diff --git a/docs/config/index.md b/docs/config/index.md
index eac8c6c1004d..953efe03c274 100644
--- a/docs/config/index.md
+++ b/docs/config/index.md
@@ -879,6 +879,33 @@ Pass additional arguments to `node` process in the VM context. See [Command-line
 Be careful when using, it as some options may crash worker, e.g. --prof, --title. See https://github.com/nodejs/node/issues/41103.
 :::
 
+### fileParallelism
+
+- **Type:** `boolean`
+- **Default:** `true`
+- **CLI:** `--no-file-parallelism`, `--fileParallelism=false`
+- **Version:** Since Vitest 1.1
+
+Should all test files run in parallel. Setting this to `false` will override `maxWorkers` and `minWorkers` options to `1`.
+
+::: tip
+This option doesn't affect tests running in the same file. If you want to run those in parallel, use `concurrent` option on [describe](/api/#describe-concurrent) or via [a config](#sequence-concurrent).
+:::
+
+### maxWorkers
+
+- **Type:** `number`
+- **Version:** Since Vitest 1.1
+
+Maximum number of workers to run tests in. `poolOptions.{threads,vmThreads}.maxThreads`/`poolOptions.forks.maxForks` has higher priority.
+
+### minWorkers
+
+- **Type:** `number`
+- **Version:** Since Vitest 1.1
+
+Minimum number of workers to run tests in. `poolOptions.{threads,vmThreads}.minThreads`/`poolOptions.forks.minForks` has higher priority.
+
 ### testTimeout
 
 - **Type:** `number`
diff --git a/docs/guide/cli.md b/docs/guide/cli.md
index 0a0c95f0bcb9..b133f157f6cd 100644
--- a/docs/guide/cli.md
+++ b/docs/guide/cli.md
@@ -73,6 +73,9 @@ Run only [benchmark](https://vitest.dev/guide/features.html#benchmarking-experim
 | `--poolOptions <options>` | Specify pool options |
 | `--poolOptions.threads.isolate` | Isolate tests in threads pool (default: `true`)  |
 | `--poolOptions.forks.isolate` | Isolate tests in forks pool (default: `true`)  |
+| `--fileParallelism` | Should all test files run in parallel. Use --no-parallelism to disable (default: true) |
+| `--maxWorkers` | Maximum number of workers to run tests in |
+| `--minWorkers` | Minimum number of workers to run tests in |
 | `--silent` | Silent console output from tests |
 | `--reporter <name>` | Select reporter: `default`, `verbose`, `dot`, `junit`, `json`, or a path to a custom reporter |
 | `--outputFile <filename/-s>` | Write test results to a file when the `--reporter=json` or `--reporter=junit` option is also specified <br /> Via [cac's dot notation] you can specify individual outputs for multiple reporters |
diff --git a/docs/guide/debugging.md b/docs/guide/debugging.md
index a4dcdf4169e9..97ecaebe3341 100644
--- a/docs/guide/debugging.md
+++ b/docs/guide/debugging.md
@@ -62,6 +62,13 @@ vitest --inspect-brk --pool threads --poolOptions.threads.singleThread
 vitest --inspect-brk --pool forks --poolOptions.forks.singleFork
 ```
 
+If you are using Vitest 1.1 or higher, you can also just provide `--no-parallelism` flag:
+
+```sh
+# If pool is unknown
+vitest --inspect-brk --no-file-parallelism
+```
+
 Once Vitest starts it will stop execution and wait for you to open developer tools that can connect to [Node.js inspector](https://nodejs.org/en/docs/guides/debugging-getting-started/). You can use Chrome DevTools for this by opening `chrome://inspect` on browser.
 
 In watch mode you can keep the debugger open during test re-runs by using the `--poolOptions.threads.isolate false` options.
diff --git a/packages/vitest/src/node/cli.ts b/packages/vitest/src/node/cli.ts
index d36f3b77eda6..c760b643017b 100644
--- a/packages/vitest/src/node/cli.ts
+++ b/packages/vitest/src/node/cli.ts
@@ -37,6 +37,9 @@ cli
   .option('--poolOptions <options>', 'Specify pool options')
   .option('--poolOptions.threads.isolate', 'Isolate tests in threads pool (default: true)')
   .option('--poolOptions.forks.isolate', 'Isolate tests in forks pool (default: true)')
+  .option('--fileParallelism', 'Should all test files run in parallel. Use --no-file-parallelism to disable (default: true)')
+  .option('--maxWorkers', 'Maximum number of workers to run tests in')
+  .option('--minWorkers', 'Minimum number of workers to run tests in')
   .option('--environment <env>', 'Specify runner environment, if not running in the browser (default: node)')
   .option('--passWithNoTests', 'Pass when no tests found')
   .option('--logHeapUsage', 'Show the size of heap for each test')
diff --git a/packages/vitest/src/node/config.ts b/packages/vitest/src/node/config.ts
index 0f99bfd4cf8c..f2722d014fc9 100644
--- a/packages/vitest/src/node/config.ts
+++ b/packages/vitest/src/node/config.ts
@@ -120,13 +120,21 @@ export function resolveConfig(
     resolved.shard = { index, count }
   }
 
+  resolved.fileParallelism ??= true
+
+  if (!resolved.fileParallelism) {
+    // ignore user config, parallelism cannot be implemented without limiting workers
+    resolved.maxWorkers = 1
+    resolved.minWorkers = 1
+  }
+
   if (resolved.inspect || resolved.inspectBrk) {
     const isSingleThread = resolved.pool === 'threads' && resolved.poolOptions?.threads?.singleThread
     const isSingleFork = resolved.pool === 'forks' && resolved.poolOptions?.forks?.singleFork
 
-    if (!isSingleThread && !isSingleFork) {
+    if (resolved.fileParallelism && !isSingleThread && !isSingleFork) {
       const inspectOption = `--inspect${resolved.inspectBrk ? '-brk' : ''}`
-      throw new Error(`You cannot use ${inspectOption} without "poolOptions.threads.singleThread" or "poolOptions.forks.singleFork"`)
+      throw new Error(`You cannot use ${inspectOption} without "--no-parallelism", "poolOptions.threads.singleThread" or "poolOptions.forks.singleFork"`)
     }
   }
 
diff --git a/packages/vitest/src/node/pools/child.ts b/packages/vitest/src/node/pools/child.ts
index 4891c0447550..513d3ad7a309 100644
--- a/packages/vitest/src/node/pools/child.ts
+++ b/packages/vitest/src/node/pools/child.ts
@@ -58,8 +58,10 @@ export function createChildProcessPool(ctx: Vitest, { execArgv, env, forksPath }
     ? Math.max(Math.floor(numCpus / 2), 1)
     : Math.max(numCpus - 1, 1)
 
-  const maxThreads = ctx.config.poolOptions?.forks?.maxForks ?? threadsCount
-  const minThreads = ctx.config.poolOptions?.forks?.minForks ?? threadsCount
+  const poolOptions = ctx.config.poolOptions?.forks ?? {}
+
+  const maxThreads = poolOptions.maxForks ?? ctx.config.maxWorkers ?? threadsCount
+  const minThreads = poolOptions.minForks ?? ctx.config.minWorkers ?? threadsCount
 
   const options: TinypoolOptions = {
     runtime: 'child_process',
@@ -70,20 +72,20 @@ export function createChildProcessPool(ctx: Vitest, { execArgv, env, forksPath }
 
     env,
     execArgv: [
-      ...ctx.config.poolOptions?.forks?.execArgv ?? [],
+      ...poolOptions.execArgv ?? [],
       ...execArgv,
     ],
 
     terminateTimeout: ctx.config.teardownTimeout,
+    concurrentTasksPerWorker: 1,
   }
 
-  if (ctx.config.poolOptions?.forks?.isolate ?? true) {
+  const isolated = poolOptions.isolate ?? true
+
+  if (isolated)
     options.isolateWorkers = true
-    options.concurrentTasksPerWorker = 1
-  }
 
-  if (ctx.config.poolOptions?.forks?.singleFork) {
-    options.concurrentTasksPerWorker = 1
+  if (poolOptions.singleFork || !ctx.config.fileParallelism) {
     options.maxThreads = 1
     options.minThreads = 1
   }
@@ -164,7 +166,7 @@ export function createChildProcessPool(ctx: Vitest, { execArgv, env, forksPath }
         const files = Object.values(filesByEnv).flat()
         const results: PromiseSettledResult<void>[] = []
 
-        if (ctx.config.poolOptions?.forks?.isolate ?? true) {
+        if (isolated) {
           results.push(...await Promise.allSettled(files.map(({ file, environment, project }) =>
             runFiles(project, getConfig(project), [file], environment, invalidates))))
         }
diff --git a/packages/vitest/src/node/pools/threads.ts b/packages/vitest/src/node/pools/threads.ts
index 4d78c458a546..c426cc6074c1 100644
--- a/packages/vitest/src/node/pools/threads.ts
+++ b/packages/vitest/src/node/pools/threads.ts
@@ -43,34 +43,36 @@ export function createThreadsPool(ctx: Vitest, { execArgv, env, workerPath }: Po
     ? Math.max(Math.floor(numCpus / 2), 1)
     : Math.max(numCpus - 1, 1)
 
-  const maxThreads = ctx.config.poolOptions?.threads?.maxThreads ?? threadsCount
-  const minThreads = ctx.config.poolOptions?.threads?.minThreads ?? threadsCount
+  const poolOptions = ctx.config.poolOptions?.threads ?? {}
+
+  const maxThreads = poolOptions.maxThreads ?? ctx.config.maxWorkers ?? threadsCount
+  const minThreads = poolOptions.minThreads ?? ctx.config.minWorkers ?? threadsCount
 
   const options: TinypoolOptions = {
     filename: workerPath,
     // TODO: investigate further
     // It seems atomics introduced V8 Fatal Error https://github.com/vitest-dev/vitest/issues/1191
-    useAtomics: ctx.config.poolOptions?.threads?.useAtomics ?? false,
+    useAtomics: poolOptions.useAtomics ?? false,
 
     maxThreads,
     minThreads,
 
     env,
     execArgv: [
-      ...ctx.config.poolOptions?.threads?.execArgv ?? [],
+      ...poolOptions.execArgv ?? [],
       ...execArgv,
     ],
 
     terminateTimeout: ctx.config.teardownTimeout,
+    concurrentTasksPerWorker: 1,
   }
 
-  if (ctx.config.poolOptions?.threads?.isolate ?? true) {
+  const isolated = poolOptions.isolate ?? true
+
+  if (isolated)
     options.isolateWorkers = true
-    options.concurrentTasksPerWorker = 1
-  }
 
-  if (ctx.config.poolOptions?.threads?.singleThread) {
-    options.concurrentTasksPerWorker = 1
+  if (poolOptions.singleThread || !ctx.config.fileParallelism) {
     options.maxThreads = 1
     options.minThreads = 1
   }
@@ -144,7 +146,7 @@ export function createThreadsPool(ctx: Vitest, { execArgv, env, workerPath }: Po
         const files = Object.values(filesByEnv).flat()
         const results: PromiseSettledResult<void>[] = []
 
-        if (ctx.config.poolOptions?.threads?.isolate ?? true) {
+        if (isolated) {
           results.push(...await Promise.allSettled(files.map(({ file, environment, project }) =>
             runFiles(project, getConfig(project), [file], environment, invalidates))))
         }
diff --git a/packages/vitest/src/node/pools/typecheck.ts b/packages/vitest/src/node/pools/typecheck.ts
index 281f2a71d5f6..19f811c1f596 100644
--- a/packages/vitest/src/node/pools/typecheck.ts
+++ b/packages/vitest/src/node/pools/typecheck.ts
@@ -96,7 +96,7 @@ export function createTypecheckPool(ctx: Vitest): ProcessPool {
         setTimeout(() => {
           resolve(false)
           clearInterval(_i)
-        }, 500)
+        }, 500).unref()
       })
       const triggered = await _p
       if (project.typechecker && !triggered) {
diff --git a/packages/vitest/src/node/pools/vm-threads.ts b/packages/vitest/src/node/pools/vm-threads.ts
index 143d506bb425..9b1c4f2f22c9 100644
--- a/packages/vitest/src/node/pools/vm-threads.ts
+++ b/packages/vitest/src/node/pools/vm-threads.ts
@@ -48,14 +48,16 @@ export function createVmThreadsPool(ctx: Vitest, { execArgv, env, vmPath }: Pool
     ? Math.max(Math.floor(numCpus / 2), 1)
     : Math.max(numCpus - 1, 1)
 
-  const maxThreads = ctx.config.poolOptions?.vmThreads?.maxThreads ?? threadsCount
-  const minThreads = ctx.config.poolOptions?.vmThreads?.minThreads ?? threadsCount
+  const poolOptions = ctx.config.poolOptions?.vmThreads ?? {}
+
+  const maxThreads = poolOptions.maxThreads ?? ctx.config.maxWorkers ?? threadsCount
+  const minThreads = poolOptions.minThreads ?? ctx.config.minWorkers ?? threadsCount
 
   const options: TinypoolOptions = {
     filename: vmPath,
     // TODO: investigate further
     // It seems atomics introduced V8 Fatal Error https://github.com/vitest-dev/vitest/issues/1191
-    useAtomics: ctx.config.poolOptions?.vmThreads?.useAtomics ?? false,
+    useAtomics: poolOptions.useAtomics ?? false,
 
     maxThreads,
     minThreads,
@@ -66,16 +68,16 @@ export function createVmThreadsPool(ctx: Vitest, { execArgv, env, vmPath }: Pool
       '--experimental-vm-modules',
       '--require',
       suppressWarningsPath,
-      ...ctx.config.poolOptions?.vmThreads?.execArgv ?? [],
+      ...poolOptions.execArgv ?? [],
       ...execArgv,
     ],
 
     terminateTimeout: ctx.config.teardownTimeout,
+    concurrentTasksPerWorker: 1,
     maxMemoryLimitBeforeRecycle: getMemoryLimit(ctx.config) || undefined,
   }
 
-  if (ctx.config.poolOptions?.vmThreads?.singleThread) {
-    options.concurrentTasksPerWorker = 1
+  if (poolOptions.singleThread || !ctx.config.fileParallelism) {
     options.maxThreads = 1
     options.minThreads = 1
   }
diff --git a/packages/vitest/src/types/config.ts b/packages/vitest/src/types/config.ts
index 3064c1b419d4..88a69c5aa642 100644
--- a/packages/vitest/src/types/config.ts
+++ b/packages/vitest/src/types/config.ts
@@ -294,6 +294,23 @@ export interface InlineConfig {
    */
   poolOptions?: PoolOptions
 
+  /**
+   * Maximum number of workers to run tests in. `poolOptions.{threads,vmThreads}.maxThreads`/`poolOptions.forks.maxForks` has higher priority.
+   */
+  maxWorkers?: number
+  /**
+   * Minimum number of workers to run tests in. `poolOptions.{threads,vmThreads}.minThreads`/`poolOptions.forks.minForks` has higher priority.
+   */
+  minWorkers?: number
+
+  /**
+   * Should all test files run in parallel. Doesn't affect tests running in the same file.
+   * Setting this to `false` will override `maxWorkers` and `minWorkers` options to `1`.
+   *
+   * @default true
+   */
+  fileParallelism?: boolean
+
   /**
    * Automatically assign pool based on globs. The first match will be used.
    *
diff --git a/test/config/test/failures.test.ts b/test/config/test/failures.test.ts
index ee57b0b168df..aa9c688a5207 100644
--- a/test/config/test/failures.test.ts
+++ b/test/config/test/failures.test.ts
@@ -33,19 +33,19 @@ test('shard index must be smaller than count', async () => {
 test('inspect requires changing pool and singleThread/singleFork', async () => {
   const { stderr } = await runVitest({ inspect: true })
 
-  expect(stderr).toMatch('Error: You cannot use --inspect without "poolOptions.threads.singleThread" or "poolOptions.forks.singleFork"')
+  expect(stderr).toMatch('Error: You cannot use --inspect without "--no-parallelism", "poolOptions.threads.singleThread" or "poolOptions.forks.singleFork"')
 })
 
 test('inspect cannot be used with multi-threading', async () => {
   const { stderr } = await runVitest({ inspect: true, pool: 'threads', poolOptions: { threads: { singleThread: false } } })
 
-  expect(stderr).toMatch('Error: You cannot use --inspect without "poolOptions.threads.singleThread" or "poolOptions.forks.singleFork"')
+  expect(stderr).toMatch('Error: You cannot use --inspect without "--no-parallelism", "poolOptions.threads.singleThread" or "poolOptions.forks.singleFork"')
 })
 
 test('inspect-brk cannot be used with multi processing', async () => {
   const { stderr } = await runVitest({ inspect: true, pool: 'forks', poolOptions: { forks: { singleFork: false } } })
 
-  expect(stderr).toMatch('Error: You cannot use --inspect without "poolOptions.threads.singleThread" or "poolOptions.forks.singleFork"')
+  expect(stderr).toMatch('Error: You cannot use --inspect without "--no-parallelism", "poolOptions.threads.singleThread" or "poolOptions.forks.singleFork"')
 })
 
 test('c8 coverage provider is not supported', async () => {