diff --git a/internal/helm/chart.go b/internal/helm/chart.go
index 75e91c5..1ed0d76 100644
--- a/internal/helm/chart.go
+++ b/internal/helm/chart.go
@@ -2,6 +2,7 @@ package helm
 
 import (
 	"fmt"
+	"strings"
 
 	"github.com/airbytehq/abctl/internal/common"
 	"github.com/airbytehq/abctl/internal/validate"
@@ -50,7 +51,7 @@ func ChartIsV2Plus(v string) bool {
 
 // ResolveChartReference resolves an Airbyte chart reference to its full URL/path and version.
 // For empty chart+version, returns latest v2 chart.
-// For version-only, uses v1/v2 repo based on version number.
+// For version-only, uses v1/v2 repo based on base version (strips pre-release suffix for repo selection).
 // For URLs and local paths, returns as-is with version from chart metadata.
 func (r *ChartResolver) ResolveChartReference(chart, version string) (string, string, error) {
 	if chart == "" {
@@ -61,7 +62,10 @@ func (r *ChartResolver) ResolveChartReference(chart, version string) (string, st
 			}
 			return chartURL, chartVersion, nil
 		} else {
-			if ChartIsV2Plus(version) {
+			// Extract base version without suffix (e.g., "1.8.4-rc5" -> "1.8.4")
+			// to determine which repo to use, but keep full version for URL
+			baseVersion, _, _ := strings.Cut(version, "-")
+			if ChartIsV2Plus(baseVersion) {
 				// Construct the v2 chart URL.
 				return fmt.Sprintf("%s/airbyte-%s.tgz", r.v2RepoURL, version), version, nil
 			} else {
diff --git a/internal/helm/chart_test.go b/internal/helm/chart_test.go
index d224d13..dbe193c 100644
--- a/internal/helm/chart_test.go
+++ b/internal/helm/chart_test.go
@@ -178,6 +178,13 @@ entries:
 			wantChart: fmt.Sprintf("%s/airbyte-%s.tgz", v2Server.URL, "2.1.0-beta.1"),
 			wantVer:   "2.1.0-beta.1",
 		},
+		{
+			name:      "version only v1 with rc suffix",
+			chart:     "",
+			version:   "1.8.4-rc5",
+			wantChart: fmt.Sprintf("%s/airbyte-%s.tgz", v1Server.URL, "1.8.4-rc5"),
+			wantVer:   "1.8.4-rc5",
+		},
 		{
 			name:      "chart as local ref",
 			chart:     "local/path",