Where Is the Zsh Config File?
.zshrc location in your home directory plus where Oh My Zsh and plugins live.
Last updated
Zsh reads its interactive config from .zshrc in your home directory. Login shells consult .zprofile first, but daily aliases, prompts and plugin loading belong in .zshrc.
Framework files stay out of your way: Oh My Zsh owns ~/.oh-my-zsh while your edits stay in .zshrc. Version-control the rc file and the framework becomes disposable.
Where Zsh stores this, by platform
~/.zshrc
Main interactive config. Oh My Zsh installs to ~/.oh-my-zsh with custom plugins under its custom folder. System defaults sit in /etc/zsh. Move the file only by setting ZDOTDIR, otherwise Zsh will not follow it.
~/.zshrc
Same home-directory file; Zsh is the default macOS shell so it likely exists already. The system zprofile at /etc/zprofile runs first for login shells.
Frequently asked questions
Zsh ignores my changes. Why?
You edited without reloading. Run source ~/.zshrc or open a new shell. Also confirm $ZDOTDIR is not redirecting startup files elsewhere.
Where do Oh My Zsh custom plugins go?
In ~/.oh-my-zsh/custom/plugins, referenced from the plugins list in .zshrc. Keep personal overrides in custom so updates never clobber them.
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