diff --git a/.jules/bolt.md b/.jules/bolt.md
index afe8117e..229fa561 100644
--- a/.jules/bolt.md
+++ b/.jules/bolt.md
@@ -61,3 +61,7 @@
 ## 2026-04-22 - [Avoid string allocation on single-part split]
 **Learning:** Calling `.split(delimiter)` on a reference-counted string (`Arc<str>`) and `.map()`ing the results into `Arc::from(s)` unconditionally creates a new allocation for every chunk. If the delimiter doesn't exist, the entire string is re-allocated unnecessarily.
 **Action:** When iterating over a split of a reference-counted string, explicitly check if `s.len() == text.len() && !text.is_empty()`. If it is, use `Arc::clone(&text)` to return another reference to the existing string, bypassing the allocation.
+
+## 2026-05-18 - [Optimize string concatenation in interpreter]
+**Learning:** Using `format!("{a}{b}")` for string concatenation in the interpreter causes unnecessary allocations and overhead due to the `Display` trait implementation.
+**Action:** Implement a `to_string_fast` method on the `Value` enum to return a `std::borrow::Cow<'_, str>` for fast path string conversions. Use `String::with_capacity` and `push_str` with the `to_string_fast` outputs to concatenate strings efficiently.
diff --git a/src/interpreter/mod.rs b/src/interpreter/mod.rs
index 4e4bdd6f..3d0fae71 100644
--- a/src/interpreter/mod.rs
+++ b/src/interpreter/mod.rs
@@ -7564,11 +7564,17 @@ impl Interpreter {
                 Ok(Value::Text(Arc::from(s)))
             }
             (Value::Text(a), b) => {
-                let result = format!("{a}{b}");
+                let b_str = b.to_string_fast();
+                let mut result = String::with_capacity(a.len() + b_str.len());
+                result.push_str(a.as_ref());
+                result.push_str(b_str.as_ref());
                 Ok(Value::Text(Arc::from(result.as_str())))
             }
             (a, Value::Text(b)) => {
-                let result = format!("{a}{b}");
+                let a_str = a.to_string_fast();
+                let mut result = String::with_capacity(a_str.len() + b.len());
+                result.push_str(a_str.as_ref());
+                result.push_str(b.as_ref());
                 Ok(Value::Text(Arc::from(result.as_str())))
             }
             (a, b) => Err(RuntimeError::new(
diff --git a/src/interpreter/value.rs b/src/interpreter/value.rs
index 7d033a6a..d9127f8d 100644
--- a/src/interpreter/value.rs
+++ b/src/interpreter/value.rs
@@ -157,6 +157,18 @@ pub struct ActionSignature {
 }
 
 impl Value {
+    pub fn to_string_fast(&self) -> std::borrow::Cow<'_, str> {
+        match self {
+            Value::Text(s) => std::borrow::Cow::Borrowed(s.as_ref()),
+            Value::Number(n) => std::borrow::Cow::Owned(n.to_string()),
+            Value::Bool(b) => std::borrow::Cow::Borrowed(if *b { "yes" } else { "no" }),
+            Value::Null => std::borrow::Cow::Borrowed("null"),
+            Value::Nothing => std::borrow::Cow::Borrowed("nothing"),
+            // For complex types, just fallback to format!
+            _ => std::borrow::Cow::Owned(format!("{}", self)),
+        }
+    }
+
     pub fn type_name(&self) -> &'static str {
         match self {
             Value::Number(_) => "Number",