diff --git a/cmd/cli/commands/utils.go b/cmd/cli/commands/utils.go
index a8abb8ae0..954a04cce 100644
--- a/cmd/cli/commands/utils.go
+++ b/cmd/cli/commands/utils.go
@@ -11,6 +11,7 @@ import (
 	"github.com/docker/model-runner/cmd/cli/desktop"
 	"github.com/docker/model-runner/cmd/cli/pkg/standalone"
 	"github.com/docker/model-runner/pkg/inference/backends/vllm"
+	"github.com/google/go-containerregistry/pkg/name"
 	"github.com/moby/term"
 	"github.com/spf13/cobra"
 )
@@ -26,6 +27,16 @@ const (
 	enableVLLM   = "It looks like you're trying to use a model for vLLM → docker model install-runner --vllm"
 )
 
+// getDefaultRegistry returns the default registry, checking for environment override
+// If DEFAULT_REGISTRY environment variable is set, it returns that value
+// Otherwise, it returns name.DefaultRegistry ("index.docker.io")
+func getDefaultRegistry() string {
+	if defaultReg := os.Getenv("DEFAULT_REGISTRY"); defaultReg != "" {
+		return defaultReg
+	}
+	return name.DefaultRegistry
+}
+
 var notRunningErr = fmt.Errorf("Docker Model Runner is not running. Please start it and try again.\n")
 
 func handleClientError(err error, message string) error {
@@ -87,15 +98,47 @@ func asPrinter(cmd *cobra.Command) standalone.StatusPrinter {
 	return &commandPrinter{cmd: cmd}
 }
 
-// stripDefaultsFromModelName removes the default "ai/" prefix and ":latest" tag for display.
+// stripDefaultsFromModelName removes the default "ai/" prefix, default registry, and ":latest" tag for display.
 // Examples:
 //   - "ai/gemma3:latest" -> "gemma3"
-//   - "ai/gemma3:v1" -> "ai/gemma3:v1"
+//   - "ai/gemma3:v1" -> "gemma3:v1"
 //   - "myorg/gemma3:latest" -> "myorg/gemma3"
 //   - "gemma3:latest" -> "gemma3"
+//   - "index.docker.io/ai/gemma3:latest" -> "gemma3"
+//   - "docker.io/ai/gemma3:latest" -> "gemma3"
+//   - "docker.io/myorg/gemma3:latest" -> "myorg/gemma3"
 //   - "hf.co/bartowski/model:latest" -> "hf.co/bartowski/model"
 func stripDefaultsFromModelName(model string) string {
-	// Check if model has ai/ prefix without tag (implicitly :latest) - strip just ai/
+	// Get the current default registry (checking for environment override)
+	defaultRegistry := getDefaultRegistry()
+
+	// Handle the common default registries that are aliases for each other
+	// Always handle "index.docker.io" and "docker.io" as defaults regardless of DEFAULT_REGISTRY env var
+	// since they are equivalent and commonly used interchangeably
+	defaultRegistries := []string{"index.docker.io/", "docker.io/"}
+	if defaultRegistry != "" &&
+		defaultRegistry != "index.docker.io" &&
+		defaultRegistry != "docker.io" {
+
+		// Ensure it has a trailing slash for correct prefix trimming
+		if !strings.HasSuffix(defaultRegistry, "/") {
+			defaultRegistry += "/"
+		}
+		// Overwrite the list to contain only the custom registry
+		defaultRegistries = []string{defaultRegistry}
+	}
+
+	// Check for the common default registries first
+	for _, reg := range defaultRegistries {
+		if strings.HasPrefix(model, reg) {
+			// Remove the registry prefix
+			model = strings.TrimPrefix(model, reg)
+			break
+		}
+	}
+
+	// If model has default org prefix (without tag, or with :latest tag), strip the org
+	// but preserve other tags
 	if strings.HasPrefix(model, defaultOrg+"/") {
 		model = strings.TrimPrefix(model, defaultOrg+"/")
 	}
diff --git a/cmd/cli/commands/utils_test.go b/cmd/cli/commands/utils_test.go
index 3136d9c49..583c97d8d 100644
--- a/cmd/cli/commands/utils_test.go
+++ b/cmd/cli/commands/utils_test.go
@@ -137,6 +137,31 @@ func TestStripDefaultsFromModelName(t *testing.T) {
 			input:    "",
 			expected: "",
 		},
+		{
+			name:     "docker.io registry with ai prefix and latest tag",
+			input:    "docker.io/ai/gemma3:latest",
+			expected: "gemma3",
+		},
+		{
+			name:     "index.docker.io registry with ai prefix and latest tag",
+			input:    "index.docker.io/ai/gemma3:latest",
+			expected: "gemma3",
+		},
+		{
+			name:     "docker.io registry with ai prefix and custom tag",
+			input:    "docker.io/ai/gemma3:v1",
+			expected: "gemma3:v1",
+		},
+		{
+			name:     "docker.io registry with custom org and latest tag",
+			input:    "docker.io/myorg/gemma3:latest",
+			expected: "myorg/gemma3",
+		},
+		{
+			name:     "index.docker.io registry with custom org and latest tag",
+			input:    "index.docker.io/myorg/gemma3:latest",
+			expected: "myorg/gemma3",
+		},
 	}
 
 	for _, tt := range tests {