diff --git a/web-admin/src/features/bookmarks/utils.ts b/web-admin/src/features/bookmarks/utils.ts
index a89bb3200fd1..91e5446ffa06 100644
--- a/web-admin/src/features/bookmarks/utils.ts
+++ b/web-admin/src/features/bookmarks/utils.ts
@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 import type { V1Bookmark } from "@rilldata/web-admin/client";
 import { isHomeBookmark } from "@rilldata/web-admin/features/bookmarks/selectors.ts";
 import { cleanUrlParams } from "@rilldata/web-common/features/dashboards/url-state/clean-url-params.ts";
-import { parseRillTime } from "@rilldata/web-common/features/dashboards/url-state/time-ranges/parser.ts";
+import { isAbsoluteTimeRange } from "@rilldata/web-common/features/dashboards/url-state/time-ranges/parser.ts";
 import { ExploreStateURLParams } from "@rilldata/web-common/features/dashboards/url-state/url-params";
 import { prettyFormatTimeRange } from "@rilldata/web-common/lib/time/ranges/formatter.ts";
 import { type DashboardTimeControls } from "@rilldata/web-common/lib/time/types.ts";
@@ -223,12 +223,7 @@ function isAbsoluteTimeRangeBookmark(bookmarkUrlParams: URLSearchParams) {
   const timeRange = bookmarkUrlParams.get(ExploreStateURLParams.TimeRange);
   if (!timeRange) return false;
 
-  try {
-    const rt = parseRillTime(timeRange);
-    return rt.isAbsoluteTime();
-  } catch {
-    return false;
-  }
+  return isAbsoluteTimeRange(timeRange);
 }
 
 export function isFilterOnlyBookmark(
diff --git a/web-common/src/features/canvas/filters/CanvasComparisonPill.svelte b/web-common/src/features/canvas/filters/CanvasComparisonPill.svelte
index d53a823a0eaf..91dcd6e1a4a8 100644
--- a/web-common/src/features/canvas/filters/CanvasComparisonPill.svelte
+++ b/web-common/src/features/canvas/filters/CanvasComparisonPill.svelte
@@ -101,8 +101,8 @@
   {#if activeTimeGrain && interval}
     <Comparison
       {minTimeGrain}
-      maxDate={minDate}
-      minDate={maxDate}
+      {minDate}
+      {maxDate}
       timeGrain={activeTimeGrain}
       timeComparisonOptionsState={comparisonOptions}
       selectedComparison={selectedComparisonTimeRange}
diff --git a/web-common/src/features/dashboards/url-state/time-ranges/RillTime.ts b/web-common/src/features/dashboards/url-state/time-ranges/RillTime.ts
index ead7de9fa87b..91ea47db36f7 100644
--- a/web-common/src/features/dashboards/url-state/time-ranges/RillTime.ts
+++ b/web-common/src/features/dashboards/url-state/time-ranges/RillTime.ts
@@ -46,6 +46,7 @@ export class RillTime {
   public asOfLabel: RillTimeAsOfLabel | undefined = undefined;
 
   public isOldFormat = false;
+  public isAbsolute = false;
 
   public constructor(public readonly interval: RillTimeInterval) {
     this.updateIsComplete();
@@ -58,6 +59,7 @@ export class RillTime {
       interval instanceof RillLegacyIsoInterval ||
       interval instanceof RillLegacyDaxInterval ||
       interval instanceof RillAllTimeInterval;
+    this.isAbsolute = interval instanceof RillIsoInterval;
   }
 
   public withGrain(grain: string) {
@@ -100,10 +102,6 @@ export class RillTime {
     }
   }
 
-  public isAbsoluteTime() {
-    return this.interval instanceof RillIsoInterval;
-  }
-
   public toString() {
     let timeRange = this.interval.toString();
 
diff --git a/web-common/src/features/dashboards/url-state/time-ranges/parser.ts b/web-common/src/features/dashboards/url-state/time-ranges/parser.ts
index 74e52e27f8d6..c90aeeec2d08 100644
--- a/web-common/src/features/dashboards/url-state/time-ranges/parser.ts
+++ b/web-common/src/features/dashboards/url-state/time-ranges/parser.ts
@@ -20,6 +20,15 @@ export function isNewRillTimeFormat(rillTime: string): boolean {
   }
 }
 
+export function isAbsoluteTimeRange(rillTime: string): boolean {
+  try {
+    const parser = parseRillTime(rillTime);
+    return parser.isAbsolute;
+  } catch {
+    return false;
+  }
+}
+
 export function validateRillTime(rillTime: string): Error | undefined {
   try {
     const parser = parseRillTime(rillTime);
diff --git a/web-common/src/lib/time/comparisons/index.spec.ts b/web-common/src/lib/time/comparisons/index.spec.ts
index a7769450f34c..72ecff94d6d3 100644
--- a/web-common/src/lib/time/comparisons/index.spec.ts
+++ b/web-common/src/lib/time/comparisons/index.spec.ts
@@ -35,6 +35,33 @@ const contiguousAndCustomComparisonRanges = [
       end: new Date("2020-03-05T06:05:00.000Z"),
     },
   },
+  // custom cases
+  {
+    description:
+      "should return the parsed range when comparison is a custom absolute range",
+    input: {
+      start: new Date("2020-03-05T00:00:00.000Z"),
+      end: new Date("2020-03-06T00:00:00.000Z"),
+      comparison: "2024-01-01T00:00:00.000Z,2024-02-01T00:00:00.000Z",
+    },
+    output: {
+      start: new Date("2024-01-01T00:00:00.000Z"),
+      end: new Date("2024-02-01T00:00:00.000Z"),
+    },
+  },
+  {
+    description:
+      "should return the parsed range when comparison is a custom absolute range using an interval separator",
+    input: {
+      start: new Date("2020-03-05T00:00:00.000Z"),
+      end: new Date("2020-03-06T00:00:00.000Z"),
+      comparison: "2024-01-01T00:00:00.000Z/2024-02-01T00:00:00.000Z",
+    },
+    output: {
+      start: new Date("2024-01-01T00:00:00.000Z"),
+      end: new Date("2024-02-01T00:00:00.000Z"),
+    },
+  },
 ];
 
 const periodStart = new Date("2020-03-05T00:00:00.000Z");
diff --git a/web-common/src/lib/time/comparisons/index.ts b/web-common/src/lib/time/comparisons/index.ts
index 81ec883e78de..83a6164f29d2 100644
--- a/web-common/src/lib/time/comparisons/index.ts
+++ b/web-common/src/lib/time/comparisons/index.ts
@@ -14,7 +14,10 @@ import {
   TimeOffsetType,
   TimeRangePreset,
 } from "../types";
-import { isNewRillTimeFormat } from "@rilldata/web-common/features/dashboards/url-state/time-ranges/parser.ts";
+import {
+  isAbsoluteTimeRange,
+  isNewRillTimeFormat,
+} from "@rilldata/web-common/features/dashboards/url-state/time-ranges/parser.ts";
 
 export function getComparisonTransform(
   start: Date,
@@ -322,7 +325,14 @@ export function getComparisonInterval(
   comparisonRange: string | undefined,
   activeTimeZone: string,
 ): Interval<true> | undefined {
-  if (!interval || !comparisonRange || isNewRillTimeFormat(comparisonRange))
+  // New format ranges are resolved by the backend, so there is nothing to compute here.
+  // Absolute ranges are the exception: they carry their own start and end, so they are parsed below.
+  if (
+    !interval ||
+    !comparisonRange ||
+    (isNewRillTimeFormat(comparisonRange) &&
+      !isAbsoluteTimeRange(comparisonRange))
+  )
     return undefined;
 
   let comparisonInterval: Interval | undefined = undefined;