diff --git a/aider/main.py b/aider/main.py
index fbc20eea1..5dee72fb0 100644
--- a/aider/main.py
+++ b/aider/main.py
@@ -292,6 +292,12 @@ def main(argv=None, input=None, output=None, force_git_root=None):
         default=True,
         help="Enable/disable looking for a git repo (default: True)",
     )
+    git_group.add_argument(
+        "--gitignore",
+        action=argparse.BooleanOptionalAction,
+        default=True,
+        help="Enable/disable adding .aider* to .gitignore (default: True)",
+    )
     git_group.add_argument(
         "--auto-commits",
         action=argparse.BooleanOptionalAction,
@@ -429,7 +435,8 @@ def main(argv=None, input=None, output=None, force_git_root=None):
 
     if args.git:
         git_root = setup_git(git_root, io)
-        check_gitignore(git_root, io)
+        if args.gitignore:
+            check_gitignore(git_root, io)
 
     def scrub_sensitive_info(text):
         # Replace sensitive information with placeholder