# Support for ~/.cursor/rules for global .mdc rules **URL:** \ **Category:** Feature Requests\ **Created:** [December 1, 2025, 8:00am UTC](https://forum.cursor.com/t/support-for-cursor-rules-for-global-mdc-rules/144819 "2025-12-01T08:00:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![ilangra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/9fc29f/32.png) [@ilangra](https://forum.cursor.com/u/ilangra)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2025, 8:00am UTC](https://forum.cursor.com/t/support-for-cursor-rules-for-global-mdc-rules/144819/1 "2025-12-01T08:00:39Z")
### Feature request for product/service Cursor IDE ### Describe the request Create a rule file (.mdc) and copy it to the folder ~./cursor/rules. use the agent to do something which is supposed to trigger the rule. refers to: [User rules are not recognized from folder ~./cursor/rules](https://forum.cursor.com/t/user-rules-are-not-recognized-from-folder-cursor-rules/144739) ### Operating System (if it applies) MacOS ---
**Author:** ![dvershinin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/cursor1/user_avatar/forum.cursor.com/dvershinin/32/89839_2.png) [@dvershinin](https://forum.cursor.com/u/dvershinin)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2025, 8:33pm UTC](https://forum.cursor.com/t/support-for-cursor-rules-for-global-mdc-rules/144819/2 "2025-12-06T20:33:45Z")
This is a must to have! ---
**Author:** ![Dan\_S1](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/cursor1/user_avatar/forum.cursor.com/dan_s1/32/89511_2.png) [@Dan\_S1](https://forum.cursor.com/u/Dan_S1)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2025, 11:18am UTC](https://forum.cursor.com/t/support-for-cursor-rules-for-global-mdc-rules/144819/3 "2025-12-10T11:18:17Z")
needed ---
**Author:** ![agoodkind](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/cursor1/user_avatar/forum.cursor.com/agoodkind/32/92824_2.png) [@agoodkind](https://forum.cursor.com/u/agoodkind)\ **Post date:** [December 29, 2025, 8:13pm UTC](https://forum.cursor.com/t/support-for-cursor-rules-for-global-mdc-rules/144819/4 "2025-12-29T20:13:19Z")
This was working before but now its not? ---
**Author:** ![mstephenson6](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/cursor1/user_avatar/forum.cursor.com/mstephenson6/32/104856_2.png) [@mstephenson6](https://forum.cursor.com/u/mstephenson6)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2026, 1:20pm UTC](https://forum.cursor.com/t/support-for-cursor-rules-for-global-mdc-rules/144819/5 "2026-04-10T13:20:51Z")
workaround for this until we get real home directory user rules. tested for a couple days on macOS, Cursor 3.0.13, sonnet-4.6. - copy the rule below to User Rules in **Cursor Settings** → **Rules, Skills, Subagents** → **User** - put your username in step 1 where called out - `mkdir ~/.cursor/rules` and put the user rules you want there as `*.mdc` files - but don’t use any yaml front matter! just assume everything will always apply - you can get rid of user rules in the UI as you move them into `*.mdc` files - if you’ve moved everything to `~/.cursor/rules`, then yes this rule pointing there becomes your one and only UI-configured rule - you will see agents list and read your `*.mdc` user rules before doing anything else ```auto # Read User Rules in ~/.cursor/rules At the start of EVERY conversation, you MUST read all `.mdc` files in `~/.cursor/rules/` using the Read tool. ## Instructions 1. Use the Shell tool to list files: `ls /Users/MACOS_USERNAME_HERE/.cursor/rules/*.mdc` - Do NOT use the Glob tool — it does not support absolute paths outside the workspace and will silently return 0 results 2. Read EVERY file found using the Read tool — do not skip any 3. Apply all rules found immediately and for the entire session 4. If a rule conflicts with a built-in behavior, the rule in `~/.cursor/rules/` wins ## Why This Matters The user stores important behavioral rules here. Failing to read them means ignoring explicit user preferences. This is not optional. ``` the best part about this setup is agents can edit these rules themselves! i could not get those dots connected with UI configured / cloud synchronized user rules. ---
**Author:** ![Tetram](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/cursor1/user_avatar/forum.cursor.com/tetram/32/104870_2.png) [@Tetram](https://forum.cursor.com/u/Tetram)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2026, 2:35pm UTC](https://forum.cursor.com/t/support-for-cursor-rules-for-global-mdc-rules/144819/7 "2026-04-10T14:35:20Z")
Thanks for the workaround. Here is a working one for Windows environment. ```auto [CRITICAL] # Read User Rules in ~/.cursor/rules At the start of EVERY conversation, you MUST read all `.md` and `.mdc` files in the user's global Cursor rules folder using the Read tool. ## Instructions 1. Use the Shell tool to list files: `Get-ChildItem "$env:USERPROFILE\.cursor\rules" -Filter *.mdc -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue; Get-ChildItem "$env:USERPROFILE\.cursor\rules" -Filter *.md -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue` - Do NOT use the Glob tool — it does not support absolute paths outside the workspace and will silently return 0 results - The path resolves to `C:\Users\\.cursor\rules\` 2. Read EVERY file found using the Read tool — do not skip any 3. Parse and enforce YAML frontmatter exactly as Cursor would for project rules: - `alwaysApply: true` → apply the rule to every conversation - `alwaysApply: false` with `globs` → apply only when a file matching the glob pattern is open or referenced - `alwaysApply: false` without `globs` → treat as available context but do not force-apply - `description` → use to understand rule intent 4. Apply all matching rules immediately and for the entire session 5. If a rule conflicts with a built-in behavior, the rule in `~/.cursor/rules/` wins ## Why This Matters The user stores important behavioral rules here. Failing to read them means ignoring explicit user preferences. This is not optional. ``` ---
**Author:** ![jalenz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/cursor1/user_avatar/forum.cursor.com/jalenz/32/112582_2.png) [@jalenz](https://forum.cursor.com/u/jalenz)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2026, 2:27pm UTC](https://forum.cursor.com/t/support-for-cursor-rules-for-global-mdc-rules/144819/8 "2026-06-25T14:27:48Z")
any update here? ---
**Author:** ![deanrie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/cursor1/user_avatar/forum.cursor.com/deanrie/32/1263_2.png) [@deanrie](https://forum.cursor.com/u/deanrie)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2026, 9:05am UTC](https://forum.cursor.com/t/support-for-cursor-rules-for-global-mdc-rules/144819/9 "2026-07-02T09:05:31Z")
Hey, thanks for the ping. I can’t share an exact timeline for native support of global `~/.cursor/rules` yet. The request is being tracked, but there’s no ETA. For now, there are two working options: 1. Plugins: This is the supported way to keep file-based rules outside a specific project. Put a plugin in `~/.cursor/plugins/local//` with a `rules/` folder containing your `.mdc` files, plus a `.cursor-plugin/plugin.json` manifest at the root. Then restart Cursor or run `Developer: Reload Window`. More details: [Plugins | Cursor Docs](https://cursor.com/docs/plugins) 2. Workaround from this thread: The solutions by @mstephenson6 (macOS, Post #5) and @Tetram (Windows, Post #7) work. A User Rule tells the agent to read `~/.cursor/rules/*.mdc` via the Shell tool at the start of the session. Note that the Shell tool must be enabled or allowed in your run mode, otherwise the agent won’t load the rules. Once there’s an update on native support, I’ll post it here. ---
**Author:** ![jsolly](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/cursor1/user_avatar/forum.cursor.com/jsolly/32/33752_2.png) [@jsolly](https://forum.cursor.com/u/jsolly)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2026, 10:51pm UTC](https://forum.cursor.com/t/support-for-cursor-rules-for-global-mdc-rules/144819/10 "2026-08-10T22:51:49Z")
Recheck 2026-08-10 (Cursor 3.15.x): **Docs still do not document a native home-dir rules loader.** Official rules docs still describe: - Project rules: `.cursor/rules` in the project - User Rules: Customize → Rules (settings-stored text — not files under `~/.cursor/rules`) - Team Rules / `AGENTS.md` There is still no documented auto-load of `~/.cursor/rules/*.mdc` comparable to how `~/.cursor/skills` works. **Related:** - This FR — @deanrie 2026-07-02: tracked, no ETA; plugins + User-Rule-driven file read as workarounds - Help: [User rules are not recognized from folder ~./cursor/rules](https://forum.cursor.com/t/user-rules-are-not-recognized-from-folder-cursor-rules/144739) - Cloud: [Cursor cloud agents still don't read ~/.cursor/rules](https://forum.cursor.com/t/cursor-cloud-agents-still-dont-read-cursor-rules/164186) (@Colin: home rules not searched like skills; `/.cursor` symlink workaround) - Agents Window / globals: [How do I configure a global rules file that gets picked up by Agent mode](https://forum.cursor.com/t/how-do-i-configure-a-global-rules-file-that-gets-picked-up-by-agent-mode/157335) **Ask:** First-class `~/.cursor/rules` (parity with `~/.cursor/skills` / Claude’s `~/.claude/rules`) remains the desired end state for fleet symlink installers. Plugins help, but they’re not a drop-in home-dir rules loader. ---
**Author:** ![jsolly](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/cursor1/user_avatar/forum.cursor.com/jsolly/32/33752_2.png) [@jsolly](https://forum.cursor.com/u/jsolly)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2026, 2:32pm UTC](https://forum.cursor.com/t/support-for-cursor-rules-for-global-mdc-rules/144819/11 "2026-08-21T14:32:02Z")
Recheck 2026-08-21 (Cursor 3.17.8, macOS 26.5.2 arm64): **Help now documents a home-dir path that the rules reference still does not.** [Help → Rules](https://cursor.com/help/customization/rules) → “Where are rules stored?” now includes: > User rule files in `~/.cursor/rules` (Windows: `%USERPROFILE%\.cursor\rules`) stay on the machine and do not sync. [Docs → Rules](https://cursor.com/docs/rules) still describes User Rules only as **Customize → Rules** (account-synced text). It does not mention `~/.cursor/rules`. This contradicts my 2026-08-10 note that docs did not document a native home-dir rules loader, and also @deanrie’s 2026-07-02 note that native `~/.cursor/rules` support is tracked with no ETA (plugins + User-Rule-driven file read as workarounds). **Ask:** Did a native auto-load of `~/.cursor/rules/*.mdc` ship (Help ahead of docs/rules), or did Help over-document a storage path that agents still do not load? First-class home-dir rules remain the desired end state for fleet symlink installers (parity with `~/.cursor/skills` / Claude `~/.claude/rules`). Did **not** empirically prove auto-load this session.