diff --git a/.gitignore b/.gitignore
index 73497ae4f0b..419de2618d3 100644
--- a/.gitignore
+++ b/.gitignore
@@ -133,6 +133,10 @@ db/*.sql
 lefthook-local.yml
 .rubocop-local.yml
 
+# Local AI coding agent instruction overrides
+AGENTS.local.md
+CLAUDE.local.md
+
 /.lefthook-local/
 
 frontend/package-lock.json
diff --git a/AGENTS.md b/AGENTS.md
index 1c1daac4854..6b5de352770 100644
--- a/AGENTS.md
+++ b/AGENTS.md
@@ -1,5 +1,7 @@
 # OpenProject AI Coding Agent Instructions
 
+> **Note for developers**: You can create `AGENTS.local.md` (or `CLAUDE.local.md`) in this directory to add your own custom instructions or preferences for AI coding agents. These files are git-ignored and will not be committed to the repository.
+
 ## Repository Overview
 
 **OpenProject** is a web-based, open-source project management software written in Ruby on Rails with PostgreSQL for data persistence.