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wtf is agents.md?

agentsmd/agents.md — explained in plain English

Analysis updated 2026-05-18

★ 21,034TypeScriptAudience · developerComplexity · 1/5LicenseSetup · easy

TL;DR

A standard file format for documenting how AI coding agents should work with your codebase, like a README, but written for AI instead of humans.

Mindmap

mindmap
  root((agents.md))
    What it does
      File format standard
      AI agent context
      Project documentation
    Key sections
      Dev environment
      Testing instructions
      PR conventions
    Format
      Plain Markdown
      Human-readable
      Machine-parseable
    Use cases
      AI pair programming
      Automated code review
      Agent onboarding
    Audience
      AI tool builders
      Open source maintainers

Code map

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filefunction / class

Why would anyone build with this?

REASON 1

Add an agents.md file to your repo so AI coding assistants understand your dev setup, testing process, and contribution rules.

REASON 2

Build AI tools that read agents.md to automatically onboard themselves to new codebases without asking for manual context.

REASON 3

Document project conventions in a machine-readable format that both humans and AI agents can follow consistently.

What's in the stack?

TypeScriptNext.jsMarkdown

How it stacks up

agentsmd/agents.mdelastic/kibanacoleam00/archon
Stars21,03421,07620,925
LanguageTypeScriptTypeScriptTypeScript
Setup difficultyeasyhardmoderate
Complexity1/53/54/5
Audiencedeveloperdatadeveloper

Figures from each repo's GitHub metadata at analysis time.

How do you spin it up?

Difficulty · easy Time to first run · 5min
Use freely for any purpose including commercial, as long as you keep the copyright notice.

Wtf does this do

AGENTS.md is an open file format standard for giving AI coding agents context and instructions about a software project. Think of it as a README, but written specifically for AI agents rather than human developers, a predictable, dedicated place where an agent can look to understand how to work on the codebase. An AGENTS.md file lives in a project's repository and can contain things like dev environment tips (commands to use, toolchain notes), testing instructions (how to run the test suite, linting requirements), and pull request conventions. The format is simple plain Markdown. The repository also includes a Next.js website at agents.md that explains the format and shows examples.

Yoink these prompts

Prompt 1
Create an agents.md file for my TypeScript project that explains how to set up the dev environment, run tests, and submit pull requests.
Prompt 2
Show me an example agents.md file that documents linting rules, test commands, and code style conventions for an open source project.
Prompt 3
How should I structure an agents.md file to help AI agents understand my monorepo's folder layout and build process?

Frequently asked questions

wtf is agents.md?

A standard file format for documenting how AI coding agents should work with your codebase, like a README, but written for AI instead of humans.

What language is agents.md written in?

Mainly TypeScript. The stack also includes TypeScript, Next.js, Markdown.

What license does agents.md use?

Use freely for any purpose including commercial, as long as you keep the copyright notice.

How hard is agents.md to set up?

Setup difficulty is rated easy, with roughly 5min to a first successful run.

Who is agents.md for?

Mainly developer.

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