diff --git a/crates/goose/src/agents/subagent.rs b/crates/goose/src/agents/subagent.rs
index d4150f2ff975..40b7d9e4f23d 100644
--- a/crates/goose/src/agents/subagent.rs
+++ b/crates/goose/src/agents/subagent.rs
@@ -1,3 +1,4 @@
+use crate::agents::subagent_task_config::DEFAULT_SUBAGENT_MAX_TURNS;
 use crate::{
     agents::extension::ExtensionConfig,
     agents::{extension_manager::ExtensionManager, Agent, TaskConfig},
@@ -203,20 +204,6 @@ impl SubAgent {
             .as_ref()
             .ok_or_else(|| anyhow!("No provider configured for subagent"))?;
 
-        // Check if we've exceeded max turns
-        {
-            let turn_count = *self.turn_count.lock().await;
-            if let Some(max_turns) = self.config.max_turns {
-                if turn_count >= max_turns {
-                    self.set_status(SubAgentStatus::Completed(
-                        "Maximum turns exceeded".to_string(),
-                    ))
-                    .await;
-                    return Err(anyhow!("Maximum turns ({}) exceeded", max_turns));
-                }
-            }
-        }
-
         // Set status to processing
         self.set_status(SubAgentStatus::Processing).await;
 
@@ -227,17 +214,6 @@ impl SubAgent {
             conversation.push(user_message.clone());
         }
 
-        // Increment turn count
-        {
-            let mut turn_count = self.turn_count.lock().await;
-            *turn_count += 1;
-            self.send_mcp_notification(
-                "turn_progress",
-                &format!("Turn {}/{}", turn_count, self.config.max_turns.unwrap_or(0)),
-            )
-            .await;
-        }
-
         // Get the current conversation for context
         let mut messages = self.get_conversation().await;
 
@@ -255,8 +231,14 @@ impl SubAgent {
         // Build system prompt using the template
         let system_prompt = self.build_system_prompt(&tools).await?;
 
+        // Generate response from provider with loop for tool processing (max_turns iterations)
+        let mut loop_count = 0;
+        let max_turns = self.config.max_turns.unwrap_or(DEFAULT_SUBAGENT_MAX_TURNS);
+
         // Generate response from provider
         loop {
+            loop_count += 1;
+
             match Agent::generate_response_from_provider(
                 Arc::clone(provider),
                 &system_prompt,
@@ -281,7 +263,7 @@ impl SubAgent {
                         .collect();
 
                     // If there are no tool requests, we're done
-                    if tool_requests.is_empty() {
+                    if tool_requests.is_empty() || loop_count >= max_turns {
                         self.add_message(response.clone()).await;
 
                         // Send notification about response
@@ -291,9 +273,6 @@ impl SubAgent {
                         )
                         .await;
 
-                        // Add delay before completion to ensure all processing finishes
-                        tokio::time::sleep(tokio::time::Duration::from_millis(500)).await;
-
                         // Set status back to ready and return the final response
                         self.set_status(SubAgentStatus::Completed("Completed!".to_string()))
                             .await;
diff --git a/crates/goose/src/agents/subagent_task_config.rs b/crates/goose/src/agents/subagent_task_config.rs
index 81bcd999b8e8..cbbc7821676f 100644
--- a/crates/goose/src/agents/subagent_task_config.rs
+++ b/crates/goose/src/agents/subagent_task_config.rs
@@ -1,10 +1,17 @@
 use crate::providers::base::Provider;
 use rmcp::model::JsonRpcMessage;
+use std::env;
 use std::fmt;
 use std::sync::Arc;
 use tokio::sync::mpsc;
 use uuid::Uuid;
 
+/// Default maximum number of turns for task execution
+pub const DEFAULT_SUBAGENT_MAX_TURNS: usize = 5;
+
+/// Environment variable name for configuring max turns
+pub const GOOSE_SUBAGENT_MAX_TURNS_ENV_VAR: &str = "GOOSE_SUBAGENT_MAX_TURNS";
+
 /// Configuration for task execution with all necessary dependencies
 #[derive(Clone)]
 pub struct TaskConfig {
@@ -31,7 +38,12 @@ impl TaskConfig {
             id: Uuid::new_v4().to_string(),
             provider,
             mcp_tx,
-            max_turns: Some(10),
+            max_turns: Some(
+                env::var(GOOSE_SUBAGENT_MAX_TURNS_ENV_VAR)
+                    .ok()
+                    .and_then(|val| val.parse::<usize>().ok())
+                    .unwrap_or(DEFAULT_SUBAGENT_MAX_TURNS),
+            ),
         }
     }