diff --git a/cli/cmd/encore/config/config.go b/cli/cmd/encore/config/config.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..0723ba80fd
--- /dev/null
+++ b/cli/cmd/encore/config/config.go
@@ -0,0 +1,127 @@
+package config
+
+import (
+	"fmt"
+	"os"
+	"strings"
+
+	"encr.dev/cli/cmd/encore/cmdutil"
+	"encr.dev/cli/cmd/encore/root"
+	"encr.dev/internal/userconfig"
+	"github.com/spf13/cobra"
+)
+
+var (
+	forceApp, forceGlobal bool
+	viewAllSettings       bool
+)
+
+var autoCompleteConfigKeys = cmdutil.AutoCompleteFromStaticList(userconfig.Keys()...)
+
+var longDocs = `Gets or sets configuration values for customizing the behavior of the Encore CLI.
+
+Configuration options can be set both for individual Encore applications,
+as well as globally for the local user.
+
+Configuration options can be set using ` + bt("encore config <key> <value>") + `,
+and options can similarly be read using ` + bt("encore config <key>") + `.
+
+When running ` + bt("encore config") + ` within an Encore application,
+it automatically sets and gets configuration for that application.
+
+To set or get global configuration, use the ` + bt("--global") + ` flag.
+
+Available configuration settings are:
+
+` + userconfig.CLIDocs()
+
+var configCmd = &cobra.Command{
+	Use:   "config <key> [<value>]",
+	Short: "Get or set a configuration value",
+	Long:  longDocs,
+	Args:  cobra.RangeArgs(0, 2),
+
+	Run: func(cmd *cobra.Command, args []string) {
+		appRoot, _, _ := cmdutil.MaybeAppRoot()
+
+		appScope := appRoot != ""
+		if forceApp {
+			appScope = true
+		} else if forceGlobal {
+			appScope = false
+		}
+
+		if appScope && appRoot == "" {
+			// If the user specified --app, error if there is no app.
+			cmdutil.Fatal(cmdutil.ErrNoEncoreApp)
+		}
+
+		if len(args) == 2 {
+			var err error
+			if appScope {
+				err = userconfig.SetForApp(appRoot, args[0], args[1])
+			} else {
+				err = userconfig.SetGlobal(args[0], args[1])
+			}
+			if err != nil {
+				cmdutil.Fatal(err)
+			}
+		} else {
+			var (
+				cfg *userconfig.Config
+				err error
+			)
+			if appScope {
+				appRoot, _ := cmdutil.AppRoot()
+				cfg, err = userconfig.ForApp(appRoot).Get()
+			} else {
+				cfg, err = userconfig.Global().Get()
+			}
+			if err != nil {
+				cmdutil.Fatal(err)
+			}
+
+			if viewAllSettings {
+				if len(args) > 0 {
+					cmdutil.Fatalf("cannot specify a settings key when using --all")
+				}
+				s := strings.TrimSuffix(cfg.Render(), "\n")
+				fmt.Println(s)
+				return
+			}
+
+			if len(args) == 0 {
+				// No args are only allowed when --all is specified.
+				_ = cmd.Usage()
+				os.Exit(1)
+			}
+
+			val, ok := cfg.GetByKey(args[0])
+			if !ok {
+				cmdutil.Fatalf("unknown key %q", args[0])
+			}
+			fmt.Printf("%v\n", val)
+		}
+	},
+	ValidArgsFunction: func(cmd *cobra.Command, args []string, toComplete string) ([]string, cobra.ShellCompDirective) {
+		if len(args) == 0 {
+			// Completing the first argument, the config key
+			return autoCompleteConfigKeys(cmd, args, toComplete)
+		}
+		return nil, cobra.ShellCompDirectiveNoFileComp
+	},
+}
+
+func init() {
+	configCmd.Flags().BoolVar(&viewAllSettings, "all", false, "view all settings")
+	configCmd.Flags().BoolVar(&forceApp, "app", false, "set the value for the current app")
+	configCmd.Flags().BoolVar(&forceGlobal, "global", false, "set the value at the global level")
+	configCmd.MarkFlagsMutuallyExclusive("app", "global")
+
+	root.Cmd.AddCommand(configCmd)
+}
+
+// bt renders a backtick-enclosed string.
+func bt(val string) string {
+	return fmt.Sprintf("`%s`", val)
+}
diff --git a/cli/cmd/encore/main.go b/cli/cmd/encore/main.go
index 07b1cb048f..c77c615608 100644
--- a/cli/cmd/encore/main.go
+++ b/cli/cmd/encore/main.go
@@ -10,8 +10,10 @@ import (
 
 	"encr.dev/cli/cmd/encore/cmdutil"
 	"encr.dev/cli/cmd/encore/root"
+
 	// Register commands
 	_ "encr.dev/cli/cmd/encore/app"
+	_ "encr.dev/cli/cmd/encore/config"
 	_ "encr.dev/cli/cmd/encore/k8s"
 	_ "encr.dev/cli/cmd/encore/namespace"
 	_ "encr.dev/cli/cmd/encore/secrets"
diff --git a/cli/daemon/run.go b/cli/daemon/run.go
index c12c9bd5d9..095f945a32 100644
--- a/cli/daemon/run.go
+++ b/cli/daemon/run.go
@@ -11,6 +11,7 @@ import (
 
 	"encr.dev/cli/daemon/run"
 	"encr.dev/internal/optracker"
+	"encr.dev/internal/userconfig"
 	"encr.dev/internal/version"
 	"encr.dev/pkg/fns"
 	daemonpb "encr.dev/proto/encore/daemon"
@@ -30,6 +31,13 @@ func (s *Server) Run(req *daemonpb.RunRequest, stream daemonpb.Daemon_RunServer)
 		})
 	}
 
+	userConfig, err := userconfig.ForApp(req.AppRoot).Get()
+	if err != nil {
+		_, _ = fmt.Fprintln(stderr, aurora.Sprintf(aurora.Red("failed to load config: %v"), err))
+		sendExit(1)
+		return nil
+	}
+
 	ctx, tracer, err := s.beginTracing(ctx, req.AppRoot, req.WorkingDir, req.TraceFile)
 	if err != nil {
 		_, _ = fmt.Fprintln(stderr, aurora.Sprintf(aurora.Red("failed to begin tracing: %v"), err))
@@ -120,6 +128,11 @@ func (s *Server) Run(req *daemonpb.RunRequest, stream daemonpb.Daemon_RunServer)
 		displayListenAddr = "localhost" + req.ListenAddr
 	}
 
+	browser := run.BrowserModeFromProto(req.Browser)
+	if browser == run.BrowserModeAuto {
+		browser = run.BrowserModeFromConfig(userConfig)
+	}
+
 	runInstance, err := s.mgr.Start(ctx, run.StartParams{
 		App:        app,
 		NS:         ns,
@@ -129,7 +142,7 @@ func (s *Server) Run(req *daemonpb.RunRequest, stream daemonpb.Daemon_RunServer)
 		Watch:      req.Watch,
 		Environ:    req.Environ,
 		OpsTracker: ops,
-		Browser:    run.BrowserModeFromProto(req.Browser),
+		Browser:    browser,
 		Debug:      run.DebugModeFromProto(req.DebugMode),
 	})
 	if err != nil {
diff --git a/cli/daemon/run/run.go b/cli/daemon/run/run.go
index c81d1fe97f..ae0945e1fb 100644
--- a/cli/daemon/run/run.go
+++ b/cli/daemon/run/run.go
@@ -34,6 +34,7 @@ import (
 	"encr.dev/cli/daemon/run/infra"
 	"encr.dev/cli/daemon/secret"
 	"encr.dev/internal/optracker"
+	"encr.dev/internal/userconfig"
 	"encr.dev/internal/version"
 	"encr.dev/pkg/builder"
 	"encr.dev/pkg/builder/builderimpl"
@@ -108,6 +109,17 @@ const (
 	BrowserModeAlways                    // always open
 )
 
+func BrowserModeFromConfig(cfg *userconfig.Config) BrowserMode {
+	switch cfg.RunBrowser {
+	case "never":
+		return BrowserModeNever
+	case "always":
+		return BrowserModeAlways
+	default:
+		return BrowserModeAuto
+	}
+}
+
 func BrowserModeFromProto(b daemonpb.RunRequest_BrowserMode) BrowserMode {
 	switch b {
 	case daemonpb.RunRequest_BROWSER_AUTO:
diff --git a/docs/go/cli/cli-reference.md b/docs/go/cli/cli-reference.md
index 7ecbe9b079..a8227dfdbe 100644
--- a/docs/go/cli/cli-reference.md
+++ b/docs/go/cli/cli-reference.md
@@ -242,7 +242,7 @@ Note that this strips trailing newlines from the secret value.
 
 Lists secrets, optionally for a specific key
 
-```shell 
+```shell
 $ encore secret list [keys...]
 ```
 
diff --git a/docs/go/cli/config-reference.md b/docs/go/cli/config-reference.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..5f05dbdc96
--- /dev/null
+++ b/docs/go/cli/config-reference.md
@@ -0,0 +1,50 @@
+---
+seotitle: Encore CLI Configuration Options
+seodesc: Configuration options to customize the behavior of the Encore CLI.
+title: Configuration Reference
+subtitle: Configuration options to customize the behavior of the Encore CLI.
+lang: go
+---
+
+
+The Encore CLI has a number of configuration options to customize its behavior.
+
+Configuration options can be set both for individual Encore applications, as well as
+globally for the local user.
+
+Configuration options can be set using `encore config <key> <value>`,
+and options can similarly be read using `encore config <key>`.
+
+When running `encore config` within an Encore application, it automatically
+sets and gets configuration for that application.
+
+To set or get global configuration, use the `--global` flag.
+
+## Configuration files
+
+The configuration is stored in one ore more TOML files on the filesystem.
+
+The configuration is read from the following files, in order:
+
+### Global configuration
+* `$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/encore/config`
+* `$HOME/.config/encore/config`
+* `$HOME/.encoreconfig`
+
+### Application-specific configuration
+* `$APP_ROOT/.encore/config`
+
+Where `$APP_ROOT` is the directory containing the `encore.app` file.
+
+The files are read and merged, in the order defined above, with latter files taking precedence over earlier files.
+
+## Configuration options
+
+#### run.browser
+Type: string<br/>
+Default: auto<br/>
+Must be one of: always, never, or auto
+
+Whether to open the Local Development Dashboard in the browser on `encore run`.
+If set to "auto", the browser will be opened if the dashboard is not already open.
+
diff --git a/docs/menu.cue b/docs/menu.cue
index 4ca732f29c..fa78819452 100644
--- a/docs/menu.cue
+++ b/docs/menu.cue
@@ -400,6 +400,11 @@
 				text: "Infra Namespaces"
 				path: "/go/cli/infra-namespaces"
 				file: "go/cli/infra-namespaces"
+			}, {
+				kind: "basic"
+				text: "CLI Configuration"
+				path: "/go/cli/config-reference"
+				file: "go/cli/config-reference"
 			}, {
 				kind: "basic"
 				text: "Telemetry"
@@ -823,6 +828,11 @@
 				text: "Infra Namespaces"
 				path: "/ts/cli/infra-namespaces"
 				file: "ts/cli/infra-namespaces"
+			}, {
+				kind: "basic"
+				text: "CLI Configuration"
+				path: "/ts/cli/config-reference"
+				file: "ts/cli/config-reference"
 			}, {
 				kind: "basic"
 				text: "Telemetry"
diff --git a/docs/ts/cli/config-reference.md b/docs/ts/cli/config-reference.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..cb4dc5e965
--- /dev/null
+++ b/docs/ts/cli/config-reference.md
@@ -0,0 +1,50 @@
+---
+seotitle: Encore CLI Configuration Options
+seodesc: Configuration options to customize the behavior of the Encore CLI.
+title: Configuration Reference
+subtitle: Configuration options to customize the behavior of the Encore CLI.
+lang: ts
+---
+
+
+The Encore CLI has a number of configuration options to customize its behavior.
+
+Configuration options can be set both for individual Encore applications, as well as
+globally for the local user.
+
+Configuration options can be set using `encore config <key> <value>`,
+and options can similarly be read using `encore config <key>`.
+
+When running `encore config` within an Encore application, it automatically
+sets and gets configuration for that application.
+
+To set or get global configuration, use the `--global` flag.
+
+## Configuration files
+
+The configuration is stored in one ore more TOML files on the filesystem.
+
+The configuration is read from the following files, in order:
+
+### Global configuration
+* `$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/encore/config`
+* `$HOME/.config/encore/config`
+* `$HOME/.encoreconfig`
+
+### Application-specific configuration
+* `$APP_ROOT/.encore/config`
+
+Where `$APP_ROOT` is the directory containing the `encore.app` file.
+
+The files are read and merged, in the order defined above, with latter files taking precedence over earlier files.
+
+## Configuration options
+
+#### run.browser
+Type: string<br/>
+Default: auto<br/>
+Must be one of: always, never, or auto
+
+Whether to open the Local Development Dashboard in the browser on `encore run`.
+If set to "auto", the browser will be opened if the dashboard is not already open.
+
diff --git a/go.mod b/go.mod
index 104ec027a7..14ba0161c3 100644
--- a/go.mod
+++ b/go.mod
@@ -25,8 +25,8 @@ require (
 	github.com/fatih/color v1.15.0
 	github.com/fatih/structtag v1.2.0
 	github.com/fmstephe/unsafeutil v1.0.0
-	github.com/frankban/quicktest v1.14.5
-	github.com/fsnotify/fsnotify v1.6.0
+	github.com/frankban/quicktest v1.14.6
+	github.com/fsnotify/fsnotify v1.8.0
 	github.com/getkin/kin-openapi v0.115.0
 	github.com/gofrs/uuid v4.4.0+incompatible
 	github.com/golang-migrate/migrate/v4 v4.15.2
@@ -45,6 +45,10 @@ require (
 	github.com/json-iterator/go v1.1.12
 	github.com/julienschmidt/httprouter v1.3.0
 	github.com/jwalton/go-supportscolor v1.1.0
+	github.com/knadh/koanf/parsers/toml/v2 v2.1.0
+	github.com/knadh/koanf/providers/file v1.1.2
+	github.com/knadh/koanf/providers/rawbytes v0.1.0
+	github.com/knadh/koanf/v2 v2.1.2
 	github.com/lib/pq v1.10.9
 	github.com/logrusorgru/aurora v2.0.3+incompatible
 	github.com/logrusorgru/aurora/v3 v3.0.0
@@ -53,6 +57,7 @@ require (
 	github.com/modern-go/reflect2 v1.0.2
 	github.com/nsqio/go-nsq v1.1.0
 	github.com/nsqio/nsq v1.2.1
+	github.com/pelletier/go-toml v1.9.5
 	github.com/peterbourgon/diskv v2.0.1+incompatible
 	github.com/pkg/browser v0.0.0-20210911075715-681adbf594b8
 	github.com/pkg/diff v0.0.0-20210226163009-20ebb0f2a09e
@@ -74,7 +79,7 @@ require (
 	golang.org/x/net v0.30.0
 	golang.org/x/oauth2 v0.23.0
 	golang.org/x/sync v0.8.0
-	golang.org/x/sys v0.26.0
+	golang.org/x/sys v0.29.0
 	golang.org/x/term v0.25.0
 	golang.org/x/text v0.19.0
 	golang.org/x/tools v0.21.1-0.20240508182429-e35e4ccd0d2d
@@ -108,7 +113,7 @@ require (
 	github.com/containerd/console v1.0.4-0.20230313162750-1ae8d489ac81 // indirect
 	github.com/cubicdaiya/gonp v1.0.4 // indirect
 	github.com/cznic/mathutil v0.0.0-20181122101859-297441e03548 // indirect
-	github.com/davecgh/go-spew v1.1.1 // indirect
+	github.com/davecgh/go-spew v1.1.2-0.20180830191138-d8f796af33cc // indirect
 	github.com/dgryski/go-rendezvous v0.0.0-20200823014737-9f7001d12a5f // indirect
 	github.com/dlclark/regexp2 v1.7.0 // indirect
 	github.com/docker/cli v27.1.1+incompatible // indirect
@@ -127,6 +132,7 @@ require (
 	github.com/go-openapi/swag v0.22.4 // indirect
 	github.com/go-redis/redis/v8 v8.11.5 // indirect
 	github.com/go-sql-driver/mysql v1.7.1 // indirect
+	github.com/go-viper/mapstructure/v2 v2.2.1 // indirect
 	github.com/gogo/protobuf v1.3.2 // indirect
 	github.com/golang/glog v1.2.2 // indirect
 	github.com/golang/groupcache v0.0.0-20210331224755-41bb18bfe9da // indirect
@@ -147,7 +153,8 @@ require (
 	github.com/jinzhu/inflection v1.0.0 // indirect
 	github.com/josharian/intern v1.0.0 // indirect
 	github.com/kballard/go-shellquote v0.0.0-20180428030007-95032a82bc51 // indirect
-	github.com/klauspost/compress v1.17.1 // indirect
+	github.com/klauspost/compress v1.17.2 // indirect
+	github.com/knadh/koanf/maps v0.1.1 // indirect
 	github.com/kr/pretty v0.3.1 // indirect
 	github.com/kr/text v0.2.0 // indirect
 	github.com/lucasb-eyer/go-colorful v1.2.0 // indirect
@@ -155,8 +162,10 @@ require (
 	github.com/mattn/go-colorable v0.1.13 // indirect
 	github.com/mattn/go-isatty v0.0.19 // indirect
 	github.com/mattn/go-localereader v0.0.1 // indirect
+	github.com/mitchellh/copystructure v1.2.0 // indirect
 	github.com/mitchellh/go-homedir v1.1.0 // indirect
 	github.com/mitchellh/go-wordwrap v1.0.1 // indirect
+	github.com/mitchellh/reflectwalk v1.0.2 // indirect
 	github.com/moby/term v0.5.0 // indirect
 	github.com/modern-go/concurrent v0.0.0-20180306012644-bacd9c7ef1dd // indirect
 	github.com/mohae/deepcopy v0.0.0-20170929034955-c48cc78d4826 // indirect
@@ -168,12 +177,14 @@ require (
 	github.com/nsqio/go-diskqueue v1.1.0 // indirect
 	github.com/opencontainers/go-digest v1.0.0 // indirect
 	github.com/opencontainers/image-spec v1.1.0-rc5 // indirect
+	github.com/pelletier/go-toml/v2 v2.2.2 // indirect
 	github.com/perimeterx/marshmallow v1.1.4 // indirect
 	github.com/pganalyze/pg_query_go/v4 v4.2.4-0.20231205012101-7463430c7b73 // indirect
 	github.com/pingcap/errors v0.11.5-0.20210425183316-da1aaba5fb63 // indirect
 	github.com/pingcap/failpoint v0.0.0-20220801062533-2eaa32854a6c // indirect
 	github.com/pingcap/log v1.1.0 // indirect
 	github.com/pingcap/tidb/pkg/parser v0.0.0-20231103154709-4f00ece106b1 // indirect
+	github.com/pmezard/go-difflib v1.0.1-0.20181226105442-5d4384ee4fb2 // indirect
 	github.com/protocolbuffers/txtpbfmt v0.0.0-20220131092820-39736dd543b4 // indirect
 	github.com/remyoudompheng/bigfft v0.0.0-20230129092748-24d4a6f8daec // indirect
 	github.com/rivo/uniseg v0.4.4 // indirect
diff --git a/go.sum b/go.sum
index d79b49ffa4..daa0c2a8f5 100644
--- a/go.sum
+++ b/go.sum
@@ -416,8 +416,9 @@ github.com/d2g/hardwareaddr v0.0.0-20190221164911-e7d9fbe030e4/go.mod h1:bMl4RjI
 github.com/dave/jennifer v1.7.0 h1:uRbSBH9UTS64yXbh4FrMHfgfY762RD+C7bUPKODpSJE=
 github.com/dave/jennifer v1.7.0/go.mod h1:nXbxhEmQfOZhWml3D1cDK5M1FLnMSozpbFN/m3RmGZc=
 github.com/davecgh/go-spew v1.1.0/go.mod h1:J7Y8YcW2NihsgmVo/mv3lAwl/skON4iLHjSsI+c5H38=
-github.com/davecgh/go-spew v1.1.1 h1:vj9j/u1bqnvCEfJOwUhtlOARqs3+rkHYY13jYWTU97c=
 github.com/davecgh/go-spew v1.1.1/go.mod h1:J7Y8YcW2NihsgmVo/mv3lAwl/skON4iLHjSsI+c5H38=
+github.com/davecgh/go-spew v1.1.2-0.20180830191138-d8f796af33cc h1:U9qPSI2PIWSS1VwoXQT9A3Wy9MM3WgvqSxFWenqJduM=
+github.com/davecgh/go-spew v1.1.2-0.20180830191138-d8f796af33cc/go.mod h1:J7Y8YcW2NihsgmVo/mv3lAwl/skON4iLHjSsI+c5H38=
 github.com/denisenkom/go-mssqldb v0.10.0/go.mod h1:xbL0rPBG9cCiLr28tMa8zpbdarY27NDyej4t/EjAShU=
 github.com/denverdino/aliyungo v0.0.0-20190125010748-a747050bb1ba/go.mod h1:dV8lFg6daOBZbT6/BDGIz6Y3WFGn8juu6G+CQ6LHtl0=
 github.com/dgrijalva/jwt-go v0.0.0-20170104182250-a601269ab70c/go.mod h1:E3ru+11k8xSBh+hMPgOLZmtrrCbhqsmaPHjLKYnJCaQ=
@@ -502,12 +503,12 @@ github.com/form3tech-oss/jwt-go v3.2.2+incompatible/go.mod h1:pbq4aXjuKjdthFRnoD
 github.com/form3tech-oss/jwt-go v3.2.3+incompatible/go.mod h1:pbq4aXjuKjdthFRnoDwaVPLA+WlJuPGy+QneDUgJi2k=
 github.com/form3tech-oss/jwt-go v3.2.5+incompatible/go.mod h1:pbq4aXjuKjdthFRnoDwaVPLA+WlJuPGy+QneDUgJi2k=
 github.com/frankban/quicktest v1.11.3/go.mod h1:wRf/ReqHper53s+kmmSZizM8NamnL3IM0I9ntUbOk+k=
-github.com/frankban/quicktest v1.14.5 h1:dfYrrRyLtiqT9GyKXgdh+k4inNeTvmGbuSgZ3lx3GhA=
-github.com/frankban/quicktest v1.14.5/go.mod h1:4ptaffx2x8+WTWXmUCuVU6aPUX1/Mz7zb5vbUoiM6w0=
+github.com/frankban/quicktest v1.14.6 h1:7Xjx+VpznH+oBnejlPUj8oUpdxnVs4f8XU8WnHkI4W8=
+github.com/frankban/quicktest v1.14.6/go.mod h1:4ptaffx2x8+WTWXmUCuVU6aPUX1/Mz7zb5vbUoiM6w0=
 github.com/fsnotify/fsnotify v1.4.7/go.mod h1:jwhsz4b93w/PPRr/qN1Yymfu8t87LnFCMoQvtojpjFo=
 github.com/fsnotify/fsnotify v1.4.9/go.mod h1:znqG4EE+3YCdAaPaxE2ZRY/06pZUdp0tY4IgpuI1SZQ=
-github.com/fsnotify/fsnotify v1.6.0 h1:n+5WquG0fcWoWp6xPWfHdbskMCQaFnG6PfBrh1Ky4HY=
-github.com/fsnotify/fsnotify v1.6.0/go.mod h1:sl3t1tCWJFWoRz9R8WJCbQihKKwmorjAbSClcnxKAGw=
+github.com/fsnotify/fsnotify v1.8.0 h1:dAwr6QBTBZIkG8roQaJjGof0pp0EeF+tNV7YBP3F/8M=
+github.com/fsnotify/fsnotify v1.8.0/go.mod h1:8jBTzvmWwFyi3Pb8djgCCO5IBqzKJ/Jwo8TRcHyHii0=
 github.com/fsouza/fake-gcs-server v1.17.0/go.mod h1:D1rTE4YCyHFNa99oyJJ5HyclvN/0uQR+pM/VdlL83bw=
 github.com/fullsailor/pkcs7 v0.0.0-20190404230743-d7302db945fa/go.mod h1:KnogPXtdwXqoenmZCw6S+25EAm2MkxbG0deNDu4cbSA=
 github.com/gabriel-vasile/mimetype v1.3.1/go.mod h1:fA8fi6KUiG7MgQQ+mEWotXoEOvmxRtOJlERCzSmRvr8=
@@ -576,6 +577,8 @@ github.com/go-stack/stack v1.8.0/go.mod h1:v0f6uXyyMGvRgIKkXu+yp6POWl0qKG85gN/me
 github.com/go-task/slim-sprig v0.0.0-20210107165309-348f09dbbbc0/go.mod h1:fyg7847qk6SyHyPtNmDHnmrv/HOrqktSC+C9fM+CJOE=
 github.com/go-test/deep v1.0.8 h1:TDsG77qcSprGbC6vTN8OuXp5g+J+b5Pcguhf7Zt61VM=
 github.com/go-test/deep v1.0.8/go.mod h1:5C2ZWiW0ErCdrYzpqxLbTX7MG14M9iiw8DgHncVwcsE=
+github.com/go-viper/mapstructure/v2 v2.2.1 h1:ZAaOCxANMuZx5RCeg0mBdEZk7DZasvvZIxtHqx8aGss=
+github.com/go-viper/mapstructure/v2 v2.2.1/go.mod h1:oJDH3BJKyqBA2TXFhDsKDGDTlndYOZ6rGS0BRZIxGhM=
 github.com/gobuffalo/attrs v0.0.0-20190224210810-a9411de4debd/go.mod h1:4duuawTqi2wkkpB4ePgWMaai6/Kc6WEz83bhFwpHzj0=
 github.com/gobuffalo/depgen v0.0.0-20190329151759-d478694a28d3/go.mod h1:3STtPUQYuzV0gBVOY3vy6CfMm/ljR4pABfrTeHNLHUY=
 github.com/gobuffalo/depgen v0.1.0/go.mod h1:+ifsuy7fhi15RWncXQQKjWS9JPkdah5sZvtHc2RXGlg=
@@ -929,8 +932,18 @@ github.com/klauspost/compress v1.11.13/go.mod h1:aoV0uJVorq1K+umq18yTdKaF57EivdY
 github.com/klauspost/compress v1.13.1/go.mod h1:8dP1Hq4DHOhN9w426knH3Rhby4rFm6D8eO+e+Dq5Gzg=
 github.com/klauspost/compress v1.13.4/go.mod h1:8dP1Hq4DHOhN9w426knH3Rhby4rFm6D8eO+e+Dq5Gzg=
 github.com/klauspost/compress v1.13.6/go.mod h1:/3/Vjq9QcHkK5uEr5lBEmyoZ1iFhe47etQ6QUkpK6sk=
-github.com/klauspost/compress v1.17.1 h1:NE3C767s2ak2bweCZo3+rdP4U/HoyVXLv/X9f2gPS5g=
-github.com/klauspost/compress v1.17.1/go.mod h1:ntbaceVETuRiXiv4DpjP66DpAtAGkEQskQzEyD//IeE=
+github.com/klauspost/compress v1.17.2 h1:RlWWUY/Dr4fL8qk9YG7DTZ7PDgME2V4csBXA8L/ixi4=
+github.com/klauspost/compress v1.17.2/go.mod h1:ntbaceVETuRiXiv4DpjP66DpAtAGkEQskQzEyD//IeE=
+github.com/knadh/koanf/maps v0.1.1 h1:G5TjmUh2D7G2YWf5SQQqSiHRJEjaicvU0KpypqB3NIs=
+github.com/knadh/koanf/maps v0.1.1/go.mod h1:npD/QZY3V6ghQDdcQzl1W4ICNVTkohC8E73eI2xW4yI=
+github.com/knadh/koanf/parsers/toml/v2 v2.1.0 h1:EUdIKIeezfDj6e1ABDhIjhbURUpyrP1HToqW6tz8R0I=
+github.com/knadh/koanf/parsers/toml/v2 v2.1.0/go.mod h1:0KtwfsWJt4igUTQnsn0ZjFWVrP80Jv7edTBRbQFd2ho=
+github.com/knadh/koanf/providers/file v1.1.2 h1:aCC36YGOgV5lTtAFz2qkgtWdeQsgfxUkxDOe+2nQY3w=
+github.com/knadh/koanf/providers/file v1.1.2/go.mod h1:/faSBcv2mxPVjFrXck95qeoyoZ5myJ6uxN8OOVNJJCI=
+github.com/knadh/koanf/providers/rawbytes v0.1.0 h1:dpzgu2KO6uf6oCb4aP05KDmKmAmI51k5pe8RYKQ0qME=
+github.com/knadh/koanf/providers/rawbytes v0.1.0/go.mod h1:mMTB1/IcJ/yE++A2iEZbY1MLygX7vttU+C+S/YmPu9c=
+github.com/knadh/koanf/v2 v2.1.2 h1:I2rtLRqXRy1p01m/utEtpZSSA6dcJbgGVuE27kW2PzQ=
+github.com/knadh/koanf/v2 v2.1.2/go.mod h1:Gphfaen0q1Fc1HTgJgSTC4oRX9R2R5ErYMZJy8fLJBo=
 github.com/konsorten/go-windows-terminal-sequences v1.0.1/go.mod h1:T0+1ngSBFLxvqU3pZ+m/2kptfBszLMUkC4ZK/EgS/cQ=
 github.com/konsorten/go-windows-terminal-sequences v1.0.2/go.mod h1:T0+1ngSBFLxvqU3pZ+m/2kptfBszLMUkC4ZK/EgS/cQ=
 github.com/konsorten/go-windows-terminal-sequences v1.0.3/go.mod h1:T0+1ngSBFLxvqU3pZ+m/2kptfBszLMUkC4ZK/EgS/cQ=
@@ -1017,6 +1030,8 @@ github.com/miekg/dns v1.0.14/go.mod h1:W1PPwlIAgtquWBMBEV9nkV9Cazfe8ScdGz/Lj7v3N
 github.com/miekg/pkcs11 v1.0.3/go.mod h1:XsNlhZGX73bx86s2hdc/FuaLm2CPZJemRLMA+WTFxgs=
 github.com/mistifyio/go-zfs v2.1.2-0.20190413222219-f784269be439+incompatible/go.mod h1:8AuVvqP/mXw1px98n46wfvcGfQ4ci2FwoAjKYxuo3Z4=
 github.com/mitchellh/cli v1.0.0/go.mod h1:hNIlj7HEI86fIcpObd7a0FcrxTWetlwJDGcceTlRvqc=
+github.com/mitchellh/copystructure v1.2.0 h1:vpKXTN4ewci03Vljg/q9QvCGUDttBOGBIa15WveJJGw=
+github.com/mitchellh/copystructure v1.2.0/go.mod h1:qLl+cE2AmVv+CoeAwDPye/v+N2HKCj9FbZEVFJRxO9s=
 github.com/mitchellh/go-homedir v1.0.0/go.mod h1:SfyaCUpYCn1Vlf4IUYiD9fPX4A5wJrkLzIz1N1q0pr0=
 github.com/mitchellh/go-homedir v1.1.0 h1:lukF9ziXFxDFPkA1vsr5zpc1XuPDn/wFntq5mG+4E0Y=
 github.com/mitchellh/go-homedir v1.1.0/go.mod h1:SfyaCUpYCn1Vlf4IUYiD9fPX4A5wJrkLzIz1N1q0pr0=
@@ -1029,6 +1044,8 @@ github.com/mitchellh/mapstructure v0.0.0-20160808181253-ca63d7c062ee/go.mod h1:F
 github.com/mitchellh/mapstructure v0.0.0-20180220230111-00c29f56e238/go.mod h1:FVVH3fgwuzCH5S8UJGiWEs2h04kUh9fWfEaFds41c1Y=
 github.com/mitchellh/mapstructure v1.1.2/go.mod h1:FVVH3fgwuzCH5S8UJGiWEs2h04kUh9fWfEaFds41c1Y=
 github.com/mitchellh/osext v0.0.0-20151018003038-5e2d6d41470f/go.mod h1:OkQIRizQZAeMln+1tSwduZz7+Af5oFlKirV/MSYes2A=
+github.com/mitchellh/reflectwalk v1.0.2 h1:G2LzWKi524PWgd3mLHV8Y5k7s6XUvT0Gef6zxSIeXaQ=
+github.com/mitchellh/reflectwalk v1.0.2/go.mod h1:mSTlrgnPZtwu0c4WaC2kGObEpuNDbx0jmZXqmk4esnw=
 github.com/moby/locker v1.0.1/go.mod h1:S7SDdo5zpBK84bzzVlKr2V0hz+7x9hWbYC/kq7oQppc=
 github.com/moby/spdystream v0.2.0/go.mod h1:f7i0iNDQJ059oMTcWxx8MA/zKFIuD/lY+0GqbN2Wy8c=
 github.com/moby/sys/mountinfo v0.4.0/go.mod h1:rEr8tzG/lsIZHBtN/JjGG+LMYx9eXgW2JI+6q0qou+A=
@@ -1150,6 +1167,10 @@ github.com/pelletier/go-toml v1.2.0/go.mod h1:5z9KED0ma1S8pY6P1sdut58dfprrGBbd/9
 github.com/pelletier/go-toml v1.7.0/go.mod h1:vwGMzjaWMwyfHwgIBhI2YUM4fB6nL6lVAvS1LBMMhTE=
 github.com/pelletier/go-toml v1.8.1/go.mod h1:T2/BmBdy8dvIRq1a/8aqjN41wvWlN4lrapLU/GW4pbc=
 github.com/pelletier/go-toml v1.9.3/go.mod h1:u1nR/EPcESfeI/szUZKdtJ0xRNbUoANCkoOuaOx1Y+c=
+github.com/pelletier/go-toml v1.9.5 h1:4yBQzkHv+7BHq2PQUZF3Mx0IYxG7LsP222s7Agd3ve8=
+github.com/pelletier/go-toml v1.9.5/go.mod h1:u1nR/EPcESfeI/szUZKdtJ0xRNbUoANCkoOuaOx1Y+c=
+github.com/pelletier/go-toml/v2 v2.2.2 h1:aYUidT7k73Pcl9nb2gScu7NSrKCSHIDE89b3+6Wq+LM=
+github.com/pelletier/go-toml/v2 v2.2.2/go.mod h1:1t835xjRzz80PqgE6HHgN2JOsmgYu/h4qDAS4n929Rs=
 github.com/perimeterx/marshmallow v1.1.4 h1:pZLDH9RjlLGGorbXhcaQLhfuV0pFMNfPO55FuFkxqLw=
 github.com/perimeterx/marshmallow v1.1.4/go.mod h1:dsXbUu8CRzfYP5a87xpp0xq9S3u0Vchtcl8we9tYaXw=
 github.com/peterbourgon/diskv v2.0.1+incompatible h1:UBdAOUP5p4RWqPBg048CAvpKN+vxiaj6gdUUzhl4XmI=
@@ -1181,8 +1202,9 @@ github.com/pkg/errors v0.8.1/go.mod h1:bwawxfHBFNV+L2hUp1rHADufV3IMtnDRdf1r5NINE
 github.com/pkg/errors v0.9.1 h1:FEBLx1zS214owpjy7qsBeixbURkuhQAwrK5UwLGTwt4=
 github.com/pkg/errors v0.9.1/go.mod h1:bwawxfHBFNV+L2hUp1rHADufV3IMtnDRdf1r5NINEl0=
 github.com/pkg/sftp v1.10.1/go.mod h1:lYOWFsE0bwd1+KfKJaKeuokY15vzFx25BLbzYYoAxZI=
-github.com/pmezard/go-difflib v1.0.0 h1:4DBwDE0NGyQoBHbLQYPwSUPoCMWR5BEzIk/f1lZbAQM=
 github.com/pmezard/go-difflib v1.0.0/go.mod h1:iKH77koFhYxTK1pcRnkKkqfTogsbg7gZNVY4sRDYZ/4=
+github.com/pmezard/go-difflib v1.0.1-0.20181226105442-5d4384ee4fb2 h1:Jamvg5psRIccs7FGNTlIRMkT8wgtp5eCXdBlqhYGL6U=
+github.com/pmezard/go-difflib v1.0.1-0.20181226105442-5d4384ee4fb2/go.mod h1:iKH77koFhYxTK1pcRnkKkqfTogsbg7gZNVY4sRDYZ/4=
 github.com/posener/complete v1.1.1/go.mod h1:em0nMJCgc9GFtwrmVmEMR/ZL6WyhyjMBndrE9hABlRI=
 github.com/pquerna/cachecontrol v0.0.0-20171018203845-0dec1b30a021/go.mod h1:prYjPmNq4d1NPVmpShWobRqXY3q7Vp+80DqgxxUrUIA=
 github.com/prometheus/client_golang v0.0.0-20180209125602-c332b6f63c06/go.mod h1:7SWBe2y4D6OKWSNQJUaRYU/AaXPKyh/dDVn+NZz0KFw=
@@ -1316,6 +1338,7 @@ github.com/stretchr/objx v0.1.1/go.mod h1:HFkY916IF+rwdDfMAkV7OtwuqBVzrE8GR6GFx+
 github.com/stretchr/objx v0.2.0/go.mod h1:qt09Ya8vawLte6SNmTgCsAVtYtaKzEcn8ATUoHMkEqE=
 github.com/stretchr/objx v0.4.0/go.mod h1:YvHI0jy2hoMjB+UWwv71VJQ9isScKT/TqJzVSSt89Yw=
 github.com/stretchr/objx v0.5.0/go.mod h1:Yh+to48EsGEfYuaHDzXPcE3xhTkx73EhmCGUpEOglKo=
+github.com/stretchr/objx v0.5.2/go.mod h1:FRsXN1f5AsAjCGJKqEizvkpNtU+EGNCLh3NxZ/8L+MA=
 github.com/stretchr/testify v0.0.0-20180303142811-b89eecf5ca5d/go.mod h1:a8OnRcib4nhh0OaRAV+Yts87kKdq0PP7pXfy6kDkUVs=
 github.com/stretchr/testify v1.2.2/go.mod h1:a8OnRcib4nhh0OaRAV+Yts87kKdq0PP7pXfy6kDkUVs=
 github.com/stretchr/testify v1.3.0/go.mod h1:M5WIy9Dh21IEIfnGCwXGc5bZfKNJtfHm1UVUgZn+9EI=
@@ -1326,6 +1349,7 @@ github.com/stretchr/testify v1.7.0/go.mod h1:6Fq8oRcR53rry900zMqJjRRixrwX3KX962/
 github.com/stretchr/testify v1.7.1/go.mod h1:6Fq8oRcR53rry900zMqJjRRixrwX3KX962/h/Wwjteg=
 github.com/stretchr/testify v1.8.0/go.mod h1:yNjHg4UonilssWZ8iaSj1OCr/vHnekPRkoO+kdMU+MU=
 github.com/stretchr/testify v1.8.1/go.mod h1:w2LPCIKwWwSfY2zedu0+kehJoqGctiVI29o6fzry7u4=
+github.com/stretchr/testify v1.8.4/go.mod h1:sz/lmYIOXD/1dqDmKjjqLyZ2RngseejIcXlSw2iwfAo=
 github.com/stretchr/testify v1.9.0 h1:HtqpIVDClZ4nwg75+f6Lvsy/wHu+3BoSGCbBAcpTsTg=
 github.com/stretchr/testify v1.9.0/go.mod h1:r2ic/lqez/lEtzL7wO/rwa5dbSLXVDPFyf8C91i36aY=
 github.com/subosito/gotenv v1.2.0/go.mod h1:N0PQaV/YGNqwC0u51sEeR/aUtSLEXKX9iv69rRypqCw=
@@ -1788,13 +1812,12 @@ golang.org/x/sys v0.0.0-20220520151302-bc2c85ada10a/go.mod h1:oPkhp1MJrh7nUepCBc
 golang.org/x/sys v0.0.0-20220715151400-c0bba94af5f8/go.mod h1:oPkhp1MJrh7nUepCBck5+mAzfO9JrbApNNgaTdGDITg=
 golang.org/x/sys v0.0.0-20220722155257-8c9f86f7a55f/go.mod h1:oPkhp1MJrh7nUepCBck5+mAzfO9JrbApNNgaTdGDITg=
 golang.org/x/sys v0.0.0-20220811171246-fbc7d0a398ab/go.mod h1:oPkhp1MJrh7nUepCBck5+mAzfO9JrbApNNgaTdGDITg=
-golang.org/x/sys v0.0.0-20220908164124-27713097b956/go.mod h1:oPkhp1MJrh7nUepCBck5+mAzfO9JrbApNNgaTdGDITg=
 golang.org/x/sys v0.1.0/go.mod h1:oPkhp1MJrh7nUepCBck5+mAzfO9JrbApNNgaTdGDITg=
 golang.org/x/sys v0.5.0/go.mod h1:oPkhp1MJrh7nUepCBck5+mAzfO9JrbApNNgaTdGDITg=
 golang.org/x/sys v0.6.0/go.mod h1:oPkhp1MJrh7nUepCBck5+mAzfO9JrbApNNgaTdGDITg=
 golang.org/x/sys v0.12.0/go.mod h1:oPkhp1MJrh7nUepCBck5+mAzfO9JrbApNNgaTdGDITg=
-golang.org/x/sys v0.26.0 h1:KHjCJyddX0LoSTb3J+vWpupP9p0oznkqVk/IfjymZbo=
-golang.org/x/sys v0.26.0/go.mod h1:/VUhepiaJMQUp4+oa/7Zr1D23ma6VTLIYjOOTFZPUcA=
+golang.org/x/sys v0.29.0 h1:TPYlXGxvx1MGTn2GiZDhnjPA9wZzZeGKHHmKhHYvgaU=
+golang.org/x/sys v0.29.0/go.mod h1:/VUhepiaJMQUp4+oa/7Zr1D23ma6VTLIYjOOTFZPUcA=
 golang.org/x/term v0.0.0-20201117132131-f5c789dd3221/go.mod h1:Nr5EML6q2oocZ2LXRh80K7BxOlk5/8JxuGnuhpl+muw=
 golang.org/x/term v0.0.0-20201126162022-7de9c90e9dd1/go.mod h1:bj7SfCRtBDWHUb9snDiAeCFNEtKQo2Wmx5Cou7ajbmo=
 golang.org/x/term v0.0.0-20210220032956-6a3ed077a48d/go.mod h1:bj7SfCRtBDWHUb9snDiAeCFNEtKQo2Wmx5Cou7ajbmo=
diff --git a/internal/userconfig/config.go b/internal/userconfig/config.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..f0b9ebd450
--- /dev/null
+++ b/internal/userconfig/config.go
@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+package userconfig
+
+// Config describes the configuration structure we support.
+type Config struct {
+	// Whether to open the Local Development Dashboard in the browser on `encore run`.
+	// If set to "auto", the browser will be opened if the dashboard is not already open.
+	RunBrowser string `koanf:"run.browser" oneof:"always,never,auto" default:"auto"`
+}
diff --git a/internal/userconfig/def.go b/internal/userconfig/def.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..e029949329
--- /dev/null
+++ b/internal/userconfig/def.go
@@ -0,0 +1,52 @@
+package userconfig
+
+import (
+	"fmt"
+	"maps"
+	"reflect"
+	"slices"
+	"sort"
+	"strings"
+)
+
+func (c *Config) GetByKey(key string) (v Value, ok bool) {
+	val := reflect.ValueOf(c).Elem()
+	desc, ok := descs[key]
+	if !ok {
+		return Value{}, false
+	}
+
+	f := val.FieldByName(desc.FieldName)
+	if !f.IsValid() {
+		return Value{}, false
+	}
+
+	return Value{Val: f.Interface(), Type: desc.Type}, true
+}
+
+func (c *Config) Render() string {
+	var buf strings.Builder
+	for _, key := range configKeys {
+		v, ok := c.GetByKey(key)
+		if !ok {
+			continue
+		}
+		buf.WriteString(fmt.Sprintf("%s: %s\n", key, v))
+	}
+	return buf.String()
+}
+
+var configKeys = (func() []string {
+	keys := slices.Collect(maps.Keys(descs))
+	sort.Strings(keys)
+	return keys
+})()
+
+func GetType(key string) (Type, bool) {
+	typ, ok := descs[key]
+	return typ.Type, ok
+}
+
+func Keys() []string {
+	return configKeys
+}
diff --git a/internal/userconfig/docs.go b/internal/userconfig/docs.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..1717f6ad90
--- /dev/null
+++ b/internal/userconfig/docs.go
@@ -0,0 +1,127 @@
+package userconfig
+
+import (
+	"fmt"
+	"strings"
+)
+
+//go:generate go run ./gendocs
+
+func CLIDocs() string {
+	var buf strings.Builder
+	for _, key := range configKeys {
+		desc := descs[key]
+		doc := desc.Doc
+		fmt.Fprintf(&buf, "%s (%s)\n", key, desc.Type.Kind.String())
+
+		if doc != "" {
+			rem := doc
+			for rem != "" {
+				var line string
+				if idx := strings.IndexByte(rem, '\n'); idx != -1 {
+					line = rem[:idx]
+					rem = rem[idx+1:]
+				} else {
+					line = rem
+					rem = ""
+				}
+				buf.WriteString("  ")
+				buf.WriteString(line)
+				buf.WriteByte('\n')
+			}
+		} else {
+			buf.WriteString("  No documentation available.\n")
+		}
+
+		buf.WriteByte('\n')
+
+		didWriteMore := false
+		if desc.Type.Default != nil {
+			fmt.Fprintf(&buf, "  Default: %v\n", RenderValue(*desc.Type.Default))
+			didWriteMore = true
+		}
+		if len(desc.Type.Oneof) > 0 {
+			fmt.Fprintf(&buf, "  Must be one of: %v\n", RenderOneof(desc.Type.Oneof))
+			didWriteMore = true
+		}
+
+		// Add an extra newline if we wrote validation details.
+		if didWriteMore {
+			buf.WriteByte('\n')
+		}
+	}
+
+	return buf.String()
+}
+
+// bt renders a backtick-enclosed string.
+func bt(val string) string {
+	return fmt.Sprintf("`%s`", val)
+}
+
+var markdownHeader = `
+The Encore CLI has a number of configuration options to customize its behavior.
+
+Configuration options can be set both for individual Encore applications, as well as
+globally for the local user.
+
+Configuration options can be set using ` + bt("encore config <key> <value>") + `,
+and options can similarly be read using ` + bt("encore config <key>") + `.
+
+When running ` + bt("encore config") + ` within an Encore application, it automatically
+sets and gets configuration for that application.
+
+To set or get global configuration, use the ` + bt("--global") + ` flag.
+
+## Configuration files
+
+The configuration is stored in one ore more TOML files on the filesystem.
+
+The configuration is read from the following files, in order:
+
+### Global configuration
+* ` + bt("$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/encore/config") + `
+* ` + bt("$HOME/.config/encore/config") + `
+* ` + bt("$HOME/.encoreconfig") + `
+
+### Application-specific configuration
+* ` + bt("$APP_ROOT/.encore/config") + `
+
+Where ` + bt("$APP_ROOT") + ` is the directory containing the ` + bt("encore.app") + ` file.
+
+The files are read and merged, in the order defined above, with latter files taking precedence over earlier files.
+
+## Configuration options
+
+`
+
+func MarkdownDocs() string {
+	var buf strings.Builder
+
+	buf.WriteString(markdownHeader)
+
+	for _, key := range configKeys {
+		desc := descs[key]
+		doc := desc.Doc
+
+		fmt.Fprintf(&buf, "#### %s\n", key)
+		fmt.Fprintf(&buf, "Type: %s<br/>\n", desc.Type.Kind.String())
+		if desc.Type.Default != nil {
+			fmt.Fprintf(&buf, "Default: %v<br/>\n", RenderValue(*desc.Type.Default))
+		}
+		if len(desc.Type.Oneof) > 0 {
+			fmt.Fprintf(&buf, "Must be one of: %v\n", RenderOneof(desc.Type.Oneof))
+		}
+		buf.WriteByte('\n')
+
+		if doc != "" {
+			buf.WriteString(doc)
+		} else {
+			buf.WriteString("No documentation available.\n")
+		}
+
+		buf.WriteByte('\n')
+	}
+
+	return buf.String()
+}
diff --git a/internal/userconfig/files.go b/internal/userconfig/files.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..cce3a2fa3f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/internal/userconfig/files.go
@@ -0,0 +1,104 @@
+package userconfig
+
+import (
+	"io/fs"
+	"os"
+	"os/user"
+	"path/filepath"
+	"slices"
+	"sync"
+	"time"
+
+	"encr.dev/internal/goldfish"
+	"github.com/cockroachdb/errors"
+	"github.com/knadh/koanf/parsers/toml/v2"
+	"github.com/knadh/koanf/providers/file"
+	"github.com/knadh/koanf/providers/rawbytes"
+	"github.com/knadh/koanf/v2"
+)
+
+const globalCacheKey = "#global#"
+
+var (
+	goldfishMu sync.Mutex
+	goldfishes = make(map[string]*Cached)
+)
+
+type Cached = goldfish.Cache[*Config]
+
+func ForApp(appRoot string) *Cached {
+	appRoot = filepath.Clean(appRoot)
+	paths := slices.Clone(userPaths)
+	paths = append(paths, appFilePath(appRoot))
+	return forCacheKey(appRoot, paths)
+}
+
+func Global() *Cached {
+	return forCacheKey(globalCacheKey, userPaths)
+}
+
+func forCacheKey(key string, paths []string) *Cached {
+	goldfishMu.Lock()
+	defer goldfishMu.Unlock()
+
+	if c, ok := goldfishes[key]; ok {
+		return c
+	}
+
+	c := goldfish.New(1*time.Second, func() (*Config, error) {
+		return newInstance(paths...)
+	})
+	goldfishes[key] = c
+	return c
+}
+
+func appFilePath(appRoot string) string {
+	return filepath.Join(appRoot, ".encore", "config")
+}
+
+var userPaths []string = func() []string {
+	var paths []string
+
+	configHome := os.Getenv("XDG_CONFIG_HOME")
+	if configHome != "" {
+		paths = append(paths, filepath.Join(configHome, "encore", "config"))
+	}
+
+	if u, err := user.Current(); err == nil {
+		if configHome == "" {
+			paths = append(paths, filepath.Join(u.HomeDir, ".config", "encore", "config"))
+		}
+		paths = append(paths, filepath.Join(u.HomeDir, ".encoreconfig"))
+	}
+
+	return paths
+}()
+
+var tomlParser = toml.Parser()
+
+func newInstance(paths ...string) (*Config, error) {
+	k := koanf.New(".")
+
+	for _, path := range paths {
+		f := file.Provider(path)
+		err := k.Load(f, tomlParser)
+		if err != nil && !errors.Is(err, fs.ErrNotExist) {
+			return nil, errors.Wrap(err, "unable to parse config file")
+		}
+	}
+
+	cfg := &Config{}
+	err := k.UnmarshalWithConf("", cfg, koanf.UnmarshalConf{
+		Tag:       "koanf",
+		FlatPaths: true,
+	})
+	if err != nil {
+		return nil, errors.Wrap(err, "unable to unmarshal config")
+	}
+	return cfg, nil
+}
+
+func validateConfig(data []byte) error {
+	k := koanf.New(".")
+	return k.Load(rawbytes.Provider(data), tomlParser)
+}
diff --git a/internal/userconfig/gendocs/gendocs.go b/internal/userconfig/gendocs/gendocs.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..df21239d49
--- /dev/null
+++ b/internal/userconfig/gendocs/gendocs.go
@@ -0,0 +1,51 @@
+package main
+
+import (
+	"fmt"
+	"log"
+	"os/exec"
+	"path/filepath"
+	"strings"
+
+	"encr.dev/internal/userconfig"
+	"encr.dev/pkg/xos"
+)
+
+func main() {
+	repoRoot := resolveRepoRoot()
+	docsDir := filepath.Join(repoRoot, "docs")
+
+	for _, lang := range []string{"go", "ts"} {
+		docs := generateDocs(lang)
+		dst := filepath.Join(docsDir, lang, "cli", "config-reference.md")
+		if err := xos.WriteFile(dst, []byte(docs), 0644); err != nil {
+			log.Fatalf("error writing %s docs file: %v\n", lang, err)
+		}
+	}
+	log.Printf("successfully regenerated docs")
+}
+
+func generateDocs(lang string) string {
+	return docsHeader(lang) + "\n" + userconfig.MarkdownDocs()
+}
+
+func docsHeader(lang string) string {
+	return fmt.Sprintf(`---
+seotitle: Encore CLI Configuration Options
+seodesc: Configuration options to customize the behavior of the Encore CLI.
+title: Configuration Reference
+subtitle: Configuration options to customize the behavior of the Encore CLI.
+lang: %s
+---
+`, lang)
+}
+
+func resolveRepoRoot() string {
+	// Use `git rev-parse --show-toplevel` to get the root of the repository
+	cmd := exec.Command("git", "rev-parse", "--show-toplevel")
+	out, err := cmd.CombinedOutput()
+	if err != nil {
+		log.Fatalf("Error running git rev-parse: %v\n", err)
+	}
+	return filepath.Clean(strings.TrimSpace(string(out)))
+}
diff --git a/internal/userconfig/reflect.go b/internal/userconfig/reflect.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..dec3d9bc09
--- /dev/null
+++ b/internal/userconfig/reflect.go
@@ -0,0 +1,166 @@
+package userconfig
+
+import (
+	_ "embed"
+	"fmt"
+	"go/ast"
+	"go/doc"
+	"go/parser"
+	"go/token"
+	"reflect"
+	"strings"
+
+	"github.com/cockroachdb/errors"
+	"github.com/fatih/structtag"
+)
+
+func keyForField(f *reflect.StructField) (string, error) {
+	tags, err := structtag.Parse(string(f.Tag))
+	if err != nil {
+		return "", err
+	}
+	tag, err := tags.Get("koanf")
+	if err != nil {
+		return "", err
+	}
+	key := tag.Name
+	if key == "" {
+		return "", errors.New("empty key")
+	}
+	return key, nil
+}
+
+type keyDesc struct {
+	Doc       string
+	Type      Type
+	FieldName string // field name in the Config struct
+}
+
+func newKeyDesc(f *reflect.StructField) (key string, desc keyDesc, err error) {
+	tags, err := structtag.Parse(string(f.Tag))
+	if err != nil {
+		return "", keyDesc{}, err
+	}
+	tag, err := tags.Get("koanf")
+	if err != nil {
+		return "", keyDesc{}, errors.Wrap(err, "failed to get koanf tag")
+	}
+	key = tag.Name
+	if key == "" {
+		return "", keyDesc{}, errors.New("empty key")
+	}
+
+	kind, ok := kindFromReflect(f.Type.Kind())
+	if !ok {
+		return "", keyDesc{}, errors.Errorf("unsupported type %v", f.Type)
+	}
+
+	ty := Type{Kind: kind}
+
+	// Do we have a default?
+	if def, _ := tags.Get("default"); def != nil {
+		val, err := kind.parseValue(def.Name)
+		if err != nil {
+			return "", keyDesc{}, errors.Wrap(err, "parse default value")
+		}
+		ty.Default = &val
+	}
+
+	// Do we have a oneof?
+	if tag := f.Tag.Get("oneof"); tag != "" {
+		var oneof []any
+		for _, part := range strings.Split(tag, ",") {
+			val, err := kind.parseValue(part)
+			if err != nil {
+				return "", keyDesc{}, errors.Wrap(err, "parse oneof value")
+			}
+			oneof = append(oneof, val)
+		}
+		ty.Oneof = oneof
+	}
+
+	desc = keyDesc{
+		Doc:       docComments[f.Name],
+		Type:      ty,
+		FieldName: f.Name,
+	}
+	return key, desc, nil
+}
+
+var descs = (func() map[string]keyDesc {
+	var cfg Config
+	t := reflect.TypeOf(cfg)
+	descs := make(map[string]keyDesc, t.NumField())
+
+	for i := 0; i < t.NumField(); i++ {
+		f := t.Field(i)
+		key, desc, err := newKeyDesc(&f)
+		if err != nil {
+			panic(fmt.Sprintf("invalid userconfig definition for field %s: %v", f.Name, err))
+		}
+		if _, ok := descs[key]; ok {
+			panic(fmt.Sprintf("duplicate key %s in userconfig.Config", key))
+		}
+		descs[key] = desc
+	}
+
+	return descs
+})()
+
+func kindFromReflect(kind reflect.Kind) (Kind, bool) {
+	switch kind {
+	case reflect.String:
+		return String, true
+	case reflect.Bool:
+		return Bool, true
+	case reflect.Int:
+		return Int, true
+	case reflect.Uint:
+		return Uint, true
+	default:
+		return 0, false
+	}
+}
+
+//go:embed config.go
+var configGo string
+
+// doc comments, keyed by field name.
+var docComments = (func() map[string]string {
+	// Parse config.go as a Go file to extract the doc comments.
+	fset := token.NewFileSet()
+	f, err := parser.ParseFile(fset, "config.go", configGo, parser.ParseComments)
+	if err != nil {
+		panic(fmt.Sprintf("userconfig/config.go is invalid: %v", err))
+	}
+
+	// Compute package documentation with examples.
+	p, err := doc.NewFromFiles(fset, []*ast.File{f}, "encr.dev/internal/userconfig")
+	if err != nil {
+		panic(fmt.Sprintf("userconfig/config.go is invalid: %v", err))
+	}
+
+	for _, typ := range p.Types {
+		if typ.Name == "Config" {
+			comments := make(map[string]string)
+
+			// Extract comments for each field.
+			structType := typ.Decl.Specs[0].(*ast.TypeSpec).Type.(*ast.StructType)
+			for _, f := range structType.Fields.List {
+				if f.Doc == nil {
+					continue
+				}
+				if len(f.Names) == 0 {
+					panic("field has no name")
+				}
+				text := f.Doc.Text()
+				for _, name := range f.Names {
+					comments[name.Name] = text
+				}
+			}
+			return comments
+		}
+	}
+
+	panic("Config type not found in userconfig/config.go")
+})()
diff --git a/internal/userconfig/value.go b/internal/userconfig/value.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..1be16d9855
--- /dev/null
+++ b/internal/userconfig/value.go
@@ -0,0 +1,160 @@
+package userconfig
+
+import (
+	"fmt"
+	"strconv"
+	"strings"
+
+	"github.com/cockroachdb/errors"
+)
+
+type Kind int
+
+const (
+	String Kind = iota + 1
+	Bool
+	Int
+	Uint
+)
+
+func (k Kind) String() string {
+	switch k {
+	case String:
+		return "string"
+	case Bool:
+		return "bool"
+	case Int:
+		return "int"
+	case Uint:
+		return "uint"
+	default:
+		return "unknown kind"
+	}
+}
+
+func (k Kind) HumanString() string {
+	switch k {
+	case String:
+		return "a string"
+	case Bool:
+		return "a boolean (true/false)"
+	case Int:
+		return "an integer"
+	case Uint:
+		return "an unsigned integer (>=0)"
+	default:
+		return "an unknown kind"
+	}
+}
+
+type Type struct {
+	Kind    Kind
+	Default *any  // nil means no default
+	Oneof   []any // nil means no restrictions
+}
+
+type Value struct {
+	Val  any
+	Type Type
+}
+
+func (v Value) String() string {
+	return RenderValue(v.Val)
+}
+
+func (t Type) ParseAndValidate(val string) (any, error) {
+	parsed, err := t.Kind.parseValue(val)
+	if err != nil {
+		return nil, err
+	} else if err := t.validate(parsed); err != nil {
+		return nil, err
+	}
+	return parsed, nil
+}
+
+func (t Type) validate(val any) error {
+	if val == nil {
+		return errors.New("value cannot be nil")
+	}
+	if len(t.Oneof) > 0 {
+		for _, v := range t.Oneof {
+			if val == v {
+				return nil
+			}
+		}
+
+		strVal := fmt.Sprintf("%v", val)
+		return errors.Errorf("value %q is not one of: %s", strVal, RenderOneof(t.Oneof))
+	}
+
+	if k, ok := kindOf(val); ok {
+		if k != t.Kind {
+			return errors.Errorf("value v is not %s", t.Kind.HumanString())
+		}
+	}
+
+	return nil
+}
+
+func RenderValue(v any) string {
+	return fmt.Sprintf("%v", v)
+}
+
+func RenderOneof(oneof []any) string {
+	if len(oneof) == 0 {
+		return ""
+	}
+
+	// Render as "a, b, or c"
+	var s strings.Builder
+	for i, v := range oneof {
+		if i > 0 {
+			if i == len(oneof)-1 {
+				if len(oneof) > 2 {
+					s.WriteString(", or ")
+				} else {
+					s.WriteString(" or ")
+				}
+			} else {
+				s.WriteString(", ")
+			}
+		}
+
+		s.WriteString(RenderValue(v))
+	}
+	return s.String()
+}
+
+func (k Kind) parseValue(value string) (any, error) {
+	switch k {
+	case String:
+		return value, nil
+	case Bool:
+		return strconv.ParseBool(value)
+	case Int:
+		return strconv.ParseInt(value, 10, 64)
+	case Uint:
+		return strconv.ParseUint(value, 10, 64)
+	default:
+		return nil, fmt.Errorf("unknown kind %v", k)
+	}
+}
+
+func KindOf[T interface{ string | bool | int | uint }](val T) (k Kind, ok bool) {
+	return kindOf(val)
+}
+
+func kindOf(val any) (k Kind, ok bool) {
+	switch val.(type) {
+	case string:
+		return String, true
+	case bool:
+		return Bool, true
+	case int:
+		return Int, true
+	case uint:
+		return Uint, true
+	default:
+		return 0, false
+	}
+}
diff --git a/internal/userconfig/write.go b/internal/userconfig/write.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..7f0129e0a9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/internal/userconfig/write.go
@@ -0,0 +1,86 @@
+package userconfig
+
+import (
+	"os"
+	"path/filepath"
+	"strings"
+
+	"encr.dev/pkg/xos"
+	"github.com/cockroachdb/errors"
+	"github.com/pelletier/go-toml"
+)
+
+func SetForApp(appRoot, key, value string) error {
+	if _, err := os.Stat(appRoot); err != nil {
+		return errors.Wrap(err, "app root directory does not exist")
+	}
+	dst := appFilePath(appRoot)
+	return updateConfig(dst, key, value)
+}
+
+func SetGlobal(key, value string) error {
+	if len(userPaths) == 0 {
+		return errors.New("no global config file location found")
+	}
+
+	// Find the last path in the list that exists.
+	for i := len(userPaths) - 1; i >= 0; i-- {
+		if _, err := os.Stat(userPaths[i]); err == nil {
+			return updateConfig(userPaths[i], key, value)
+		}
+	}
+
+	// Otherwise fall back to the lowest-priority entry.
+	dst := userPaths[0]
+	return updateConfig(dst, key, value)
+}
+
+func updateConfig(dstPath, key, value string) error {
+	desc, ok := descs[key]
+	if !ok {
+		return errors.Errorf("unknown key: %q", key)
+	}
+	val, err := desc.Type.ParseAndValidate(value)
+	if err != nil {
+		return err
+	}
+
+	// Read the existing config.
+	// If it doesn't exist it's initialized to an emty config.
+	var conf *toml.Tree
+	{
+		data, err := os.ReadFile(dstPath)
+		if err != nil && !os.IsNotExist(err) {
+			return errors.Wrap(err, "failed to read existing config")
+		}
+		if data != nil {
+			conf, err = toml.LoadBytes(data)
+		} else {
+			conf, err = toml.TreeFromMap(map[string]any{})
+		}
+		if err != nil {
+			return errors.Wrap(err, "failed to parse existing config")
+		}
+	}
+
+	keys := strings.Split(key, ".")
+	conf.SetPath(keys, val)
+
+	// Write the config back out.
+	data, err := conf.Marshal()
+	if err != nil {
+		return errors.Wrap(err, "failed to marshal config")
+	}
+
+	if err := validateConfig(data); err != nil {
+		return errors.Wrap(err, "resulting config is invalid")
+	}
+
+	if err := os.MkdirAll(filepath.Dir(dstPath), 0755); err != nil {
+		return errors.Wrap(err, "failed to create config file")
+	}
+	if err := xos.WriteFile(dstPath, data, 0644); err != nil {
+		return errors.Wrap(err, "failed to write config file")
+	}
+	return nil
+}