diff --git a/docs/advanced/parallel-computing.md b/docs/advanced/parallel-computing.md
index 021ce347..81aa1e06 100644
--- a/docs/advanced/parallel-computing.md
+++ b/docs/advanced/parallel-computing.md
@@ -18,6 +18,56 @@ Underworld3 uses PETSc for parallel operations, which means **you rarely need to
 
 The main use of `uw.mpi.rank` is for conditional output/visualization.
 
+## MPI + Thread Pools (Oversubscription)
+
+When running with MPI, each rank can also spawn BLAS/OpenMP worker threads.
+If this is not controlled, total runnable threads can explode and performance
+can degrade severely.
+
+Example: `mpirun -np 8` with OpenBLAS default `10` threads can create up to
+`80` compute threads, often slower than expected.
+
+### Default Underworld3 Policy
+
+Underworld3 now applies MPI-safe defaults (thread pool size `1`) unless users
+explicitly set their own values:
+
+- `OMP_NUM_THREADS`
+- `OPENBLAS_NUM_THREADS`
+- `MKL_NUM_THREADS`
+- `VECLIB_MAXIMUM_THREADS`
+- `NUMEXPR_NUM_THREADS`
+
+This happens in two places:
+
+1. `./uw` launcher: sets defaults before Python starts.
+2. `underworld3` import path: applies the same defaults for MPI runs if unset.
+
+### Runtime Warning
+
+If running with MPI and any of the thread variables above are explicitly set
+to values greater than `1`, Underworld3 prints a rank-0 warning about possible
+oversubscription.
+
+### User Controls
+
+- Disable automatic thread caps:
+
+```bash
+export UW_DISABLE_THREAD_CAPS=1
+```
+
+- Suppress warning (keep your explicit thread settings):
+
+```bash
+export UW_SUPPRESS_THREAD_WARNING=1
+```
+
+### Recommended Practice
+
+For most MPI benchmark and production jobs, keep `1` thread per rank unless
+you are intentionally tuning hybrid MPI+threads.
+
 ## Parallel-Safe Output
 
 ### The Problem with Rank Conditionals
@@ -468,4 +518,4 @@ These operations require **ALL ranks** to participate:
 4. **Collective operations must run on ALL ranks** - never inside rank conditionals
 5. **Test with `mpirun -np N`** to catch issues early
 
-The parallel safety system makes parallel programming in Underworld3 safer and more intuitive - collective operations are evaluated on all ranks automatically, preventing common deadlock scenarios!
\ No newline at end of file
+The parallel safety system makes parallel programming in Underworld3 safer and more intuitive - collective operations are evaluated on all ranks automatically, preventing common deadlock scenarios!
diff --git a/src/underworld3/__init__.py b/src/underworld3/__init__.py
index 463c63ba..25b76b20 100644
--- a/src/underworld3/__init__.py
+++ b/src/underworld3/__init__.py
@@ -71,6 +71,8 @@
 from mpi4py import MPI  # for initialising MPI
 import petsc4py as _petsc4py
 import sys
+import os as _os
+import warnings as _warnings
 
 _petsc4py.init(sys.argv)
 
@@ -88,6 +90,65 @@
     # Handle Sphinx autodoc mocking - PETSc mock objects don't support these operations
     pass
 
+
+def _parse_thread_env(name: str):
+    """Return integer thread count from environment variable, or None."""
+    raw = _os.environ.get(name)
+    if raw is None or str(raw).strip() == "":
+        return None
+    try:
+        return int(float(raw))
+    except (TypeError, ValueError):
+        return None
+
+
+def _apply_mpi_thread_policy():
+    """
+    Default thread policy for MPI runs.
+
+    Caps common thread pools to 1 unless explicitly set by the user. This
+    prevents MPI+BLAS oversubscription (large performance regressions).
+    """
+    if MPI.COMM_WORLD.Get_size() <= 1:
+        return
+
+    if _os.environ.get("UW_DISABLE_THREAD_CAPS", "0").lower() in ("1", "true", "yes", "on"):
+        return
+
+    thread_vars = (
+        "OMP_NUM_THREADS",
+        "OPENBLAS_NUM_THREADS",
+        "MKL_NUM_THREADS",
+        "VECLIB_MAXIMUM_THREADS",
+        "NUMEXPR_NUM_THREADS",
+    )
+
+    for var in thread_vars:
+        if _os.environ.get(var, "").strip() == "":
+            _os.environ[var] = "1"
+
+    if MPI.COMM_WORLD.Get_rank() == 0 and _os.environ.get("UW_SUPPRESS_THREAD_WARNING", "0").lower() not in (
+        "1",
+        "true",
+        "yes",
+        "on",
+    ):
+        oversub = {var: _parse_thread_env(var) for var in thread_vars}
+        oversub = {k: v for k, v in oversub.items() if v is not None and v > 1}
+        if oversub:
+            items = ", ".join(f"{k}={v}" for k, v in oversub.items())
+            _warnings.warn(
+                "MPI run with thread pools > 1 detected "
+                f"({items}). This may cause severe oversubscription. "
+                "Set thread counts to 1 per rank, or set UW_SUPPRESS_THREAD_WARNING=1 "
+                "if this is intentional.",
+                RuntimeWarning,
+                stacklevel=2,
+            )
+
+
+_apply_mpi_thread_policy()
+
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