Where Does Cursor Store Settings and Extensions?
Cursor's settings.json and extensions folder on Windows, macOS and Linux, and where it parts company with VS Code.
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Cursor is a fork of VS Code, so the shape of its data is familiar: a User folder holding settings.json, keybindings.json and snippets, plus a separate folder holding extensions. The settings half matches VS Code down to the file names. The extensions half does not, which is where copying an install from one editor to the other goes wrong.
Ctrl+Shift+P then Preferences: Open User Settings (JSON) opens the very file the paths below point at, so it is the easiest check that you are in the right place. One thing that does not belong here: .cursorrules and .cursor/rules live inside the project you have open, not in any of these folders.
Where Cursor stores this, by platform
%APPDATA%\Cursor\User\settings.json
Extensions install to %USERPROFILE%\.cursor\extensions, not VS Code's %USERPROFILE%\.vscode\extensions, so the two editors keep separate copies and a plugin installed in one will not appear in the other. A few guides report %APPDATA%\Cursor\extensions instead, so check both if a folder comes up empty. Keybindings and snippets sit next to settings.json in the User folder.
~/Library/Application Support/Cursor/User/settings.json
Extensions install to ~/.cursor/extensions, while VS Code on the same machine uses ~/.vscode/extensions. The User folder also holds keybindings.json and a snippets folder, the same layout as VS Code's Code/User folder, so a straight copy of settings.json usually just works.
~/.config/Cursor/User/settings.json
Extensions install to ~/.cursor/extensions. If XDG_CONFIG_HOME is set in your environment, Cursor follows it and the User folder moves along with it. The ~/.cursor folder is also where Cursor keeps its CLI config, so it earns its place in your home directory either way.
Frequently asked questions
where is cursor settings.json
%APPDATA%\Cursor\User\settings.json on Windows, ~/Library/Application Support/Cursor/User/settings.json on macOS, ~/.config/Cursor/User/settings.json on Linux. Inside Cursor, Ctrl+Shift+P and Preferences: Open User Settings (JSON) opens the same file without you typing any path.
can i copy my vscode extensions to cursor
On macOS and Linux, copy each folder from ~/.vscode/extensions into ~/.cursor/extensions, then reload the window, and copy settings from Code/User to Cursor/User. Expect gaps either way: Cursor serves extensions from Open VSX rather than the Microsoft marketplace, so some names are missing.
where are cursor rules stored
In the project. .cursorrules sits at the repository root, the newer form lives in .cursor/rules/ next to it, and both are meant to be committed with the code. Nothing under %APPDATA%\Cursor or ~/.cursor holds project rules, so copying settings alone will not carry them over.
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