diff --git a/src/framework/core/resourcemanager.cpp b/src/framework/core/resourcemanager.cpp
index 7559ac559..746b08b11 100644
--- a/src/framework/core/resourcemanager.cpp
+++ b/src/framework/core/resourcemanager.cpp
@@ -351,6 +351,25 @@ bool ResourceManager::discoverWorkDir(const std::string& existentFile)
 
 bool ResourceManager::setupUserWriteDir(const std::string& appWriteDirName)
 {
+    // a --user-dir override points every persisted file at a caller-chosen dir,
+    // so multiple isolated profiles can coexist. see #1540
+    if (!m_userDirOverride.empty()) {
+        std::error_code ec;
+        // resolve to an absolute path so the write dir does not depend on the
+        // current working directory
+        const auto absolutePath = std::filesystem::absolute(m_userDirOverride, ec);
+        if (ec) {
+            g_logger.error("Unable to resolve user directory '{}': {}", m_userDirOverride, ec.message());
+            return false;
+        }
+        std::filesystem::create_directories(absolutePath, ec);
+        if (ec) {
+            g_logger.error("Unable to create user directory '{}': {}", absolutePath.generic_string(), ec.message());
+            return false;
+        }
+        return setWriteDir(absolutePath.generic_string());
+    }
+
     const std::string userDir = getUserDir();
     std::string dirName;
 #ifndef WIN32
diff --git a/src/framework/core/resourcemanager.h b/src/framework/core/resourcemanager.h
index a114c4c0a..1587c67a4 100644
--- a/src/framework/core/resourcemanager.h
+++ b/src/framework/core/resourcemanager.h
@@ -35,6 +35,7 @@ public:
 
     bool discoverWorkDir(const std::string& existentFile);
     bool setupUserWriteDir(const std::string& appWriteDirName);
+    void setUserDirOverride(const std::string& path) { m_userDirOverride = path; }
     bool setWriteDir(const std::string& writeDir, bool create = false);
 
     bool addSearchPath(const std::string& path, bool pushFront = false);
@@ -110,6 +111,7 @@ protected:
 private:
     std::string m_workDir;
     std::string m_writeDir;
+    std::string m_userDirOverride;
     std::filesystem::path m_binaryPath;
     std::deque<std::string> m_searchPaths;
 };
diff --git a/src/main.cpp b/src/main.cpp
index ca8dc4667..aa0b67042 100644
--- a/src/main.cpp
+++ b/src/main.cpp
@@ -65,11 +65,22 @@ bool shouldShowHelp(const std::vector<std::string>& args)
     return false;
 }
 
+std::string parseUserDir(const std::vector<std::string>& args)
+{
+    static const std::string prefix = "--user-dir=";
+    for (const auto& arg : args) {
+        if (arg.starts_with(prefix))
+            return arg.substr(prefix.size());
+    }
+    return {};
+}
+
 void printHelp(const std::string& executableName)
 {
     std::cout << "Usage: " << executableName << " [options]\n\n"
                  "General options:\n"
                  "  --help, -h, /?              Show this help message and exit\n"
+                 "  --user-dir=<path>           Use <path> for configs/profiles instead of the default user dir\n"
                  "  --encrypt <password>        Encrypt assets (requires ENABLE_ENCRYPTION == 1 && ENABLE_ENCRYPTION_BUILDER == 1 build)\n\n"
                  "DAT debugging:\n"
                  "  --dump-dat-to-json=<path|ver> Dump the specified Tibia DAT file or version as JSON (requires FRAMEWORK_EDITOR build)\n"
@@ -118,6 +129,13 @@ int main(const int argc, const char* argv[])
     g_resources.init(args[0].data());
 #endif
 
+    // a --user-dir override isolates all persisted state (configs, remember
+    // password, bot profiles) under a caller-chosen dir; set before init.lua
+    // resolves the write dir via setupUserWriteDir. see #1540
+    if (const auto userDir = parseUserDir(args); !userDir.empty()) {
+        g_resources.setUserDirOverride(userDir);
+    }
+
 #if ENABLE_ENCRYPTION == 1 && ENABLE_ENCRYPTION_BUILDER == 1
     if (std::find(args.begin(), args.end(), "--encrypt") != args.end()) {
         g_lua.init();