diff --git a/.gitignore b/.gitignore
index 710383b..251ec80 100644
--- a/.gitignore
+++ b/.gitignore
@@ -31,5 +31,8 @@ Thumbs.db
 .vscode/
 .idea/
 
+# local planning docs (not part of the tracked codebase)
+.plans/
+
 # scratch / temp scripts
 _*.ps1