Where Does Amp Store Settings?
Amp reads user settings from an amp folder in OS config and workspace settings from .amp in each repo.
Last updated
Amp keeps two scopes. User settings live at ~/.config/amp/settings.json on macOS and Linux (%USERPROFILE%\.config\amp\settings.json on Windows), with a .jsonc variant accepted. Workspace settings live in .amp/settings.json from the working directory up to the repo root, and they override the user file.
Every key carries the amp. prefix, including amp.mcpServers for MCP servers. Workspace servers need explicit approval on first run, a safety rule against cloned repos executing things silently. User-level servers and CLI-passed ones do not.
Where Amp stores this, by platform
~/.config/amp/settings.json
settings.json or settings.jsonc. Workspace .amp/settings.json per repo overrides it. --settings-file and AMP_SETTINGS_FILE relocate.
~/.config/amp/settings.json
Same layout as macOS. Older community guides citing %APPDATA%\amp predate the official docs; use this path.
%USERPROFILE%\.config\amp\settings.json
Note .config under your profile, not AppData Roaming. Same workspace override and flag behavior as other platforms.
Frequently asked questions
How do I open the right settings file?
Run amp config edit for user settings or add --workspace for the repo file. It opens the active file in $EDITOR, which sidesteps the which-copy problem entirely.
Can I point Amp at a different settings file?
Pass --settings-file with a path, or set AMP_SETTINGS_FILE. Useful for ephemeral environments and for testing a config without touching your real one.
Notice an outdated path? Let us know.