diff --git a/docs/dev-tools/backends/http.md b/docs/dev-tools/backends/http.md
index 6f96e7184a..df78db1a84 100644
--- a/docs/dev-tools/backends/http.md
+++ b/docs/dev-tools/backends/http.md
@@ -170,6 +170,23 @@ bin = "docker-compose"  # Rename from docker-compose-linux-x86_64 to docker-comp
 When downloading single binaries (not archives), mise automatically removes OS/arch suffixes from the filename. For example, `docker-compose-linux-x86_64` becomes `docker-compose` automatically. Use the `bin` option only when you need a specific custom name.
 :::
 
+### `rename_exe`
+
+Rename the executable inside an extracted archive to a specific name. This is useful when archives contain binaries with platform-specific names or when installing kubectl plugins that need specific naming:
+
+```toml
+[tools."http:openunison-cli"]
+version = "1.0.0"
+url = "https://nexus.tremolo.io/repository/openunison-cli/openunison-cli-v{{version}}-linux.zip"
+rename_exe = "kubectl-openunison-cli"  # Rename extracted binary for kubectl plugin
+```
+
+This works by searching for the first executable in the extracted directory (or `bin_path` if specified) and renaming it to the specified name.
+
+::: tip
+Use `bin` for renaming single binary downloads, and `rename_exe` for renaming executables inside archives.
+:::
+
 ### `format`
 
 Explicitly specify the archive format when the URL lacks a file extension or has an incorrect extension:
diff --git a/e2e/backend/test_http_rename_exe b/e2e/backend/test_http_rename_exe
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..719bd48da0
--- /dev/null
+++ b/e2e/backend/test_http_rename_exe
@@ -0,0 +1,32 @@
+#!/usr/bin/env bash
+# Test HTTP backend rename_exe option for renaming executables in archives
+
+set -euo pipefail
+export MISE_EXPERIMENTAL=1
+
+# Test: rename_exe renames the executable inside the archive
+# The hello-world archive contains hello-world-1.0.0/bin/hello-world
+# We use strip_components=1 and bin_path=bin to get to the binary,
+# then rename_exe to rename it to "my-hello"
+cat <<EOF >mise.toml
+[tools]
+"http:hello-rename" = { version = "1.0.0", url = "https://mise.jdx.dev/test-fixtures/hello-world-1.0.0.tar.gz", strip_components = 1, bin_path = "bin", rename_exe = "my-hello", postinstall = "chmod +x \$MISE_TOOL_INSTALL_PATH/bin/my-hello" }
+EOF
+
+mise install
+mise env
+
+# Verify the renamed binary works
+assert_contains "mise x -- my-hello" "hello world"
+
+# Test: rename_exe with bin_path - binary should be renamed in the bin_path directory
+cat <<EOF >mise.toml
+[tools]
+"http:fd-rename" = { version = "8.7.0", url = "https://mise.jdx.dev/test-fixtures/fd-8.7.0.tar.gz", bin_path = "fd-8.7.0/bin", rename_exe = "my-fd", postinstall = "chmod +x \$MISE_TOOL_INSTALL_PATH/fd-8.7.0/bin/my-fd" }
+EOF
+
+mise install
+mise env
+
+# Verify the renamed binary works
+assert_contains "mise x -- my-fd --version" "8.7.0"
diff --git a/src/backend/http.rs b/src/backend/http.rs
index c264f62831..c1cde397a0 100644
--- a/src/backend/http.rs
+++ b/src/backend/http.rs
@@ -3,7 +3,7 @@ use crate::backend::VersionInfo;
 use crate::backend::backend_type::BackendType;
 use crate::backend::static_helpers::{
     clean_binary_name, get_filename_from_url, list_available_platforms_with_key,
-    lookup_platform_key, template_string, verify_artifact,
+    lookup_platform_key, rename_executable_in_dir, template_string, verify_artifact,
 };
 use crate::backend::version_list;
 use crate::cli::args::BackendArg;
@@ -168,6 +168,16 @@ impl HttpBackend {
             parts.push(format!("strip_{strip}"));
         }
 
+        // Include rename_exe in cache key since it modifies the extracted content
+        if let Some(rename) = get_opt(opts, "rename_exe") {
+            parts.push(format!("rename_{rename}"));
+            // When rename_exe is used, bin_path affects where the rename happens,
+            // so different bin_path values result in different cached content
+            if let Some(bin_path) = get_opt(opts, "bin_path") {
+                parts.push(format!("binpath_{bin_path}"));
+            }
+        }
+
         let key = parts.join("_");
         debug!("Cache key: {}", key);
         Ok(key)
@@ -236,6 +246,7 @@ impl HttpBackend {
     /// Extract artifact to cache with atomic rename
     fn extract_to_cache(
         &self,
+        tv: &ToolVersion,
         file_path: &Path,
         cache_key: &str,
         url: &str,
@@ -261,7 +272,7 @@ impl HttpBackend {
         }
 
         // Perform extraction
-        let extraction_type = self.extract_artifact(&tmp_path, file_path, opts, pr)?;
+        let extraction_type = self.extract_artifact(tv, &tmp_path, file_path, opts, pr)?;
 
         // Atomic replace
         if cache_path.exists() {
@@ -278,6 +289,7 @@ impl HttpBackend {
     /// Extract a single artifact to the given directory
     fn extract_artifact(
         &self,
+        tv: &ToolVersion,
         dest: &Path,
         file_path: &Path,
         opts: &ToolVersionOptions,
@@ -292,7 +304,7 @@ impl HttpBackend {
         } else if file_info.format == file::TarFormat::Raw {
             self.extract_raw_file(dest, file_path, &file_info, opts, pr)
         } else {
-            self.extract_archive(dest, file_path, &file_info, opts, pr)
+            self.extract_archive(tv, dest, file_path, &file_info, opts, pr)
         }
     }
 
@@ -371,6 +383,7 @@ impl HttpBackend {
     /// Extract an archive (tar, zip, etc.)
     fn extract_archive(
         &self,
+        tv: &ToolVersion,
         dest: &Path,
         file_path: &Path,
         file_info: &FileInfo,
@@ -397,6 +410,20 @@ impl HttpBackend {
         };
 
         file::untar(file_path, dest, &tar_opts)?;
+
+        // Handle rename_exe option for archives
+        if let Some(rename_to) = get_opt(opts, "rename_exe") {
+            let search_dir = if let Some(bin_path_template) = get_opt(opts, "bin_path") {
+                let bin_path = template_string(&bin_path_template, tv);
+                dest.join(&bin_path)
+            } else {
+                dest.to_path_buf()
+            };
+            // rsplit('/') always yields at least one element (the full string if no delimiter)
+            let tool_name = self.ba.tool_name.rsplit('/').next().unwrap();
+            rename_executable_in_dir(&search_dir, &rename_to, Some(tool_name))?;
+        }
+
         Ok(ExtractionType::Archive)
     }
 
@@ -574,6 +601,7 @@ pub fn install_time_option_keys() -> Vec<String> {
         "version_json_path".into(),
         "version_expr".into(),
         "format".into(),
+        "rename_exe".into(),
     ]
 }
 
@@ -680,7 +708,14 @@ impl Backend for HttpBackend {
             self.extraction_type_from_cache(&cache_key, &file_info)
         } else {
             ctx.pr.set_message("extracting to cache".into());
-            self.extract_to_cache(&file_path, &cache_key, &url, &opts, Some(ctx.pr.as_ref()))?
+            self.extract_to_cache(
+                &tv,
+                &file_path,
+                &cache_key,
+                &url,
+                &opts,
+                Some(ctx.pr.as_ref()),
+            )?
         };
 
         // Create symlinks
diff --git a/src/backend/static_helpers.rs b/src/backend/static_helpers.rs
index f68d6f2918..366f275f03 100644
--- a/src/backend/static_helpers.rs
+++ b/src/backend/static_helpers.rs
@@ -623,7 +623,7 @@ fn should_skip_file(file_name: &str, strict: bool) -> bool {
 /// - `tool_name`: Optional hint for finding non-executable files by name matching.
 ///   When provided, if no executable is found, will search for files matching the tool name
 ///   and make them executable before renaming.
-fn rename_executable_in_dir(
+pub fn rename_executable_in_dir(
     dir: &Path,
     new_name: &str,
     tool_name: Option<&str>,