diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
index c14cfada..745a3745 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -28,6 +28,7 @@ Types of changes:
 ### Removed
 
 ### Fixed
+- Decompose `p`, `phaseshift`, and `u1` (`U1`) gates into a single `rz(theta)` rotation instead of `h; rx(theta); h` ([#470](https://github.com/qBraid/pyqasm/pull/470), [#469](https://github.com/qBraid/pyqasm/issues/469)).
 - Fixed `rebase` failing on `ccx`, `id`, and the `p` gates produced by unrolling `c3x` for the `ROTATIONAL_CX` / `CLIFFORD_T` basis sets ([#468](https://github.com/qBraid/pyqasm/pull/468), [#467](https://github.com/qBraid/pyqasm/issues/467)).
 - `loads()` syntax errors now name the offending token, line and column, e.g. `Failed to parse OpenQASM string: syntax error near ';' at line 3, column 13`. Before, the reason after the colon was empty ([#460](https://github.com/qBraid/pyqasm/pull/460)).
 - Fixed the matplotlib printer's controlled-gate lookup for `c3x` and `c4x` ([#458](https://github.com/qBraid/pyqasm/pull/458), [#322](https://github.com/qBraid/pyqasm/issues/322)).
diff --git a/docs/gate_decompositions.md b/docs/gate_decompositions.md
index f4357db0..d833384d 100644
--- a/docs/gate_decompositions.md
+++ b/docs/gate_decompositions.md
@@ -113,20 +113,20 @@ q_1: ┤ X ├┤ Rz(π) ├┤ X ├
      └───┘└───────┘└───┘
 ```
 
-## [Phaseshift Gate](../src/pyqasm/maps/gates.py#L249)
+## [Phaseshift Gate](../src/pyqasm/maps/gates.py#L300)
 
-The phaseshift gate is implemented as a decomposition of other gates using the following qiskit decomposition:
+The phaseshift gate is implemented as a single `rz` rotation (equivalent up to a global phase) using the following qiskit decomposition:
 
 ```python
 In [10]: q = QuantumCircuit(1)
 In [11]: q.p(theta,0)
-In [12]: new_qc = transpile(q, basis_gates=['rx','h'])
+In [12]: new_qc = transpile(q, basis_gates=['rz'])
 In [13]: print(new_qc)
 Out[13]: 
-
-   ┌───┐┌───────────┐┌───┐
-q: ┤ H ├┤ Rx(theta) ├┤ H ├
-   └───┘└───────────┘└───┘
+global phase: theta/2
+   ┌───────────┐
+q: ┤ Rz(theta) ├
+   └───────────┘
 ```
 
 ## [CSWAP Gate](../src/pyqasm/maps/gates.py#L264)
diff --git a/src/pyqasm/maps/gates.py b/src/pyqasm/maps/gates.py
index a0d8ab42..90cc3161 100644
--- a/src/pyqasm/maps/gates.py
+++ b/src/pyqasm/maps/gates.py
@@ -299,17 +299,13 @@ def zz_gate(
 
 def phaseshift_gate(theta: int | float, qubit: IndexedIdentifier) -> list[QuantumGate]:
     """
-    Implements the phase shift gate as a decomposition of other gates.
+    Implements the phase shift gate as a single RZ rotation (equivalent up to a global phase).
 
     Reference :
     See https://github.com/qBraid/pyqasm/tree/main/docs/gate_decompositions.md#phaseshift-gate
     for decomposition details
     """
-    result: list[QuantumGate] = []
-    result.extend(one_qubit_gate_op("h", qubit))
-    result.extend(one_qubit_rotation_op("rx", theta, qubit))
-    result.extend(one_qubit_gate_op("h", qubit))
-    return result
+    return one_qubit_rotation_op("rz", theta, qubit)
 
 
 def cswap_gate(
diff --git a/tests/qasm2/test_rotation_gates.py b/tests/qasm2/test_rotation_gates.py
index 218e366e..d0b33f93 100644
--- a/tests/qasm2/test_rotation_gates.py
+++ b/tests/qasm2/test_rotation_gates.py
@@ -18,9 +18,37 @@
 
 """
 
+import numpy as np
+import pytest
+
 from pyqasm.elements import BasisSet
 from pyqasm.entrypoint import dumps, loads
-from tests.utils import check_unrolled_qasm
+from tests.utils import assert_unitary_equal, check_unrolled_qasm, unitary_from_unrolled_ast
+
+
+@pytest.mark.parametrize("gate_name", ["p", "u1"])
+def test_phaseshift_gates_unroll_to_rz_qasm2(gate_name):
+    """Test that p and u1 in OpenQASM 2 unroll to a single rz gate."""
+    theta = 0.5
+    qasm_in = f"""
+OPENQASM 2.0;
+include "qelib1.inc";
+qreg q[1];
+{gate_name}({theta}) q[0];
+"""
+    expected_out = f"""
+OPENQASM 2.0;
+include "qelib1.inc";
+qreg q[1];
+rz({theta}) q[0];
+"""
+    result = loads(qasm_in)
+    result.unroll()
+    check_unrolled_qasm(dumps(result), expected_out)
+    assert_unitary_equal(
+        unitary_from_unrolled_ast(result.unrolled_ast, 1),
+        np.diag([1.0, np.exp(1j * theta)]),
+    )
 
 
 def test_rebase_clifford_t_exact_rotation():
diff --git a/tests/qasm3/test_depth.py b/tests/qasm3/test_depth.py
index 34e3ae95..28fc819e 100644
--- a/tests/qasm3/test_depth.py
+++ b/tests/qasm3/test_depth.py
@@ -670,7 +670,7 @@ def test_qasm3_depth_branching_for_external_gates():
 
 @pytest.mark.parametrize(
     ["input_qasm_str", "before_decompose", "after_decompose"],
-    [(QASM3_DECOMPOSE_GATE_DEPTH, 2, 25), (QASM3_DECOMPOSE_CUSTOM_GATE_DEPTH, 2, 25)],
+    [(QASM3_DECOMPOSE_GATE_DEPTH, 2, 21), (QASM3_DECOMPOSE_CUSTOM_GATE_DEPTH, 2, 21)],
 )
 def test_gate_depth_decomposable_gates(input_qasm_str, before_decompose, after_decompose):
     result = loads(input_qasm_str)
diff --git a/tests/qasm3/test_device_qubits.py b/tests/qasm3/test_device_qubits.py
index 2fc71687..4d197b41 100644
--- a/tests/qasm3/test_device_qubits.py
+++ b/tests/qasm3/test_device_qubits.py
@@ -190,21 +190,13 @@ def test_gates():
     rz(4.71238898038469) __PYQASM_QUBITS__[0];
     rx(1.5707963267948966) __PYQASM_QUBITS__[0];
     rz(3.141592653589793) __PYQASM_QUBITS__[0];
-    h __PYQASM_QUBITS__[0];
-    rx(0.7853981633974483) __PYQASM_QUBITS__[0];
-    h __PYQASM_QUBITS__[0];
+    rz(0.7853981633974483) __PYQASM_QUBITS__[0];
     cx __PYQASM_QUBITS__[1], __PYQASM_QUBITS__[0];
-    h __PYQASM_QUBITS__[0];
-    rx(-0.7853981633974483) __PYQASM_QUBITS__[0];
-    h __PYQASM_QUBITS__[0];
+    rz(-0.7853981633974483) __PYQASM_QUBITS__[0];
     cx __PYQASM_QUBITS__[4], __PYQASM_QUBITS__[0];
-    h __PYQASM_QUBITS__[0];
-    rx(0.7853981633974483) __PYQASM_QUBITS__[0];
-    h __PYQASM_QUBITS__[0];
+    rz(0.7853981633974483) __PYQASM_QUBITS__[0];
     cx __PYQASM_QUBITS__[1], __PYQASM_QUBITS__[0];
-    h __PYQASM_QUBITS__[0];
-    rx(-0.7853981633974483) __PYQASM_QUBITS__[0];
-    h __PYQASM_QUBITS__[0];
+    rz(-0.7853981633974483) __PYQASM_QUBITS__[0];
     rz(3.141592653589793) __PYQASM_QUBITS__[0];
     rx(1.5707963267948966) __PYQASM_QUBITS__[0];
     rz(4.71238898038469) __PYQASM_QUBITS__[0];
diff --git a/tests/qasm3/test_gates.py b/tests/qasm3/test_gates.py
index aaadd780..60aa63bd 100644
--- a/tests/qasm3/test_gates.py
+++ b/tests/qasm3/test_gates.py
@@ -12,6 +12,8 @@
 # See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
 # limitations under the License.
 
+# pylint: disable=too-many-lines
+
 """
 Module containing unit tests for unrolling quantum gates.
 
@@ -981,3 +983,79 @@ def test_physical_qubit_duplicate_detection():
     """
     with pytest.raises(ValidationError, match=r"Duplicate qubit"):
         loads(qasm_input).validate()
+
+
+@pytest.mark.parametrize("gate_name", ["p", "phaseshift", "u1"])
+def test_phaseshift_gates_unroll_to_rz(gate_name):
+    """p, phaseshift, and u1 unroll to a single rz(theta) gate with matching unitary."""
+    theta = 0.7
+    qasm3_string = f"""
+    OPENQASM 3.0;
+    include "stdgates.inc";
+    qubit[1] q;
+    {gate_name}({theta}) q[0];
+    """
+    expected_qasm = f"""
+    OPENQASM 3.0;
+    include "stdgates.inc";
+    qubit[1] q;
+    rz({theta}) q[0];
+    """
+    result = loads(qasm3_string)
+    result.unroll()
+    check_unrolled_qasm(dumps(result), expected_qasm)
+    assert_unitary_equal(
+        unitary_from_unrolled_ast(result.unrolled_ast, 1),
+        np.diag([1.0, np.exp(1j * theta)]),
+    )
+
+
+_CSX_UNITARY = np.array(
+    [
+        [1, 0, 0, 0],
+        [0, 0.5 * (1 + 1j), 0, 0.5 * (1 - 1j)],
+        [0, 0, 1, 0],
+        [0, 0.5 * (1 - 1j), 0, 0.5 * (1 + 1j)],
+    ],
+    dtype=complex,
+)
+
+_RCCX_UNITARY = np.array(
+    [
+        [1, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0],
+        [0, 1, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0],
+        [0, 0, 1, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0],
+        [0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, -1j],
+        [0, 0, 0, 0, 1, 0, 0, 0],
+        [0, 0, 0, 0, 0, -1, 0, 0],
+        [0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 1, 0],
+        [0, 0, 0, 1j, 0, 0, 0, 0],
+    ],
+    dtype=complex,
+)
+
+
+@pytest.mark.parametrize(
+    "body, num_qubits, expected_num_gates, expected_unitary",
+    [
+        ("csx q[0], q[1];", 2, 15, _CSX_UNITARY),
+        ("rccx q[0], q[1], q[2];", 3, 17, _RCCX_UNITARY),
+    ],
+)
+def test_csx_and_rccx_decomposition_unitary(body, num_qubits, expected_num_gates, expected_unitary):
+    """csx and rccx decompose via single-rz phaseshift_gate and preserve their unitary."""
+    header = f'OPENQASM 3;\ninclude "stdgates.inc";\nqubit[{num_qubits}] q;\n'
+    module = loads(header + body)
+    module.unroll()
+
+    assert_unitary_equal(
+        unitary_from_unrolled_ast(module.unrolled_ast, num_qubits),
+        expected_unitary,
+    )
+    gate_names = [
+        stmt.name.name
+        for stmt in module.unrolled_ast.statements
+        if isinstance(stmt, qasm3_ast.QuantumGate)
+    ]
+    assert "h" not in gate_names
+    assert len(gate_names) == expected_num_gates
diff --git a/tests/qasm3/test_rebase.py b/tests/qasm3/test_rebase.py
index d408f02f..f5600c26 100644
--- a/tests/qasm3/test_rebase.py
+++ b/tests/qasm3/test_rebase.py
@@ -233,6 +233,34 @@ def test_rebase_clifford_t_exact_rotations(input_gate, decomposed_gates):
     check_unrolled_qasm(dumps(result), expected_qasm)
 
 
+@pytest.mark.parametrize(
+    "input_gate, decomposed_gates",
+    [
+        ("p(pi/4) q[0];", "t q[0];"),
+        ("p(pi/2) q[0];", "s q[0];"),
+        ("phaseshift(pi/4) q[0];", "t q[0];"),
+        ("u1(pi/2) q[0];", "s q[0];"),
+    ],
+)
+def test_rebase_clifford_t_phaseshift(input_gate, decomposed_gates):
+    """Phase-shift gates rebase directly to single Clifford+T phase gates."""
+    qasm = f"""OPENQASM 3.0;
+    include "stdgates.inc";
+    qubit[1] q;
+    {input_gate}
+    """
+
+    expected_qasm = f"""OPENQASM 3.0;
+    include "stdgates.inc";
+    qubit[1] q;
+    {decomposed_gates}
+    """
+
+    result = loads(qasm)
+    result.rebase(BasisSet.CLIFFORD_T)
+    check_unrolled_qasm(dumps(result), expected_qasm)
+
+
 @pytest.mark.parametrize(
     "gate_name, pauli",
     [
diff --git a/tests/utils.py b/tests/utils.py
index a55f4685..464ca2a6 100644
--- a/tests/utils.py
+++ b/tests/utils.py
@@ -484,12 +484,7 @@ def check_u3_gate_op(unrolled_ast, num_gates, qubit_list, param_list):
 
 
 def _check_phase_shift_gate_op(unrolled_ast, num_gates, qubit_list, param_list):
-    num_h_gates = 2 * num_gates
-    h_qubit_list = [qubit for qubit in qubit_list for _ in range(2)]
-    num_rx_gates = 1 * num_gates
-
-    check_single_qubit_gate_op(unrolled_ast, num_h_gates, h_qubit_list, "h")
-    check_single_qubit_rotation_op(unrolled_ast, num_rx_gates, qubit_list, param_list, "rx")
+    check_single_qubit_rotation_op(unrolled_ast, num_gates, qubit_list, param_list, "rz")
 
 
 def check_measure_op(unrolled_ast, num_ops, meas_pairs):