AGENTS.md, the open format coding agents already look for
AGENTS.md is not a product and not a rules pack. It is a name and a habit: keep agent instructions in a plain Markdown file at the repo root so humans and tools know where to look.
What it does
The site at agents.md describes a simple open format for guiding coding agents. There is no schema, no required heading, and no installer. You write ordinary Markdown: setup commands, how to test, the never-do list, and anything a new teammate would otherwise have to ask in Slack.
The point of a separate file is that README.md stays for people. AGENTS.md holds the extra, sometimes fussy context that agents need and that clutters a human quick-start. Nested files in a monorepo let a package refine the root file. The closest file wins when instructions conflict; a direct chat prompt still beats the file.
Stewardship now sits with the Agentic AI Foundation under the Linux Foundation. The page lists tools that already look for the filename, including Codex, Cursor, Amp, Jules and Factory. That list will keep moving. The format itself stays boring on purpose.
Who it is for
Anyone who wants one instruction file that several coding agents can share. If you bounce between Cursor, Claude Code and Codex, a root AGENTS.md is the cheapest way to stop repeating yourself in three proprietary files.
It is also the right starting point when you do not yet know which tool will stick. You can add a thin CLAUDE.md or .cursor/rules later. You should not start with a 400-line wish list copied from a random gist.
Our take
The strength is the lack of ceremony. You can write a useful AGENTS.md in twenty minutes and commit it today. Tools that already search for the name will pick it up without a plugin.
The limit is that a format does not write the rules. An empty or vague file does nothing. Agents still skip lines, invent commands, and disable safety checks unless you name the commands and the never-dos in concrete language. The site will not tell you what to put in a Next.js or FastAPI repo.
Treat AGENTS.md as the shared source of truth, then add tool-specific files only when a tool needs extra shape. That is the same advice we give in our comparison guide, and it still holds.
Compared with AgentKit Drawer
AgentKit Drawer sells filled-in files, not the format. One-File Agent Rules is a short AGENTS.md with a plan gate, verify-before-done, eight slash-style commands and optional stack modules. If you already know how you want the agent to work, write your own file from agents.md and stop there.
If you want a starting file that already encodes those workflow rules, the $9 pack is the closer match. The stack packs go further: scoped Cursor rules, Claude Code hooks, checklists. None of them replace the open format. They sit on top of it.
Related AgentKit pack
One universal AGENTS.md for Cursor, Claude Code, Codex, Windsurf and Copilot: plan gate, verify-before-done, and stack modules. A filled-in file, not a format spec.
One-time payment · instant download · 14-day refund. We do not claim this third-party kit is affiliated with AgentKit Drawer.