diff --git a/experimental/ssh/internal/client/client.go b/experimental/ssh/internal/client/client.go
index e4daa146146..c006ba366b6 100644
--- a/experimental/ssh/internal/client/client.go
+++ b/experimental/ssh/internal/client/client.go
@@ -650,7 +650,10 @@ func spawnSSHClient(ctx context.Context, client *databricks.WorkspaceClient, use
 
 	sshCmd.Stdin = os.Stdin
 	sshCmd.Stdout = os.Stdout
-	sshCmd.Stderr = os.Stderr
+	// Tee ssh's stderr so the user still sees it while we retain the tail to inspect after exit.
+	// A host-key-verification failure is reported only on stderr, so we need a copy to detect it.
+	stderrTail := &tailWriter{maxBytes: hostKeyStderrTailBytes}
+	sshCmd.Stderr = io.MultiWriter(os.Stderr, stderrTail)
 
 	err = sshCmd.Run()
 	// ssh reserves exit code 255 for its own connection-level failures (a remote command's exit
@@ -659,7 +662,9 @@ func spawnSSHClient(ctx context.Context, client *databricks.WorkspaceClient, use
 	// own logs — fetch them from the /logs endpoint and show them instead of leaving the user
 	// with ssh's opaque "Connection closed" message.
 	if exitErr, ok := errors.AsType[*exec.ExitError](err); ok && exitErr.ExitCode() == 255 {
-		if logs := fetchServerErrorLogs(ctx, client, clusterID, serverPort, opts.Liteswap); logs != "" {
+		if hint := hostKeyChangedHint(stderrTail.String(), hostName, opts.UserKnownHostsFile); hint != "" {
+			cmdio.LogString(ctx, cmdio.Yellow(ctx, hint))
+		} else if logs := fetchServerErrorLogs(ctx, client, clusterID, serverPort, opts.Liteswap); logs != "" {
 			cmdio.LogString(ctx, cmdio.Yellow(ctx, "The SSH connection closed unexpectedly. Recent SSH server errors:"))
 			cmdio.LogString(ctx, truncateTail(logs, maxRunFailureTraceBytes))
 		} else {
@@ -854,6 +859,49 @@ func truncateTail(s string, maxBytes int) string {
 	return "  ...\n" + s[len(s)-maxBytes:]
 }
 
+// hostKeyStderrTailBytes bounds how much of ssh's stderr we retain to detect a host-key failure.
+// The host-key warning block ssh prints is well under this, so the tail always captures it.
+const hostKeyStderrTailBytes = 4096
+
+// tailWriter retains the last maxBytes written to it, so we can inspect an external command's
+// recent stderr without buffering an unbounded amount.
+type tailWriter struct {
+	maxBytes int
+	buf      []byte
+}
+
+func (w *tailWriter) Write(p []byte) (int, error) {
+	w.buf = append(w.buf, p...)
+	if len(w.buf) > w.maxBytes {
+		w.buf = w.buf[len(w.buf)-w.maxBytes:]
+	}
+	return len(p), nil
+}
+
+func (w *tailWriter) String() string {
+	return string(w.buf)
+}
+
+// hostKeyChangedHint returns advice for clearing a stale known_hosts entry when ssh's stderr
+// shows a host-key-verification failure, or "" if the failure was something else. A cluster that
+// has been recreated keeps the same connection name but gets a new host key, so the old entry no
+// longer matches and ssh aborts the connection.
+func hostKeyChangedHint(stderr, hostName, knownHostsFile string) string {
+	// "Host key verification failed." is OpenSSH's fixed message for this case; matching it is the
+	// only signal ssh gives (the "don't branch on err.Error()" rule is about Go errors, not the
+	// output of an external program).
+	if !strings.Contains(stderr, "Host key verification failed") {
+		return ""
+	}
+	cmd := "ssh-keygen -R " + hostName
+	if knownHostsFile != "" {
+		// ssh-keygen -R defaults to ~/.ssh/known_hosts, so name the custom file explicitly.
+		cmd += " -f " + knownHostsFile
+	}
+	return "The host key for " + hostName + " has changed. " +
+		"Remove the stale entry and reconnect:\n  " + cmd
+}
+
 func ensureSSHServerIsRunning(ctx context.Context, client *databricks.WorkspaceClient, version, secretScopeName string, opts ClientOptions) (string, int, string, error) {
 	sessionID := opts.SessionIdentifier()
 	// For dedicated clusters, use clusterID; for serverless, it will be read from metadata
diff --git a/experimental/ssh/internal/client/client_internal_test.go b/experimental/ssh/internal/client/client_internal_test.go
index 4e592a0eab3..af6d021c2c1 100644
--- a/experimental/ssh/internal/client/client_internal_test.go
+++ b/experimental/ssh/internal/client/client_internal_test.go
@@ -146,3 +146,71 @@ func TestWaitForJobToStartSurfacesFailure(t *testing.T) {
 	assert.Contains(t, err.Error(), "ssh server bootstrap job failed")
 	assert.Contains(t, err.Error(), "Could not reach driver of cluster 0605-x.")
 }
+
+// hostKeyFailureStderr is the relevant tail of ssh's stderr when strict checking aborts a
+// connection because the remote host key changed.
+const hostKeyFailureStderr = `@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@
+@    WARNING: REMOTE HOST IDENTIFICATION HAS CHANGED!     @
+@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@
+Host key for databricks-cpu-6e7644d0 has changed and you have requested strict checking.
+Host key verification failed.`
+
+func TestHostKeyChangedHint(t *testing.T) {
+	tests := []struct {
+		name           string
+		stderr         string
+		hostName       string
+		knownHostsFile string
+		wantContains   []string
+		wantEmpty      bool
+	}{
+		{
+			name:         "host key failure",
+			stderr:       hostKeyFailureStderr,
+			hostName:     "databricks-cpu-6e7644d0",
+			wantContains: []string{"databricks-cpu-6e7644d0", "ssh-keygen -R databricks-cpu-6e7644d0"},
+		},
+		{
+			name:           "host key failure with custom known_hosts file",
+			stderr:         hostKeyFailureStderr,
+			hostName:       "databricks-cpu-6e7644d0",
+			knownHostsFile: "/tmp/known_hosts",
+			wantContains:   []string{"ssh-keygen -R databricks-cpu-6e7644d0 -f /tmp/known_hosts"},
+		},
+		{
+			name:      "unrelated failure",
+			stderr:    "kex_exchange_identification: Connection closed by remote host",
+			hostName:  "databricks-cpu-6e7644d0",
+			wantEmpty: true,
+		},
+	}
+	for _, tt := range tests {
+		t.Run(tt.name, func(t *testing.T) {
+			got := hostKeyChangedHint(tt.stderr, tt.hostName, tt.knownHostsFile)
+			if tt.wantEmpty {
+				assert.Empty(t, got)
+				return
+			}
+			for _, want := range tt.wantContains {
+				assert.Contains(t, got, want)
+			}
+		})
+	}
+}
+
+func TestTailWriterRetainsTail(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Run("retains only the tail", func(t *testing.T) {
+		w := &tailWriter{maxBytes: 4}
+		n, err := w.Write([]byte("abcdefgh"))
+		require.NoError(t, err)
+		assert.Equal(t, 8, n)
+		assert.Equal(t, "efgh", w.String())
+	})
+
+	t.Run("preserves a short write", func(t *testing.T) {
+		w := &tailWriter{maxBytes: 4}
+		_, err := w.Write([]byte("ab"))
+		require.NoError(t, err)
+		assert.Equal(t, "ab", w.String())
+	})
+}