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diff --git a/src/cursor_flasher/__pycache__/config.cpython-312.pyc b/src/cursor_flasher/__pycache__/config.cpython-312.pyc
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diff --git a/src/cursor_flasher/config.py b/src/cursor_flasher/config.py
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+++ b/src/cursor_flasher/config.py
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+from dataclasses import dataclass
+from pathlib import Path
+from typing import Any
+
+import yaml
+
+
+@dataclass
+class Config:
+    pulse_color: str = "#FF9500"
+    pulse_width: int = 4
+    pulse_speed: float = 1.5
+    pulse_opacity_min: float = 0.3
+    pulse_opacity_max: float = 1.0
+
+    sound_enabled: bool = True
+    sound_name: str = "Glass"
+    sound_volume: float = 0.5
+
+    poll_interval: float = 0.5
+    cooldown: float = 3.0
+
+    auto_dismiss: int = 300
+
+
+FIELD_MAP: dict[str, dict[str, str]] = {
+    "pulse": {
+        "color": "pulse_color",
+        "width": "pulse_width",
+        "speed": "pulse_speed",
+        "opacity_min": "pulse_opacity_min",
+        "opacity_max": "pulse_opacity_max",
+    },
+    "sound": {
+        "enabled": "sound_enabled",
+        "name": "sound_name",
+        "volume": "sound_volume",
+    },
+    "detection": {
+        "poll_interval": "poll_interval",
+        "cooldown": "cooldown",
+    },
+    "timeout": {
+        "auto_dismiss": "auto_dismiss",
+    },
+}
+
+
+DEFAULT_CONFIG_PATH = Path.home() / ".cursor-flasher" / "config.yaml"
+
+
+def load_config(path: Path = DEFAULT_CONFIG_PATH) -> Config:
+    """Load config from YAML, falling back to defaults for missing values."""
+    if not path.exists():
+        return Config()
+
+    with open(path) as f:
+        raw = yaml.safe_load(f)
+
+    if not raw or not isinstance(raw, dict):
+        return Config()
+
+    overrides: dict[str, Any] = {}
+    for section, mapping in FIELD_MAP.items():
+        section_data = raw.get(section, {})
+        if not isinstance(section_data, dict):
+            continue
+        for yaml_key, field_name in mapping.items():
+            if yaml_key in section_data:
+                overrides[field_name] = section_data[yaml_key]
+
+    return Config(**overrides)
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diff --git a/tests/__pycache__/test_config.cpython-312-pytest-8.3.4.pyc b/tests/__pycache__/test_config.cpython-312-pytest-8.3.4.pyc
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diff --git a/tests/test_config.py b/tests/test_config.py
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+++ b/tests/test_config.py
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+import pytest
+from pathlib import Path
+from cursor_flasher.config import Config, load_config, DEFAULT_CONFIG_PATH
+
+
+class TestDefaultConfig:
+    def test_has_pulse_settings(self):
+        cfg = Config()
+        assert cfg.pulse_color == "#FF9500"
+        assert cfg.pulse_width == 4
+        assert cfg.pulse_speed == 1.5
+        assert cfg.pulse_opacity_min == 0.3
+        assert cfg.pulse_opacity_max == 1.0
+
+    def test_has_sound_settings(self):
+        cfg = Config()
+        assert cfg.sound_enabled is True
+        assert cfg.sound_name == "Glass"
+        assert cfg.sound_volume == 0.5
+
+    def test_has_detection_settings(self):
+        cfg = Config()
+        assert cfg.poll_interval == 0.5
+        assert cfg.cooldown == 3.0
+
+    def test_has_timeout_settings(self):
+        cfg = Config()
+        assert cfg.auto_dismiss == 300
+
+
+class TestLoadConfig:
+    def test_loads_from_yaml(self, tmp_path):
+        config_file = tmp_path / "config.yaml"
+        config_file.write_text(
+            "pulse:\n"
+            '  color: "#00FF00"\n'
+            "  width: 8\n"
+            "sound:\n"
+            "  enabled: false\n"
+        )
+        cfg = load_config(config_file)
+        assert cfg.pulse_color == "#00FF00"
+        assert cfg.pulse_width == 8
+        assert cfg.sound_enabled is False
+        assert cfg.pulse_speed == 1.5
+        assert cfg.sound_name == "Glass"
+
+    def test_missing_file_returns_defaults(self, tmp_path):
+        cfg = load_config(tmp_path / "nonexistent.yaml")
+        assert cfg.pulse_color == "#FF9500"
+
+    def test_empty_file_returns_defaults(self, tmp_path):
+        config_file = tmp_path / "config.yaml"
+        config_file.write_text("")
+        cfg = load_config(config_file)
+        assert cfg.pulse_color == "#FF9500"