diff --git a/.github/workflows/ci.yml b/.github/workflows/ci.yml
index 2ee5fe5b..a9902658 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/ci.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/ci.yml
@@ -283,7 +283,9 @@ jobs:
           cache: pip
           cache-dependency-path: workspace/requirements.txt
       - run: pip install -r requirements.txt pytest pytest-asyncio pytest-cov
-      - run: python -m pytest --tb=short -q --cov=. --cov-report=term-missing
+      # Coverage flags + fail-under floor moved into workspace/pytest.ini
+      # (issue #1817) so local `pytest` and CI use identical config.
+      - run: python -m pytest --tb=short
 
       # SDK + plugin validation moved to standalone repo:
       # github.com/Molecule-AI/molecule-sdk-python
diff --git a/workspace/.coveragerc b/workspace/.coveragerc
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..b14f2f88
--- /dev/null
+++ b/workspace/.coveragerc
@@ -0,0 +1,13 @@
+# coverage.py config — consumed by `pytest --cov` via the pytest-cov
+# plugin. Lives here (not in pytest.ini) because coverage.py only reads
+# .coveragerc / setup.cfg / tox.ini / pyproject.toml — the [coverage:*]
+# sections in pytest.ini are silently ignored. See issue #1817.
+[run]
+omit =
+    */tests/*
+    */__init__.py
+    plugins_registry/*
+
+[report]
+# Skip files at 100% in the term-missing output to keep CI logs readable.
+skip_covered = True
diff --git a/workspace/pytest.ini b/workspace/pytest.ini
index 50e89f85..22fee4eb 100644
--- a/workspace/pytest.ini
+++ b/workspace/pytest.ini
@@ -3,4 +3,24 @@ testpaths = tests
 python_files = test_*.py
 python_functions = test_*
 asyncio_mode = auto
-addopts = -q
+# Coverage config moved here from .github/workflows/ci.yml so local
+# `pytest` matches CI without operator-typed flags. cov-fail-under
+# pins the floor at 86% — 5pp below the 91.11% measured on staging
+# (run 24957664272, 2026-04-26). Floor exists so a regression that
+# drops coverage doesn't sneak past CI; tightening above 86% should
+# follow real measurement, not aspiration. See issue #1817.
+#
+# Why 86 not 92: the earlier 97% measurement was without the
+# .coveragerc omit list. Once `*/__init__.py`, `*/tests/*`, and
+# `plugins_registry/*` are excluded (the issue's prescribed omit
+# set, more meaningful since those files don't carry behavior),
+# the actual measurement of behavior-bearing code is 91.11% — and
+# 86% sits at the issue's prescribed `current - 5pp` margin.
+addopts =
+    -q
+    --cov=.
+    --cov-report=term-missing
+    --cov-fail-under=86
+# Coverage omit / report config lives in workspace/.coveragerc — coverage.py
+# only reads .coveragerc / setup.cfg / tox.ini / pyproject.toml, NOT
+# pytest.ini, so [coverage:*] sections here would be silently ignored.