Configure Zed to Open Projects in New Windows | Generated by AI

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Question: How to make Zed Editor always open each project in its own window (one project = one window) permanently, without being asked?

Answer:

Add this to your ~/.config/zed/settings.json:

{
  "cli_default_open_behavior": "new_window"
}

That’s it. This setting controls CLI and double-click behavior. Setting it to "new_window" makes Zed always open folders in a new window instead of the current window’s threads sidebar.

Open your settings directly from the terminal:

zed ~/.config/zed/settings.json

Or via command palette: Cmd+Shift+P → zed: open settings.

Caveats to know:

cli_default_open_behavior only affects CLI (zed ~/project) and double-click behavior — it does not affect File > Open from the menu, which always opens in the current window’s threads sidebar.

So for File > Open, you’ll still need to use Cmd+Enter (instead of Enter) in Open Recent to force a new window. There’s currently no setting to make File > Open always spawn a new window — that’s a Zed limitation.

Quick reference for manual overrides:

Want Do
New window always (CLI/drag) "cli_default_open_behavior": "new_window" in settings
New window from Open Recent Cmd+Enter or Cmd+click
New window from CLI one-off zed -n ~/myproject

References:

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