Configuration for global ignore patterns in ~/.config/git/config: [core] excludesfile = .gitignore doesn't get looked up per default in ~/.config/git/ which might be considered a bug as the .gitignore file isn't loaded. It's only loaded when .gitignore is located in $HOME or explicitly referenced via ~/.config/git/.gitignore. Configuration for a conditional include also in ~/.config/git/config: [includeIf "gitdir:~/Work/git-repos/"] path = .oss-gitconfig does get looked up per default in ~/.config/git/ and therefor the .oss-gitconfig is loaded. So there seems to be a difference in Git's configuration loading strategies. Environment details: macOS High Sierra git version 2.19.1 Windows 10 git version 2.16.1.windows.2