XDG Base Directory

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This article summarizes the XDG Base Directory specification in #Specification and tracks software support in #Support.

Specification

Please read the full specification. This section will attempt to break down the essence of what it tries to achieve.

Only XDG_RUNTIME_DIR is set by default through pam_systemd. It is up to the user to explicitly define the other variables according to the specification.

See Environment variables#Globally for information on defining variables.

User directories

  • XDG_CONFIG_HOME
    • Where user-specific configurations should be written (analogous to /etc).
    • Should default to $HOME/.config.
  • XDG_CACHE_HOME
    • Where user-specific non-essential (cached) data should be written (analogous to /var/cache).
    • Should default to $HOME/.cache.
  • XDG_DATA_HOME
    • Where user-specific data files should be written (analogous to /usr/share).
    • Should default to $HOME/.local/share.
  • XDG_STATE_HOME
    • Where user-specific state files should be written (analogous to /var/lib).
    • Should default to $HOME/.local/state.
  • XDG_RUNTIME_DIR
    • Used for non-essential, user-specific data files such as sockets, named pipes, etc.
    • Not required to have a default value; warnings should be issued if not set or equivalents provided.
    • Must be owned by the user with an access mode of 0700.
    • Filesystem fully featured by standards of OS.
    • Must be on the local filesystem.
    • May be subject to periodic cleanup.
    • Modified every 6 hours or set sticky bit if persistence is desired.
    • Can only exist for the duration of the user's login.
    • Should not store large files as it may be mounted as a tmpfs.
    • pam_systemd sets this to /run/user/$UID.

System directories

  • XDG_DATA_DIRS
    • List of directories separated by : (analogous to PATH).
    • Should default to /usr/local/share:/usr/share.
  • XDG_CONFIG_DIRS
    • List of directories separated by : (analogous to PATH).
    • Should default to /etc/xdg.

Support

Tango-view-fullscreen.pngThis article or section needs expansion.Tango-view-fullscreen.png

Reason: The current supported/partial/hardcoded split is not detailed enough and can be misleading. The tables could be merged into one (with more fields added on how the programs work with the specification) or differently named categories could be used. (Discuss in Talk:XDG Base Directory#Add description of support categories)

This section exists to catalog the growing set of software using the XDG Base Directory Specification introduced in 2003. This is here to demonstrate the viability of this specification by listing commonly found dotfiles and their support status. For those not currently supporting the Base Directory Specification, workarounds will be demonstrated to emulate it instead.

The workarounds will be limited to anything not involving patching the source, executing code stored in environment variables or compile-time options. The rationale for this is that configurations should be portable across systems and having compile-time options prevent that.

Hopefully this will provide a source of information about exactly what certain kinds of dotfiles are and where they come from.

Contributing

When contributing make sure to use the correct section.

Nothing should require code evaluation (such as vim and VIMINIT), patches or compile-time options to gain support and anything which does must be deemed hardcoded. Additionally, if the process is error prone or difficult, it should also be classified as hardcoded.

  • The first column should be either a link to an internal article, a Template:Pkg or a Template:AUR.
  • The second column is for any legacy files and directories the project had (one per line), this is done so people can find them even if they are no longer read.
  • In the third, try to find the commit or version a project switched to XDG Base Directory or any open discussions and include them in the next two columns (two per line).
  • The last column should include any appropriate workarounds or solutions. Please verify that your solution is correct and functional.

Supported

Application Legacy Path Supported Since Discussion Notes
aerc-gitAUR
ALSA ~/.asoundrc 577df36

1.2.3

[1] XDG_CONFIG_HOME/alsa/asoundrc
Android Studio ~/.AndroidStudioX.X Android Studio 4.1
XDG_CONFIG_HOME/Google/AndroidStudioX.X
XDG_DATA_HOME/Google/AndroidStudioX.X
XDG_CACHE_HOME/Google/AndroidStudioX.X

Location overview by Google does not mention XDG - paths could be hardcoded instead of using the proper variable, though that is unlikely as Intellij IDEA, which Android Studio is based on, implements it properly as well

antimicroAUR[broken link: package not found] ~/.antimicro edba864 [2] Package moved to antimicroxAUR - this entry needs to be migrated
aria2 ~/.aria2 8bc1d37 [3]
XDG_CONFIG_HOME/aria2/
XDG_CACHE_HOME/aria2/
asunder ~/.asunder ~/.asunder_album_artist ~/.asunder_album_genre ~/.asunder_album_title 2.9.0[dead link 2021-05-17 ⓘ] [4][dead link 2021-05-17 ⓘ] Uses XDG_CONFIG_HOME/asunder/asunder for ~/.asunder and XDG_CACHE_HOME/asunder/asunder_album_... for the other 3 files. Legacy paths are not removed after migration, they have to be deleted manually.
binwalk ~/.binwalk 2051757 [5] XDG_CONFIG_HOME/binwalk
Blender ~/.blender 4293f47 [6]
byobu ~/.byobu 4.17 [7]

XDG_CONFIG_HOME/byobu

Legacy path takes precedence if present, or if XDG_CONFIG_HOME is not set.

calcurse ~/.calcurse 04162d [8] [9]
XDG_CONFIG_HOME/calcurse
XDG_DATA_HOME/calcurse

If the legacy path ~/.calcurse is present, it will take precedence.

calibre
ccache ~/.ccache 4.0 [10]
XDG_CACHE_HOME/ccache
XDG_CONFIG_HOME/ccache/ccache.conf
citra-gitAUR ~/.citra-emu f7c3193 [11]
clangd ~/.clangd fdf7dcc [12] XDG_CONFIG_HOME/clangd/config.yml

XDG_CACHE_HOME/clangd

Project specific configuration can be specified in proj/.clangd. Configuration is combined when this is sensible. In case of conflicts, user config has the highest precedence, then inner project, then outer project.

Composer ~/.composer 1.0.0-beta1 [13]
cURL ~/.curlrc 7.73.0 [14] XDG_CONFIG_HOME/.curlrc
d-feet ~/.d-feet 7f6104b
dconf
Dolphin emulator ~/.dolphin-emu a498c68 [15]
dr14_tmeterAUR 7e777ca [16] XDG_CONFIG_HOME/dr14tmeter/
dunst 78b6e2b [17]
dwb
Emacs ~/.emacs ~/.emacs.d/init.el [18]

27.1

XDG_CONFIG_HOME/emacs/init.el

Legacy paths have precedence over XDG paths. Emacs will never create XDG_CONFIG_HOME/emacs/. Workaround for 26.3 or older: It's possible to set HOME, but it has unexpected side effects.

fish
fontconfig ~/.fontconfig ~/.fonts 8c255fb, [19] Use XDG_DATA_HOME/fonts to store fonts instead.
fontforge ~/.FontForge ~/.PfaEdit e4c2cc7

[20] [21]

freerdp ~/.freerdp edf6e72
Gajim ~/.gajim 3e777ea [22]
gconfAUR ~/.gconf fc28caa [23]
ghc ~/.ghci [24] [25] XDG_CONFIG_HOME/.ghci
GDB ~/.gdbinit, ~/.gdb_history 11.1 XDG_CONFIG_HOME/gdb/gdbinit, export GDBHISTFILE="$XDG_DATA_HOME"/gdb/history
GIMP ~/.gimp-x.y ~/.thumbnails

60e0cfe 483505f

[26] [27]

Git ~/.gitconfig 0d94427 XDG_CONFIG_HOME/git/config
gops 71c4255
gnuplot ~/.gnuplot_history a5562b1

[28]

goobookAUR ~/.goobookrc 3.5 [29] XDG_CONFIG_HOME/goobookrc
Godot Engine ~/.godot 73049d1

3.0-stable

[30]
GStreamer ~/.gstreamer-0.10 4e36f93 [31]
GTK 3
helm ~/.helm 3.0.0
htop ~/.htoprc 93233a6
httpie ~/.httpie 5af0874 [32]
i3 ~/.i3 7c130fb
i3blocks, i3blocks-gitAUR [33]
i3-gaps [34]
i3status ~/.i3status.conf c3f7fc4
i3status-rust
imagemagick
Inkscape ~/.inkscape 0.47 [35]
iwd / iwctl ~/.iwctl_history d3e00d7f
intellij-idea-community-edition / intellij-idea-ultimate-editionAUR ~/.IntelliJIdeaXXXX.X 2020.1 [36]
XDG_CONFIG_HOME/JetBrains/IntelliJIdeaXXXX.X
XDG_DATA_HOME/JetBrains/IntelliJIdeaXXXX.X
XDG_CACHE_HOME/JetBrains/IntelliJIdeaXXXX.X
josm ~/.josm 11162 [37]
Kakoune
less ~/.lesshst, ~/.lesskey 590 [38] The environment variables XDG_CONFIG_HOME and XDG_DATA_HOME must be set.
latexmk (in texlive-core) ~/.latexmkrc

XDG_CONFIG_HOME/latexmk/latexmkrc

lftp ~/.lftp 21dc400 [39]
lgogdownloaderAUR ~/.gogdownloader d430af6 [40]
LibreOffice

a6f56f7 25bd2ee

[41]
luarocks ~/.luarocks cd16cdd [42]
XDG_CONFIG_HOME/luarocks
XDG_CACHE_HOME/luarocks

If the legacy path ~/.luarocks is present, it will take precedence.

NSS ~/.pki 3.42 [43]
Streamlink ~/.livestreamerrc ea80591 [44]
llpp 3ab86f0 Currently llpp places the configuration directly under XDG_CONFIG_HOME instead of creating a directory.
mc ~/.mc

1b99570 0b71156 ce401d7

[45]
Mercurial ~/.hgrc

3540200 4.2

XDG_CONFIG_HOME/hg/hgrc.
msmtp ~/.msmtprc

af2f409 v1.6.7+

XDG_CONFIG_HOME/msmtp/config.
mesa 87ab26b XDG_CACHE_HOME/mesa
milkytracker ~/.milkytracker_config eb487c5 [46]
mozc ~/.mozc 91cc1e1 [47]
mpd ~/.mpdconf 87b7328
mpv ~/.mpv cb250d4 [48]
mutt ~/.mutt b17cd67 [49]
mypaint ~/.mypaint cf723b7
nano ~/.nano/ ~/.nanorc c16e79b [50]
ncmpcpp ~/.ncmpcpp

38d9f81 27cd86e

[51] [52]

ncmpcpp_directory should be set to avoid an error.log file in ~/.ncmpcpp.
Neovim ~/.nvim ~/.nvimlog ~/.nviminfo 1ca5646

[53] [54]

Nestopia UE ~/.nestopia/ 610c008 1.51.0 [55]
newsbeuter ~/.newsbeuter 3c57824 [56] It is required to create both directories [57]:

mkdir -p "$XDG_DATA_HOME"/newsbeuter "$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/newsbeuter

node-gyp ~/.node-gyp 2b5ce52a [58] Only available on master as of 2018-12-04.
np2kai-gitAUR ~/.config/np2kai ~/.config/xnp2kai 56a1cc2 [59]
nteract-binAUR 4593e72 [60] [61] does not recognize workarounds for ipython/jupyter
OfflineIMAP ~/.offlineimaprc 5150de5 [62]
opentyrianAUR ~/.opentyrian 39559c3 [63]
pandoc ~/.pandoc/ 0bed0ab [64]
PCManFM ~/.thumbnails 1.3.2
pcsx2 ~/.pcsx2

87f1e8f a9020c6 3b22f0f 0a012ae

[65] [66]
Pry ~/.pryrc ~/.pry_history

a0be0cc7 15e1fc92 e9d1be0e

[67]
python-pip ~/.pip 6.0 [68]
python-poetry ~/.poetry [69] [70] Still creates ~/.poetry according to [71]
powershellAUR 6.0
ppsspp ~/.ppsspp 132fe47 [72]
procps-ng ~/.toprc af53e17

[73] [74]

pacman ~/.makepkg.conf 80eca94 [75]
panda3dAUR ~/.panda3d 2b537d2
poezioAUR
PulseAudio ~/.pulse ~/.pulse-cookie

59a8618 87ae830 9ab510a 4c195bc

[76]
pyroomAUR
quodlibet ~/.quodlibet 3.10.0 [77]
qutebrowser
qtile

fd8686e 66d704b 51cff01

[78] Some optional bar widgets can create files and directories in non-compliant paths, but most often these are still configurable.
rclone ~/.rclone.conf 9d36258 [79]
retroarch
rrAUR ~/.rr 02e7d41 [80]
RSpec ~/.rspec 5e395e2 [81]
rTorrent ~/.rtorrent.rc 6a8d332
RuboCop ~/.rubocop.yml 6fe5956 [82]
sandboxd ~/.sandboxrc [83] [84] XDG_CONFIG_HOME/sandboxd/sandboxrc
scummvm ~/.scummvmrc ~/.scummvm/ 7d014be [85] It is required to migrate data by hand.

mkdir "$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/scummvm/ "$XDG_DATA_HOME"/scummvm mv ~/.scummvmrc "$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/scummvm/scummvm.ini mv ~/.scummvm "$XDG_DATA_HOME"/scummvm/saves

sdcv ~/.stardict/ ~/.sdcv_history 958ec35 [86]
skypeforlinux-stable-binAUR ~/.Skype 8.0
snes9x ~/.snes9x 93b5f11 [87] By default, the configuration file is left blank with intention that the user will fill it at their will (through the gui or manually).
spectrwm ~/.spectrwm a30bbb [88]
sublime-text-devAUR Cache is placed in XDG_CONFIG_HOME/sublime-text-3/Cache instead of expected XDG_CACHE_HOME/sublime-text-3.
surfraw ~/.surfraw.conf ~/.surfraw.bookmarks

3e4591d bd8c427 f57fc71

sway ~/.sway/config 614393c [89]
sxhkd
systemd
teeworlds ~/.teeworlds [90]
termite
tig ~/.tigrc, ~/.tig_history 2.2 [91] ~/.local/share/tig directory must exist, writes to ~/.tig_history otherwise.
tmux ~/.tmux.conf 3.1 [92] 3.1 introduced ~/.config/tmux/tmux.conf and in 3.2 XDG_CONFIG_HOME/tmux/tmux.conf was added
tmuxp ~/.tmuxp 1.5.0 [93] Fixed in 1.5.2
tmuxinatorAUR ~/.tmuxinator 2636923 [94]
Transmission ~/.transmission b71a298
util-linux 570b321
Uzbl c6fd63a [95]
vimb
VirtualBox ~/.VirtualBox 4.3 [96]
vis ~/.vis

68a25c7 d138908

[97]
VLC ~/.vlcrc 16f32e1 [98]
warsow ~/.warsow-2.x 98ece3f [99]
WeeChat ~/.weechat [100]

3.2

[101] [102]
XDG_CONFIG_HOME/weechat
XDG_CACHE_HOME/weechat
XDG_DATA_HOME/weechat
Wireshark ~/.wireshark b0b53fa
wxWidgets [103]
Xsettingsd ~/.xsettingsd b4999f5
xmobar ~/.xmobarrc 7b0d6bf

9fc6b37 eaccf70

[104]

[105]

XDG_CONFIG_HOME/xmobar/xmobarrc
xmonad ~/.xmonad/ 40fc10b

[106] [107]

All of these must exist, otherwise it gives up and falls back to ~/.xmonad/ for each:
XDG_CACHE_HOME/xmonad
XDG_CONFIG_HOME/xmonad
XDG_DATA_HOME/xmonad

Alternatively, it always respects XMONAD_CACHE_DIR, XMONAD_CONFIG_DIR, and XMONAD_DATA_DIR.

xournalpp ~/.xournalpp

20db937f 1.1.0

[108] [109]

xsel ~/.xsel.log ee7b481 [110]
zoxide ~/.zo 0.3.0 [111]

Partial

Application Legacy Path Supported Since Discussion Notes
abookAUR ~/.abook abook --config "$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/abook/abookrc --datafile "$XDG_DATA_HOME"/abook/addressbook
anacondaAUR ~/.conda/.condarc, ~/.conda/condarc, ~/.conda/condarc.d/, ~/.condarc [112] export CONDARC="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/conda/condarc"
ack ~/.ackrc [113] export ACKRC="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/ack/ackrc"
Anki ~/Anki, ~/Documents/Anki [114] [115] anki -b "$XDG_DATA_HOME"/Anki
aspell ~/.aspell.conf [116] export ASPELL_CONF="per-conf $XDG_CONFIG_HOME/aspell/aspell.conf; personal $XDG_CONFIG_HOME/aspell/en.pws; repl $XDG_CONFIG_HOME/aspell/en.prepl"
Atom ~/.atom [117] export ATOM_HOME="$XDG_DATA_HOME"/atom
aws-cli ~/.aws 1.7.45 [118] export AWS_SHARED_CREDENTIALS_FILE="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/aws/credentials, export AWS_CONFIG_FILE="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/aws/config
bash-completion ~/.bash_completion export BASH_COMPLETION_USER_FILE="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/bash-completion/bash_completion
bashdbAUR ~/.bashdbinit, ~/.bashdb_hist Like documented at [119], you can specify a file to run commands from. Thus, move the init file to XDG_CONFIG_HOME/bashdb/bashdbinit and create an alias alias bashdb='bashdb -x ${XDG_CONFIG_HOME:-$HOME/.config}/bashdb/bashdbinit'. Unfortunately the history file is hardcoded [120].
bazaar ~/.bazaar, ~/.bzr.log 2.3.0 [121] Discussion in upstream bug states that bazaar will use ~/.config/bazaar if it exists. The logfile ~/.bzr.log might still be written.
btpd-gitAUR ~/.btpd/ [122] btpd -d "$XDG_DATA_HOME"/.btpd

HOME="$XDG_DATA_HOME" btcli

buchhaltung-gitAUR ~/.buchhaltung [123] export BUCHHALTUNG="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/buchhaltung
Ruby#Bundler ~/.bundle 2.1.0 [124] [125] [126]
 export BUNDLE_USER_CONFIG="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/bundle
 export BUNDLE_USER_CACHE="$XDG_CACHE_HOME"/bundle
 export BUNDLE_USER_PLUGIN="$XDG_DATA_HOME"/bundle

Is considered as fixed by the environment variables.

cabal ~/.cabal/ [127]
export CABAL_CONFIG="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/cabal/config
export CABAL_DIR="$XDG_CACHE_HOME"/cabal

See documentation on environment variables.

CABAL_DIR may be put into DATA if you consider downloaded files as such.

calc ~/.calc_history
export CALCHISTFILE="$XDG_CACHE_HOME"/calc_history
Rust#Cargo ~/.cargo [128] [129] [130] [131] export CARGO_HOME="$XDG_DATA_HOME"/cargo
cd-bookmark ~/.cdbookmark [132] export CD_BOOKMARK_FILE=$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/cd-bookmark/bookmarks

or use the fork that has native XDG support: [133]

cgdb ~/.cgdb [On master branch, but no release yet] [134] [135] Set export CGDB_DIR=$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/cgdb and move the config file to XDG_CONFIG_HOME/cgdb/cgdbrc
chez-schemeAUR ~/.chezscheme_history petite --eehistory "$XDG_DATA_HOME"/chezscheme/history
Chromium ~/.chromium, ~/.pki 23057

[136] [137] [138]

cinelerra ~/.bcast5 [139] export CIN_CONFIG="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/bcast5
conky ~/.conkyrc 00481ee [140] conky --config="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/conky/conkyrc
claws-mail ~/.claws-mail [141] claws-mail --alternate-config-dir "$XDG_DATA_HOME"/claws-mail
coreutils ~/.dircolors eval $(dircolors "$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/dircolors)
crawl ~/.crawl The trailing slash is required:

export CRAWL_DIR="$XDG_DATA_HOME"/crawl/

clusterssh ~/.clusterssh/ alias cssh="cssh --config-file '$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/clusterssh/config'"
$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/clusterssh/config
extra_cluster_file=$HOME/.config/clusterssh/clusters
extra_tag_file=$HOME/.config/clusterssh/tags

Despite this, clusterssh will still create ~/.clusterssh/.

CUDA ~/.nv export CUDA_CACHE_PATH="$XDG_CACHE_HOME"/nv
dict ~/.dictrc dict -c "$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/dict/dictrc
Docker ~/.docker export DOCKER_CONFIG="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/docker
docker-machine ~/.docker/machine export MACHINE_STORAGE_PATH="$XDG_DATA_HOME"/docker-machine
DOSBox ~/.dosbox/dosbox-0.74-2.conf [142] dosbox -conf "$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/dosbox/dosbox.conf
Electrum Bitcoin Wallet ~/.electrum c121230 export ELECTRUMDIR="$XDG_DATA_HOME/electrum"
ELinks ~/.elinks export ELINKS_CONFDIR="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/elinks
elixir ~/.mix afaf889 [143] [144] Elixir do not fully conform to XDG specs, it will use XDG only if the environment variables are present, otherwise it will by default use legacy path.
Elm ~/.elm export ELM_HOME="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/elm
FFmpeg ~/.ffmpeg export FFMPEG_DATADIR="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/ffmpeg
flutterAUR ~/.flutter, ~/.flutter_settings, ~/.flutter_tool_state [145]
fzf-gitAUR ~/.fzf.bash, ~/.fzf.zsh [146] The shell init files will be installed to XDG_CONFIG_HOME/fzf if the installation script is called with --xdg for example /usr/local/opt/fzf/install --xdg.
emscripten ~/.emscripten, ~/.emscripten_sanity, ~/.emscripten_ports, ~/.emscripten_cache__last_clear [147] export EM_CONFIG="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/emscripten/config, export EM_CACHE="$XDG_CACHE_HOME"/emscripten/cache, export EM_PORTS="$XDG_DATA_HOME"/emscripten/cache, emcc --em-config "$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/emscripten/config --em-cache "$XDG_CACHE_HOME"/emscripten/cache
freecad ~/.FreeCAD [148] freecad -u "$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/FreeCAD/user.cfg -s "$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/FreeCAD/system.cfg

Despite these options, freecad will still create the file .FreeCAD/cookie as the web module has it hard coded

get_iplayerAUR ~/.get_iplayer export GETIPLAYERUSERPREFS="$XDG_DATA_HOME"/get_iplayer
getmail ~/.getmail/getmailrc getmail --rcfile="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/getmail/getmailrc" --getmaildir="$XDG_DATA_HOME/getmail"
glivAUR ~/.glivrc gliv --glivrc="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/gliv/glivrc
gnuradio ~/.gnuradio [149]
GnuPG ~/.gnupg [150] [151] export GNUPGHOME="$XDG_DATA_HOME"/gnupg, gpg2 --homedir "$XDG_DATA_HOME"/gnupg

Note that this currently does not work out-of-the-box using systemd user units and socket-based activation, since the socket directory changes based on the hash of $GNUPGHOME. You can get the new socket directory using gpgconf --dry-run --create-socketdir and have to modify the systemd user units to listen on the correct sockets accordingly.

Go ~/go [152] export GOPATH="$XDG_DATA_HOME"/go
Google Earth ~/.googleearth Some paths can be changed with the KMLPath and CachePath options in ~/.config/Google/GoogleEarthPlus.conf
gopass ~/.password-store Override settings in ~/.config/gopass/config.yml:
~/.config/gopass/config.yml
root:
path: gpgcli-gitcli-fs+file:///home/<userid>/.config/password-store
gpodder ~/gPodder GPODDER_DOWNLOAD_DIR sets the download folder. GPODDER_HOME - where config and database files are stored, downloads also if GPODDER_DOWNLOAD_DIR is not set.
GQ LDAP client ~/.gq, ~/.gq-state 1.51 export GQRC="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/gqrc, export GQSTATE="$XDG_DATA_HOME"/gq/gq-state, mkdir -p "$(dirname "$GQSTATE")"
Gradle ~/.gradle [153] export GRADLE_USER_HOME="$XDG_DATA_HOME"/gradle
GTK 1 ~/.gtkrc export GTK_RC_FILES="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/gtk-1.0/gtkrc
GTK 2 ~/.gtkrc-2.0 export GTK2_RC_FILES="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/gtk-2.0/gtkrc
hledger ~/.hledger.journal [154] export LEDGER_FILE="$XDG_DATA_HOME"/hledger.journal
imapfilterAUR ~/.imapfilter export IMAPFILTER_HOME="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/imapfilter"
IPFS ~/.ipfs export IPFS_PATH="$XDG_DATA_HOME"/ipfs
ipython/jupyter ~/.ipython won't fix,won't fix export IPYTHONDIR="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/jupyter, export JUPYTER_CONFIG_DIR="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/jupyter
irb ~/.irbrc
~/.profile
$ export IRBRC="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/irb/irbrc
"$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/irb/irbrc
IRB.conf[:SAVE_HISTORY] ||= 1000
IRB.conf[:HISTORY_FILE] ||= File.join(ENV["XDG_DATA_HOME"], "irb", "history")
irssi ~/.irssi [155] irssi --config="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/irssi/config --home="$XDG_DATA_HOME"/irssi
isync ~/.mbsyncrc [156] mbsync -c "$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/isync/mbsyncrc
Java#OpenJDK ~/.java/.userPrefs [157] export _JAVA_OPTIONS=-Djava.util.prefs.userRoot="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/java
k9s ~/.k9s 0.20.4 [158] export K9SCONFIG="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/k9s
KDE ~/.kde, ~/.kde4 [159] export KDEHOME="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/kde
keychain ~/.keychain [160] [161] keychain --absolute --dir "$XDG_RUNTIME_DIR"/keychain
kscriptAUR ~/.kscript [162] export KSCRIPT_CACHE_DIR="$XDG_CACHE_HOME"/kscript
ledger ~/.ledgerrc, ~/.pricedb [163] ledger --init-file "$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/ledgerrc
Leiningen ~/.lein, ~/.m2 export LEIN_HOME="$XDG_DATA_HOME"/lein

to change the m2 repo location used by leiningen look here: Leiningen#m2_repo_location

libdvdcss ~/.dvdcss [164] export DVDCSS_CACHE="$XDG_DATA_HOME"/dvdcss
libice ~/.ICEauthority [165] export ICEAUTHORITY="$XDG_CACHE_HOME"/ICEauthority

Make sure XDG_CACHE_HOME is set beforehand to directory user running Xorg has write access to.

Do not use XDG_RUNTIME_DIR as it is available after login. Display managers that launch Xorg (like GDM) will repeatedly fail otherwise.

libx11 ~/.XCompose, ~/.compose-cache export XCOMPOSEFILE="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/X11/xcompose, export XCOMPOSECACHE="$XDG_CACHE_HOME"/X11/xcompose
ltrace ~/.ltrace.conf ltrace -F "$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/ltrace/ltrace.conf
maptool-binAUR ~/.maptool-rptools [166]
/opt/maptool/lib/app/MapTool.cfg
[JavaOptions]
-DMAPTOOL_DATADIR=.local/share/maptool-rptools

However, no way to change the location of this configuration file.

maven ~/.m2 [167] mvn -gs "$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/maven/settings.xml and set <localRepository> as appropriate in settings.xml
Mathematica ~/.Mathematica export MATHEMATICA_USERBASE="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/mathematica
maxima ~/.maxima export MAXIMA_USERDIR="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/maxima
mednafen ~/.mednafen export MEDNAFEN_HOME="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/mednafen
minikube ~/.minikube [168] export MINIKUBE_HOME="$XDG_DATA_HOME"/minikube

Creates a further .minikube directory in MINIKUBE_HOME for whatever reason.

mitmproxy ~/.mitmproxy alias mitmproxy="mitmproxy --set confdir=$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/mitmproxy", alias mitmweb="mitmweb --set confdir=$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/mitmproxy"
MOC ~/.moc mocp -M "$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/moc, mocp -O MOCDir="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/moc
monero ~/.bitmonero monerod --data-dir "$XDG_DATA_HOME"/bitmonero
most ~/.mostrc export MOST_INITFILE="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/mostrc
MPlayer ~/.mplayer export MPLAYER_HOME="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/mplayer
MySQL ~/.mysql_history, ~/.my.cnf , ~/.mylogin.cnf export MYSQL_HISTFILE="$XDG_DATA_HOME"/mysql_history

~/.my.cnf only supported for mysql-server, not mysql-client [169]

~/.mylogin.cnf unsupported

ncurses ~/.terminfo Precludes system path searching:

export TERMINFO="$XDG_DATA_HOME"/terminfo, export TERMINFO_DIRS="$XDG_DATA_HOME"/terminfo:/usr/share/terminfo

n /usr/local/n export N_PREFIX=$XDG_DATA_HOME/n
ncmpc ~/.ncmpc ncmpc -f "$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/ncmpc/config
Netbeans ~/.netbeans [170] netbeans --userdir "${XDG_CONFIG_HOME}"/netbeans
Node.js ~/.node_repl_history export NODE_REPL_HISTORY="$XDG_DATA_HOME"/node_repl_history [171]
notmuch ~/.notmuch-config [172] export NOTMUCH_CONFIG="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/notmuch/notmuchrc, export NMBGIT="$XDG_DATA_HOME"/notmuch/nmbug
npm ~/.npm, ~/.npmrc [173] export NPM_CONFIG_USERCONFIG=$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/npm/npmrc
npmrc
prefix=${XDG_DATA_HOME}/npm
cache=${XDG_CACHE_HOME}/npm
tmp=${XDG_RUNTIME_DIR}/npm
init-module=${XDG_CONFIG_HOME}/npm/config/npm-init.js

prefix is unnecessary (and unsupported) if Node.js is installed by nvmAUR.

If you want to configure this system-wide, the file to edit is /usr/etc/npmrc, not /etc/npmrc. You can confirm that the config is loaded by running npm config list

opam ~/.opam [174] export OPAMROOT="$XDG_DATA_HOME/opam"

Both configuration and state data are stored in OPAMROOT, so this solution is not fully compliant.

pnpmAUR ~/.pnpm-store Add the line store-dir=${XDG_DATA_HOME}/pnpm-store to your npmrc.
PuTTY ~/.putty/ 9952b2d Will use $XDG_CONFIG_HOME/putty if it already exists. Creates ~/.putty if not. Prioritises $XDG_CONFIG_HOME/putty if both exist. Tested in 0.74
nuget ~/.nuget/packages [175] export NUGET_PACKAGES="$XDG_CACHE_HOME"/NuGetPackages
NVIDIA ~/.nv Uses XDG_CACHE_HOME if set, otherwise improperly falls back to ~/.nv instead of ~/.cache.
nvidia-settings ~/.nvidia-settings-rc nvidia-settings --config="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/nvidia/settings
nvmAUR ~/.nvm export NVM_DIR="$XDG_DATA_HOME"/nvm
Octave ~/octave, ~/.octave_packages, ~/.octave_hist export OCTAVE_HISTFILE="$XDG_CACHE_HOME/octave-hsts", export OCTAVE_SITE_INITFILE="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/octave/octaverc"
$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/octave/octaverc
source /usr/share/octave/site/m/startup/octaverc;
pkg prefix ~/.local/share/octave/packages ~/.local/share/octave/packages;
pkg local_list /home/<your username>/.local/share/octave/octave_packages;

The local_list option must be given an absolute path.

openscad ~/.OpenSCAD 7c3077b0f [176] Does not fully honour XDG Base Directory Specification, see [177]

Currently it hard-codes ~/.local/share.

OpenSSL ~/.rnd Seeding file .rnd's location can be set with RANDFILE environment variable per FAQ.
parallel ~/.parallel 20170422 export PARALLEL_HOME="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/parallel
pass ~/.password-store export PASSWORD_STORE_DIR="$XDG_DATA_HOME"/pass
Pidgin ~/.purple [178] pidgin --config="$XDG_DATA_HOME"/purple
PostgreSQL ~/.psqlrc, ~/.psql_history, ~/.pgpass, ~/.pg_service.conf 9.2 [179] [180] export PSQLRC="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/pg/psqlrc", export PSQL_HISTORY="$XDG_STATE_HOME/psql_history", export PGPASSFILE="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/pg/pgpass", export PGSERVICEFILE="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/pg/pg_service.conf"

It is required to create both directories: mkdir "$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/pg" && mkdir "$XDG_STATE_HOME"

PulseAudio ~/.esd_auth Very likely generated by the module-esound-protocol-unix.so module. It can be configured to use a different location but it makes much more sense to just comment out this module in /etc/pulse/default.pa or "$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/pulse/default.pa.
pyenv ~/.pyenv [181] [182] export PYENV_ROOT=$XDG_DATA_HOME/pyenv
python-azure-cliAUR ~/.azure export AZURE_CONFIG_DIR=$XDG_DATA_HOME/azure
python-gripAUR ~/.grip export GRIPHOME="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/grip"
python-setuptools ~/.python-eggs export PYTHON_EGG_CACHE="$XDG_CACHE_HOME"/python-eggs
python-pylint ~/.pylint.d won't fix export PYLINTHOME="$XDG_CACHE_HOME"/pylint
racket ~/.racketrc, ~/.racket [183] export PLTUSERHOME="$XDG_DATA_HOME"/racket
rbenvAUR ~/.rbenv [184] [185] export RBENV_ROOT=XDG_DATA_HOME/rbenv
readline ~/.inputrc export INPUTRC="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/readline/inputrc
recoll ~/.recoll export RECOLL_CONFDIR="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/recoll"
redis ~/.rediscli_history, ~/.redisclirc export REDISCLI_HISTFILE="$XDG_DATA_HOME"/redis/rediscli_history, export REDISCLI_RCFILE="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/redis/redisclirc
ripgrep [186] export RIPGREP_CONFIG_PATH=$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/ripgrep/config
rlwrap ~/.*_history [187] export RLWRAP_HOME="$XDG_DATA_HOME"/rlwrap
Ruby#RubyGems ~/.gem export GEM_HOME="$XDG_DATA_HOME"/gem, export GEM_SPEC_CACHE="$XDG_CACHE_HOME"/gem

Make sure to remove gem: --user-install from /etc/gemrc

ruby-solargraphAUR ~/.solargraph/cache/ [188] export SOLARGRAPH_CACHE=$XDG_CACHE_HOME/solargraph
Rust#Rustup ~/.rustup [189] export RUSTUP_HOME="$XDG_DATA_HOME"/rustup
sbt ~/.sbt

~/.ivy2

[190] sbt -ivy "$XDG_DATA_HOME"/ivy2 -sbt-dir "$XDG_DATA_HOME"/sbt (beware [191])
SageMath ~/.sage export DOT_SAGE="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/sage
GNU Screen ~/.screenrc export SCREENRC="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/screen/screenrc
simplescreenrecorder ~/.ssr/ 0.4.3 [192]

[193]

Will use $XDG_CONFIG_HOME/simplescreenrecorder/ ONLY if it already was created otherwise defaults to ~/.ssr

mv ~/.ssr "$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/simplescreenrecorder

spacemacs ~/.spacemacs, ~/.spacemacs.d [194] [195] Move the ~/.spacemacs file.

export SPACEMACSDIR="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/spacemacs, mv ~/.spacemacs "$SPACEMACSDIR"/init.el

Other files need to be configured like Emacs.

Haskell#Stack ~/.stack [196] export STACK_ROOT="$XDG_DATA_HOME"/stack
subversion ~/.subversion [197] [198][199] svn --config-dir "$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/subversion
sudo ~/.sudo_as_admin_successful 1.9.6 [200] [201] Only present when activated at compile-time (default none). An admin_flag parameter can be used in /etc/sudoers since 1.9.6.
task ~/.task, ~/.taskrc Fully supported in version 2.6
Local TeX Live TeXmf tree, TeXmf caches and config ~/texmf, ~/.texlive/texmf-var, ~/.texlive/texmf-config export TEXMFHOME=$XDG_DATA_HOME/texmf, export TEXMFVAR=$XDG_CACHE_HOME/texlive/texmf-var, export TEXMFCONFIG=$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/texlive/texmf-config
tiptopAUR ~/.tiptoprc This will still expect the .tiptoprc file.

tiptop -W "$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/tiptop

ruby-travisAUR ~/.travis/ [202] export TRAVIS_CONFIG_PATH=$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/travis
uncrustify ~/.uncrustify.cfg export UNCRUSTIFY_CONFIG="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/uncrustify/uncrustify.cfg
Unison ~/.unison export UNISON="$XDG_DATA_HOME"/unison
units ~/.units_history units --history "$XDG_CACHE_HOME"/units_history
urxvtd ~/.urxvt/urxvtd-hostname export RXVT_SOCKET="$XDG_RUNTIME_DIR"/urxvtd
Vagrant ~/.vagrant.d, ~/.vagrant.d/aliases [203] export VAGRANT_HOME="$XDG_DATA_HOME"/vagrant, export VAGRANT_ALIAS_FILE="$XDG_DATA_HOME"/vagrant/aliases
virtualenv ~/.virtualenvs export WORKON_HOME="$XDG_DATA_HOME/virtualenvs"
Visual Studio Code ~/.vscode-oss/ [204] You can use export VSCODE_PORTABLE="$XDG_DATA_HOME"/vscode, which is not documented and might break unexpectedly.

Setting this makes the editor look for the contents of .config/Code - OSS in $VSCODE_PORTABLE/user-data.

You can also run Visual Studio with the --extensions-dir flag, such as code --extensions-dir "$XDG_DATA_HOME/vscode". This is documented and probably will not break as unexpectedly, as it is has other use cases.

VSCodiumAUR ~/.vscode-oss/ [205] You can run VSCodium with the --extensions-dir flag, such as vscodium --extensions-dir "$XDG_DATA_HOME/vscode".
wakatime ~/.wakatime.cfg, ~/.wakatime.data, ~/.wakatime.db, ~/.wakatime.log export WAKATIME_HOME="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/wakatime"

The directory needs to be created manually

mkdir "$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/wakatime"

wget ~/.wgetrc, ~/.wget-hsts export WGETRC="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/wgetrc" and add the following as an alias for wget: wget --hsts-file="$XDG_CACHE_HOME/wget-hsts", or set the hsts-file variable with an absolute path as wgetrc does not support environment variables: echo hsts-file \= "$XDG_CACHE_HOME"/wget-hsts >> "$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/wgetrc"
wine ~/.wine [206] Winetricks uses XDG-alike location below for WINEPREFIX management:

mkdir -p "$XDG_DATA_HOME"/wineprefixes, export WINEPREFIX="$XDG_DATA_HOME"/wineprefixes/default

xbindkeys ~/.xbindkeysrc xbindkeys -f "$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/xbindkeys/config
xorg-xauth ~/.Xauthority export XAUTHORITY="$XDG_RUNTIME_DIR"/Xauthority

Note that LightDM does not allow you to change this variable. If you change it nonetheless, you will not be able to login. Use startx instead or configure LightDM. According to [207] SLiM has ~/.Xauthority hardcoded.

The SDDM Xauthority path can be changed in its own configuration files as shown below. Unfortunately, it is relative to the home directory.

/etc/sddm.conf.d/xauth-path.conf
[X11]
UserAuthFile=.Xauthority
xinit ~/.xinitrc, ~/.xserverrc [208] export XINITRC="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/X11/xinitrc, export XSERVERRC="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/X11/xserverrc

Note that these variables are respected by xinit, but not by startx. Instead, specify the filename as an argument:

startx "$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/X11/xinitrc" -- "$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/X11/xserverrc" vt1

xorg-xrdb ~/.Xresources, ~/.Xdefaults Ultimately you should be using Xresources and since these resources are loaded via xrdb you can specify a path such as xrdb -load ~/.config/X11/xresources.
Xorg ~/.xsession, ~/.xsessionrc, ~/.Xsession, ~/.xsession-errors These can be added as part of your Xorg init script (~/.xinitrc) or Xsession start script (which will often be based on /etc/X11/Xsession).

Depending on where you have configured your $XDG_CACHE_HOME, you made need to expand the paths yourself.

# xsession start script
USERXSESSION="$XDG_CACHE_HOME/X11/xsession"
USERXSESSIONRC="$XDG_CACHE_HOME/X11/xsessionrc"
ALTUSERXSESSION="$XDG_CACHE_HOME/X11/Xsession"
ERRFILE="$XDG_CACHE_HOME/X11/xsession-errors"

Unlike most other examples in this table, actual X11 init scripts will vary a lot between installations.

z ~/.z [209] export _Z_DATA="$XDG_DATA_HOME/z"
yarn ~/.yarnrc, ~/.yarn/, ~/.yarncache/, ~/.yarn-config/ 2d454b5 [210] [211] alias yarn='yarn --use-yarnrc "$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/yarn/config"'

Hardcoded

Application Legacy Path Discussion Notes
adb & Android Studio ~/.android/ Despite appearances otherwise, adb will always generate ~/.android/adbkeys, though it will try keys in ADB_VENDOR_KEYS as well.
aegisub ~/.aegisub/ [212]
alpine ~/.pinerc, ~/.addressbook, ~/.pine-debug[1-4], ~/.newsrc, ~/.mailcap, ~/.mime.types, ~/.pine-interrupted-mail alias alpine="alpine -p $XDG_CONFIG_HOME/alpine/pinerc"

In the above config file, some locations can be customized using options like newsrc-path= and address-book=.

Ansible ~/.ansible [213] [214]
aMule ~/.aMule [215] [216] [217]
anthy ~/.anthy [218]
Apache Directory Studio ~/.ApacheDirectoryStudio
apvlvAUR ~/.apvlvrc [219]
ARandR ~/.screenlayout [220]
Arduino ~/.arduino15, ~/.jssc won't fix
arduino-cli ~.arduino15/ [221] mv ~/.arduino15 $XDG_CONFIG_HOME/arduino15

Specify the new directories used by Arduino CLI in arduino-cli.yaml as mentioned in the documentation here. alias arduino-cli='arduino-cli --config-file $XDG_CONFIG_HOME/arduino15/arduino-cli.yaml'

Audacity ~/.audacity-data/ [222]
Avidemux ~/.avidemux6 [223]
Bash ~/.bashrc, ~/.bash_history, ~/.bash_profile, ~/.bash_login, ~/.bash_logout won't fix mkdir -p "$XDG_STATE_HOME"/bash

export HISTFILE="$XDG_STATE_HOME"/bash/history

bashrc can be sourced from a different location in /etc/bash.bashrc. Specify --init-file <file> as an alternative to ~/.bashrc for interactive shells.

Berkshelf ~/.berkshelf/
chattyAUR ~/.chatty/ [224]
cmake ~/.cmake/ Used for the user package registry ~/.cmake/packages/<package>, detailed in cmake-packages(7) § User Package Registry and the Package registry wiki page. Looks like it's hardcoded, for example in cmFindPackageCommand.cxx.
Cinnamon ~/.cinnamon/ [225]
conanAUR ~/.conan/ [226] export CONAN_USER_HOME="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME" will set the directory in which .conan/ is created. It was designed to simplify CI, but can be used here too.
cryptomatorAUR ~/.Cryptomator [227]
ctags (universial-ctags) ~/.ctagsrc, .ctags.d [228]
CUPS ~/.cups/ [229]
cVim ~/.cvimrc [230]
darcs ~/.darcs/ [231]
dart ~/.dart, ~/.dartServer [232]
dbus ~/.dbus/ [233] Consider using dbus-broker, as it does not create or use this directory.
devede ~/.devedeng Hardcoded here
Dia ~/.dia/
dotnet-sdk ~/.dotnet/ [234]
dropbox ~/.dropbox/
Eclipse ~/.eclipse/ [235] Option -Dosgi.configuration.area=@user.home/.config/.. overrides but must be added to "$ECLIPSE_HOME"/eclipse.ini" rather than command line which means you must have write access to $ECLIPSE_HOME. (Arch Linux hard-codes $ECLIPSE_HOME in /usr/bin/eclipse)
Fetchmail ~/.fetchmailrc
Firefox ~/.mozilla/ [236] [237]
Flatpak ~/.var/ [238] [239] won't fix
fltk ~/.fltk/ [240]
freesweep ~/.sweeprc [241]
gftp ~/.gftp/ [242] Following the XDG spec is planned for gftp.
ghidra [243]
GoldenDict ~/.goldendict/ [244]
gramps ~/.gramps/ [245]
groovy ~/.groovy/
grsync ~/.grsync/ [246]
google-cloud-sdkAUR ~/.gsutil/ [247]
gtk-recordMyDesktop ~/.gtk-recordmydesktop
hplip ~/.hplip/ [248]
idris ~/.idris [249]
itchAUR ~/.itch won't fix You can move the Game install location in the app settings.
lbdbAUR ~/.lbdbrc, ~/.lbdb/ [250]
Java OpenJDK ~/.java/fonts [251] export _JAVA_OPTIONS=-Djava.util.prefs.userRoot="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/java
Java OpenJFX ~/.java/webview
jgmenu ~/.jgmenu-lockfile [252] [253]
julia ~/.juliarc.jl, ~/.julia_history, ~/.julia [254] [255] The trailing :$JULIA_DEPOT_PATH is necessary. See [256]

export JULIA_DEPOT_PATH="$XDG_DATA_HOME/julia:$JULIA_DEPOT_PATH"

kiteAUR ~/.kite/ [257]
Kodi ~/.kodi/ #6142 PR abandoned in 2016
kotlin ~/.kotlinc_history Related Konan issue: [258]
Kubernetes ~/.kube/ [259][260]
librewolfAUR ~/.mozilla

~/.librewolf

[261]
Linux PAM ~/.pam_environment [262] Hardcoded in modules/pam_env/pam_env.c
lldb ~/.lldb, ~/.lldbinit
LMMS ~/.lmmsrc.xml [263]
mathomatic ~/.mathomaticrc, ~/.matho_history History can be moved by using rlwrap mathomatic -r with the RLWRAP_HOME environment set appropriately.
Minecraft ~/.minecraft/ won't fix
Minetest ~/.minetest/ won't fix [264]
minicom ~/.minirc.dfl Upstream has a TODO entry for supporting configuration files under ~/.config/minicom. [265]
Mono ~/.mono/
mongodb ~/.mongorc.js, ~/.dbshell [266] This Stack Overflow thread suggests a partial workaround using command-line switch --norc.
~/.netrc Like ~/.ssh, many programs expect this file to be here. These include projects like curl (CURLOPT_NETRC_FILE), ftp (NETRC), s-nail (NETRC), etc. While some of them offer alternative configurable locations, many do not such as w3m, wget and lftp.
nmcli ~/.nmcli-history [267] Hardcoded to g_get_home_dir()[268] [269]
Networkmanager-openvpn ~/.cert/nm-openvpn [270]
OpenSSH ~/.ssh won't fix Assumed to be present by many ssh daemons and clients such as DropBear and OpenSSH.
palemoon ~/.moonchild productions [271]
parsec-binAUR ~/.parsec
pcsxrAUR ~/.pcsxr A -cfg flag exists, but can only be set relative to ~/.pcsxr.
perf ~/.debug Hardcoded in tools/perf/util/config.c. Commit: [272]
perl ~/.cpan, ~/perl5 [273] Perl5's CPAN expects ~/.cpan
portfolio-performance-binAUR ~/.PortfolioPerformance/ [274]
various shells and display managers ~/.profile
python ~/.python_history [275] [276] [277] All history from interactive sessions is saved to ~/.python_history by default since version 3.4. This can still be customized the same way as in older versions (see this example), including to use a custom path or disable history saving.
python-tensorflow ~/.keras [278] The issues is for tf.keras module
qmmp ~/.qmmp [279]
Qt Designer ~/.designer [280]
RedNotebook ~/.rednotebook
Remarkable ~/.remarkable
renderdocAUR ~/.renderdoc won't fix
Ren'Py ~/.renpy won't fix
repo ~/.repoconfig [281]
SANE ~/.sane/ scanimage creates a .cal file there
sbcl ~/.sbclrc
/etc/sbclrc
(require :asdf)
(setf sb-ext:*userinit-pathname-function*
      (lambda () (uiop:xdg-config-home #P"sbcl/sbclrc")))

Note that this requires root privileges and will change the location of ~/.sbclrc for all users. This can be mitigated by checking for an existing ~/.sbclrc inside the lambda form.

scribus ~/.scribus
SeaMonkey ~/.mozilla/seamonkey [282]
Signal Desktop [283] Currently keeps messages in ~/.config/Signal
Snap ~/snap/ [284]
Solfege ~/.solfege, ~/.solfegerc, ~/lessonfiles [285]
SpamAssassin ~/.spamassassin
SQLite ~/.sqlite_history, ~/.sqliterc [286] export SQLITE_HISTORY=$XDG_DATA_HOME/sqlite_history, sqlite3 -init "$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/sqlite3/sqliterc
Steam ~/.steam, ~/.steampath, ~/.steampid [287] Many game engines (Unity 3D, Unreal) follow the specification, but then individual game publishers hardcode the paths in Steam Auto-Cloud causing game-saves to sync to the wrong directory.
TeamSpeak ~/.ts3client export TS3_CONFIG_DIR="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/ts3client"
terraform ~/.terraform.d/ [288]
texinfo ~/.infokey info --init-file "$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/infokey"
TeXmacs ~/.TeXmacs
Thunderbird ~/.thunderbird/ [289]
TigerVNC ~/.vnc [290]
tllocalmgr ~/.texlive
urlviewAUR ~/.urlview Use fork urlview-xdg-gitAUR instead. The fork will use XDG_CONFIG_HOME/urlview/config
valeAUR ~/.vale.ini won't fix vale --config "$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/vale/config.ini"
vim ~/.vim, ~/.vimrc, ~/.viminfo [291] Since 7.3.1178 vim will search for ~/.vim/vimrc if ~/.vimrc is not found.
"$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/vim/vimrc
set runtimepath^=$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/vim
set runtimepath+=$XDG_DATA_HOME/vim
set runtimepath+=$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/vim/after

set packpath^=$XDG_DATA_HOME/vim,$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/vim
set packpath+=$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/vim/after,$XDG_DATA_HOME/vim/after

let g:netrw_home = $XDG_DATA_HOME."/vim"
call mkdir($XDG_DATA_HOME."/vim/spell", 'p')
set viewdir=$XDG_DATA_HOME/vim/view | call mkdir(&viewdir, 'p')

set backupdir=$XDG_CACHE_HOME/vim/backup | call mkdir(&backupdir, 'p')
set directory=$XDG_CACHE_HOME/vim/swap   | call mkdir(&directory, 'p')
set undodir=$XDG_CACHE_HOME/vim/undo     | call mkdir(&undodir,   'p')

if !has('nvim') | set viminfofile=$XDG_STATE_HOME/vim/viminfo | endif
~/.profile
export GVIMINIT='let $MYGVIMRC="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/vim/gvimrc" | source $MYGVIMRC'
export VIMINIT='let $MYVIMRC="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/vim/vimrc" | source $MYVIMRC'

[G]VIMINIT environment variable will also affect Neovim. If separate configs for Vim and Neovim are desired then the following will be a better choice:

export GVIMINIT='let $MYGVIMRC = !has("nvim") ? "$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/vim/gvimrc" : "$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/nvim/init.gvim" | so $MYGVIMRC'
export VIMINIT='let $MYVIMRC = !has("nvim") ? "$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/vim/vimrc" : "$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/nvim/init.vim" | so $MYVIMRC'
vimperator ~/.vimperatorrc [292] export VIMPERATOR_INIT=":source $XDG_CONFIG_HOME/vimperator/vimperatorrc"

export VIMPERATOR_RUNTIME="$XDG_CONFIG_HOME"/vimperator

visidataAUR ~/.visidata [293]
w3m ~/.w3m [294] [295]
wpa_cli ~/.wpa_cli_history
wegoAUR ~/.wegorc [296]
x2goclient ~/.x2goclient alias x2goclient="x2goclient --home=$HOME/.config"
xdg-utils ~/.gnome [297] [298] [299] For some reason the script xdg-desktop-menu hard-codes gnome_user_dir="$HOME/.gnome/apps". This is used by chromium among others. Bug discussion has moved to gitlab and PR with fix exists, however it is not merged yet.
xpdf ~/.xpdfrc
XVim2 ~/.xvimrc [300]
YARD ~/.yard [301] Would accept Pull Request if anyone want to implement it.
zenmap nmap ~/.zenmap [302] [303]
zoomAUR ~/.zoom export SSB_HOME="$XDG_DATA_HOME"/zoom
zoteroAUR ~/.zotero ~/Zotero [304]
zsh ~/.zshrc, ~/.zprofile, ~/.zshenv, ~/.zlogin, ~/.zlogout, ~/.histfile, ~/.zcompdump, ~/.zcompcache [305] Consider exporting ZDOTDIR=$HOME/.config/zsh in ~/.zshenv (this is hardcoded due to the bootstrap problem). You could also add this to /etc/zsh/zshenv and avoid the need for any dotfiles in your HOME. Doing this however requires root privilege which may not be viable and is system-wide.

export HISTFILE="$XDG_STATE_HOME"/zsh/history

compinit -d $XDG_CACHE_HOME/zsh/zcompdump-$ZSH_VERSION [306] /!\ The folder needs to exist

zstyle ':completion:*' cache-path $XDG_CACHE_HOME/zsh/zcompcache

Libraries

C
libXDGdirs
C99: Cloudef's simple implementation.
C++
xdg-utils-cxx
xdgpp
Go
go-appdir
Haskell
Officially in directory since 1.2.3.0 ab9d0810ce.
xdg-basedir
JVM
Java, Kotlin, Clojure, Scala, ...
directories-jvm
Perl
File-BaseDir
Python
pyxdg
Ruby
rubyworks/xdg
Rust
directories-rs
rust-xdg
Vala
Builtin support via GLib.Environment.
See get_user_cache_dir, get_user_data_dir, get_user_config_dir, etc.

See also