/cmdutil_unix.go
@@ -90,12 +90,9 @@ func openSocketPairPager(label string) (*os.File, int, error) {
 
 	parentConn := os.NewFile(uintptr(parentFd), "parent-socket")
 
-	pagerProgram := os.Getenv("PAGER")
-	if pagerProgram == "" {
-		pagerProgram = "less"
-	}
+	command := pagerCommand()
 
-	pagerPath, err := exec.LookPath(pagerProgram)
+	pagerPath, err := exec.LookPath(command[0])
 	if err != nil {
 		unix.Close(parentFd)
 		return nil, 0, err
@@ -115,7 +112,7 @@ func openSocketPairPager(label string) (*os.File, int, error) {
 		},
 	}
 
-	pid, err := syscall.ForkExec(pagerPath, []string{pagerProgram}, procAttr)
+	pid, err := syscall.ForkExec(pagerPath, command, procAttr)
 	if err != nil {
 		unix.Close(parentFd)
 		return nil, 0, err