diff --git a/.editorconfig b/.editorconfig
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..0daffa3
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.editorconfig
@@ -0,0 +1,17 @@
+# EditorConfig helps maintain consistent coding styles
+# https://editorconfig.org
+
+root = true
+
+[*]
+charset = utf-8-bom
+end_of_line = crlf
+insert_final_newline = true
+trim_trailing_whitespace = true
+
+[*.{cpp,h,hpp}]
+indent_style = tab
+
+[*.{json,xml,yml,yaml,md}]
+indent_style = space
+indent_size = 2
diff --git a/.vscode/settings.json b/.vscode/settings.json
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..02f49e3
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.vscode/settings.json
@@ -0,0 +1,14 @@
+{
+    "files.encoding": "utf8",
+    "files.autoGuessEncoding": false,
+    "editorconfig.enable": true,
+    "[cpp]": {
+        "files.encoding": "utf8-bom"
+    },
+    "[h]": {
+        "files.encoding": "utf8-bom"
+    },
+    "[c]": {
+        "files.encoding": "utf8-bom"
+    }
+}
diff --git a/CMakeLists.txt b/CMakeLists.txt
index 61ef02a..f376bb4 100644
--- a/CMakeLists.txt
+++ b/CMakeLists.txt
@@ -45,6 +45,10 @@ add_definitions(-D_UNICODE)
 add_definitions(-DUNICODE)
 add_definitions(-DWIN32_LEAN_AND_MEAN)
 
+# Force UTF-8 encoding for source files to avoid encoding issues
+# when editing in VSCode and building in VS2022
+add_compile_options(/utf-8)
+
 # Set runtime library: MTD for Debug, MT for Release
 # This ensures static linking to the C/C++ runtime
 set_target_properties(EzUI PROPERTIES