diff --git a/benchmarks/runtime/README.md b/benchmarks/runtime/README.md
index 7ab829bd5..92eb099db 100644
--- a/benchmarks/runtime/README.md
+++ b/benchmarks/runtime/README.md
@@ -4,34 +4,34 @@ Application-shaped workloads for measuring the speed of compiled executables. Ea
 
 | Workload | Category | Exercises |
 | --- | --- | --- |
-| `json-records` | cpu | `JSON.stringify`, typed `JSON.parse`, Map aggregation |
-| `regex-logs` | cpu | regex `exec` with groups, `test`, global `replace` |
-| `ast-interp` | cpu | tokenizer, recursive-descent parser, class dispatch |
-| `records-sort` | cpu | comparator sorts, group-by, `reduce`/`filter` |
-| `template-render` | cpu | template literals, escaping, `map`/`join` |
-| `functional-pipeline` | cpu | `filter`/`map`/`reduce`/`flatMap` chains, closures, small records |
-| `async-pipeline` | cpu | `async`/`await`, `Promise.all` fan-out |
-| `word-graph` | cpu | string-keyed Map/Set, BFS |
 | `alloc-trees` | cpu | allocation-heavy trees, immutable object-spread updates |
-| `cyclic-graphs` | cpu | object graphs with back references built and dropped: trees with parent and sibling links, rings of records sharing a long-lived registry, closures capturing their owner |
-| `numeric-kernels` | cpu | sieve, hashing, `number[][]` matmul, `Float64Array` |
-| `typed-array-scan`, `typed-array-scan-workers` | cpu | element-by-element scan loops over `Uint8Array`, `Uint16Array`, `Int32Array` and `Float64Array`; the second entry is a worker-enabled executable (it can start a worker), so each access also checks for shared storage |
-| `intern-table`, `intern-table-map`, `intern-table-1`, `intern-table-map-1` | cpu | worker threads interning the same type-like objects under string keys and records under number keys, then hits and misses: one shared `InternTable` per kind of key, or a module-level `Map` per thread (the `-map` entries), with 8 threads or 1 (the `-1` entries); under Node.js every thread has its own tables |
-| `thread-slots`, `thread-slots-cache` | cpu | worker threads reading one published type graph from an `InternTable` and keeping per-thread state for each type they visit: a `ThreadSlots` family, or a direct-mapped cache by id in front of a `Map` by id (the `-cache` entry); under Node.js both are per thread |
-| `channel-messages` | cpu | 200,000 MessageChannel messages in one thread, half numbers and half small objects, all posted before the port delivers any |
+| `ast-interp` | cpu | tokenizer, recursive-descent parser, class dispatch |
+| `async-pipeline` | cpu | `async`/`await`, `Promise.all` fan-out |
 | `atomics-contended` | cpu | four worker threads updating `SharedArrayBuffer` counters with `Atomics`: one shared counter, one counter per worker, a `compareExchange` loop, and `Atomics.wait`/`notify` handoffs |
+| `channel-messages` | cpu | 200,000 MessageChannel messages in one thread, half numbers and half small objects, all posted before the port delivers any |
+| `csv-numbers` | cpu | `split`, `Number`, `parseInt`, `toFixed` |
+| `cyclic-graphs` | cpu | object graphs with back references built and dropped: trees with parent and sibling links, rings of records sharing a long-lived registry, closures capturing their owner |
+| `functional-pipeline` | cpu | `filter`/`map`/`reduce`/`flatMap` chains, closures, small records |
+| `intern-table`, `intern-table-map`, `intern-table-1`, `intern-table-map-1` | cpu | worker threads interning the same type-like objects under string keys and records under number keys, then hits and misses: one shared `InternTable` per kind of key, or a module-level `Map` per thread (the `-map` entries), with 8 threads or 1 (the `-1` entries); under Node.js every thread has its own tables |
+| `json-records` | cpu | `JSON.stringify`, typed `JSON.parse`, Map aggregation |
+| `log-lines` | cpu | 200k immediate `console.log`/`process.stdout.write` lines into the runner's pipe |
+| `log-summary`, `inventory-report` | cpu | the multi-module applications from `benchmarks/builds`, on 300k-line inputs |
+| `number-maps` | cpu | number-keyed Map/Set: a dense-id table, sparse ids in many small maps, get/has/set mixes |
+| `numeric-kernels` | cpu | sieve, hashing, `number[][]` matmul, `Float64Array` |
+| `optional-fields` | cpu | records and class instances with `number \| undefined` and other scalar-union fields |
+| `published-graphs` | cpu | syntax trees with parent links and a symbol table, published with `@scriptc/threads` and then read |
+| `record-boundaries` | cpu | records built from unchecked array reads passed to and returned from annotated functions |
+| `records-sort` | cpu | comparator sorts, group-by, `reduce`/`filter` |
+| `regex-logs` | cpu | regex `exec` with groups, `test`, global `replace` |
+| `region-builds` | cpu | a watch-mode build loop over `LifetimeRegion`: each build binds a program in a new region and releases the previous one, which a cache keeps referenced for two builds |
+| `template-render` | cpu | template literals, escaping, `map`/`join` |
+| `thread-slots`, `thread-slots-cache` | cpu | worker threads reading one published type graph from an `InternTable` and keeping per-thread state for each type they visit: a `ThreadSlots` family, or a direct-mapped cache by id in front of a `Map` by id (the `-cache` entry); under Node.js both are per thread |
+| `typed-array-scan`, `typed-array-scan-workers` | cpu | element-by-element scan loops over `Uint8Array`, `Uint16Array`, `Int32Array` and `Float64Array`; the second entry is a worker-enabled executable (it can start a worker), so each access also checks for shared storage |
+| `unicode-lexer` | cpu | a hand-written lexer over a 2.7M-unit bundled module whose comments and strings are in several languages: `charCodeAt` scans, line starts |
+| `validate-errors` | cpu | throw/catch on a fraction of inputs, small call chains |
 | `value-objects` | cpu | small immutable records and class instances: vector helpers, method chains, particle updates |
 | `value-records` | cpu | records that hold strings, spread state updates and destructured tuples: token helpers, an immutable reducer, tuple returns |
-| `region-builds` | cpu | a watch-mode build loop over `LifetimeRegion`: each build binds a program in a new region and releases the previous one, which a cache keeps referenced for two builds |
-| `optional-fields` | cpu | records and class instances with `number \| undefined` and other scalar-union fields |
-| `record-boundaries` | cpu | records built from unchecked array reads passed to and returned from annotated functions |
-| `number-maps` | cpu | number-keyed Map/Set: a dense-id table, sparse ids in many small maps, get/has/set mixes |
-| `published-graphs` | cpu | syntax trees with parent links and a symbol table, published with `@scriptc/threads` and then read |
-| `validate-errors` | cpu | throw/catch on a fraction of inputs, small call chains |
-| `csv-numbers` | cpu | `split`, `Number`, `parseInt`, `toFixed` |
-| `log-lines` | cpu | 200k immediate `console.log`/`process.stdout.write` lines into the runner's pipe |
-| `unicode-lexer` | cpu | a hand-written lexer over a 2.7M-unit bundled module whose comments and strings are in several languages: `charCodeAt` scans, line starts |
-| `log-summary`, `inventory-report` | cpu | the multi-module applications from `benchmarks/builds`, on 300k-line inputs |
+| `word-graph` | cpu | string-keyed Map/Set, BFS |
 | `cli-config` | startup | a `deploy-plan` CLI: read a ~110 KB JSON manifest, validate, interpolate env values, order 80 services into dependency waves, print a summary |
 | `http-api` | server | a `node:http` JSON API: routing, query parsing, a seeded catalog, per-cart state, typed JSON bodies, `ETag`/`If-None-Match`, auth and request-id headers |
 
@@ -47,7 +47,7 @@ Node is timed in the same interleaved loop and every row reports candidate/Node;
 
 ## Workload kinds
 
-Entries in `workloads.json` are process workloads unless they set `kind`.
+Each workload is a JSON file in `workloads/`, named after the workload, that holds its `entry`, `args` and options; adding a workload adds its file and its row in the table above, kept in category and then name order. Workloads are process workloads unless they set `kind`.
 
 Process workloads time whole launches (wall time, startup included). An optional `launches` count makes each sample the median of that many sequential launches; `cli-config` uses 20 so that a startup-dominated command (a few milliseconds compiled, tens of milliseconds under Node) is measured with low noise. Its table row is labeled `(per launch)`. On a heavily loaded macOS host, whole batches of launches can run several times slower (samples become bimodal), so judge startup changes on the Linux lane or a quiet machine.
 
diff --git a/benchmarks/runtime/workloads.json b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads.json
deleted file mode 100644
index 80beefab4..000000000
--- a/benchmarks/runtime/workloads.json
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,290 +0,0 @@
-{
-  "workloads": [
-    {
-      "name": "json-records",
-      "entry": "workloads/json-records.ts",
-      "args": [
-        "4"
-      ]
-    },
-    {
-      "name": "regex-logs",
-      "entry": "workloads/regex-logs.ts",
-      "args": [
-        "1"
-      ]
-    },
-    {
-      "name": "ast-interp",
-      "entry": "workloads/ast-interp.ts",
-      "args": [
-        "5"
-      ]
-    },
-    {
-      "name": "records-sort",
-      "entry": "workloads/records-sort.ts",
-      "args": [
-        "1"
-      ]
-    },
-    {
-      "name": "template-render",
-      "entry": "workloads/template-render.ts",
-      "args": [
-        "1"
-      ]
-    },
-    {
-      "name": "functional-pipeline",
-      "entry": "workloads/functional-pipeline.ts",
-      "args": [
-        "1"
-      ]
-    },
-    {
-      "name": "async-pipeline",
-      "entry": "workloads/async-pipeline.ts",
-      "args": [
-        "1"
-      ]
-    },
-    {
-      "name": "word-graph",
-      "entry": "workloads/word-graph.ts",
-      "args": [
-        "2"
-      ]
-    },
-    {
-      "name": "alloc-trees",
-      "entry": "workloads/alloc-trees.ts",
-      "args": [
-        "1"
-      ]
-    },
-    {
-      "name": "cyclic-graphs",
-      "entry": "workloads/cyclic-graphs.ts",
-      "args": [
-        "3"
-      ]
-    },
-    {
-      "name": "numeric-kernels",
-      "entry": "workloads/numeric-kernels.ts",
-      "args": [
-        "0.5"
-      ]
-    },
-    {
-      "name": "typed-array-scan",
-      "entry": "workloads/typed-array-scan.ts",
-      "args": [
-        "3"
-      ]
-    },
-    {
-      "name": "typed-array-scan-workers",
-      "entry": "workloads/typed-array-scan-workers.ts",
-      "args": [
-        "3"
-      ]
-    },
-    {
-      "name": "intern-table",
-      "entry": "workloads/intern-table.ts",
-      "args": [
-        "table",
-        "8",
-        "100000"
-      ]
-    },
-    {
-      "name": "intern-table-map",
-      "entry": "workloads/intern-table.ts",
-      "args": [
-        "map",
-        "8",
-        "100000"
-      ]
-    },
-    {
-      "name": "intern-table-1",
-      "entry": "workloads/intern-table.ts",
-      "args": [
-        "table",
-        "1",
-        "100000"
-      ]
-    },
-    {
-      "name": "intern-table-map-1",
-      "entry": "workloads/intern-table.ts",
-      "args": [
-        "map",
-        "1",
-        "100000"
-      ]
-    },
-    {
-      "name": "thread-slots",
-      "entry": "workloads/thread-slots.ts",
-      "args": [
-        "slots",
-        "8",
-        "50000",
-        "20"
-      ]
-    },
-    {
-      "name": "thread-slots-cache",
-      "entry": "workloads/thread-slots.ts",
-      "args": [
-        "cache",
-        "8",
-        "50000",
-        "20"
-      ]
-    },
-    {
-      "name": "channel-messages",
-      "entry": "workloads/channel-messages.ts",
-      "args": [
-        "200000"
-      ]
-    },
-    {
-      "name": "atomics-contended",
-      "entry": "workloads/atomics-contended.ts",
-      "args": [
-        "2"
-      ]
-    },
-    {
-      "name": "value-objects",
-      "entry": "workloads/value-objects.ts",
-      "args": [
-        "2"
-      ]
-    },
-    {
-      "name": "value-records",
-      "entry": "workloads/value-records.ts",
-      "args": [
-        "1"
-      ]
-    },
-    {
-      "name": "region-builds",
-      "entry": "workloads/region-builds.ts",
-      "args": [
-        "1"
-      ]
-    },
-    {
-      "name": "optional-fields",
-      "entry": "workloads/optional-fields.ts",
-      "args": [
-        "10"
-      ]
-    },
-    {
-      "name": "record-boundaries",
-      "entry": "workloads/record-boundaries.ts",
-      "args": [
-        "8"
-      ]
-    },
-    {
-      "name": "number-maps",
-      "entry": "workloads/number-maps.ts",
-      "args": [
-        "4"
-      ]
-    },
-    {
-      "name": "published-graphs",
-      "entry": "workloads/published-graphs.ts",
-      "args": [
-        "1"
-      ]
-    },
-    {
-      "name": "validate-errors",
-      "entry": "workloads/validate-errors.ts",
-      "args": [
-        "1"
-      ]
-    },
-    {
-      "name": "csv-numbers",
-      "entry": "workloads/csv-numbers.ts",
-      "args": [
-        "1"
-      ]
-    },
-    {
-      "name": "log-lines",
-      "entry": "workloads/log-lines.ts",
-      "args": [
-        "4"
-      ]
-    },
-    {
-      "name": "unicode-lexer",
-      "entry": "workloads/unicode-lexer.ts",
-      "args": [
-        "1"
-      ]
-    },
-    {
-      "name": "log-summary",
-      "entry": "../builds/log-summary/main.ts",
-      "input": "log-summary",
-      "args": [
-        "{input}",
-        "--min-status",
-        "200",
-        "--limit",
-        "12"
-      ]
-    },
-    {
-      "name": "inventory-report",
-      "entry": "../builds/inventory-report/main.ts",
-      "input": "inventory-report",
-      "args": [
-        "{input}"
-      ]
-    },
-    {
-      "name": "cli-config",
-      "entry": "workloads/cli-config.ts",
-      "input": "cli-config",
-      "launches": 20,
-      "args": [
-        "{input}",
-        "--env",
-        "production",
-        "--max-wave",
-        "12"
-      ]
-    },
-    {
-      "name": "http-api",
-      "kind": "server",
-      "entry": "workloads/http-api.ts",
-      "args": [],
-      "client": {
-        "script": "clients/http-load.mjs",
-        "args": [
-          "--connections=64",
-          "--threads=2",
-          "--warmup=4000",
-          "--requests=40000"
-        ]
-      }
-    }
-  ]
-}
diff --git a/benchmarks/runtime/workloads.mjs b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads.mjs
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..e63ee98eb
--- /dev/null
+++ b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads.mjs
@@ -0,0 +1,33 @@
+/* The runtime benchmark workloads: one JSON file per workload in
+ * workloads/, named after the workload, next to the entry programs. A file
+ * holds the workload's entry, args and options; changes that add
+ * different workloads add different files. */
+import { existsSync, readdirSync, readFileSync } from "node:fs";
+import { join } from "node:path";
+
+const CATEGORIES = ["cpu", "startup", "server"];
+
+/* Server workloads run a listening program; startup-bound ones time
+ * several sequential launches per sample. */
+export const workloadCategory = (w) =>
+  w.kind === "server" ? "server" : (w.launches ?? 1) > 1 ? "startup" : "cpu";
+
+/* The workloads of the suite at `suite` (a benchmarks/runtime directory),
+ * by category and then name. A checkout from before the per-workload files
+ * lists them in workloads.json, in its own order. */
+export function readWorkloads(suite) {
+  const legacy = join(suite, "workloads.json");
+  if (existsSync(legacy)) return JSON.parse(readFileSync(legacy, "utf8")).workloads;
+  const dir = join(suite, "workloads");
+  return readdirSync(dir)
+    .filter((file) => file.endsWith(".json"))
+    .map((file) => ({
+      name: file.slice(0, -".json".length),
+      ...JSON.parse(readFileSync(join(dir, file), "utf8")),
+    }))
+    .sort(
+      (a, b) =>
+        CATEGORIES.indexOf(workloadCategory(a)) - CATEGORIES.indexOf(workloadCategory(b)) ||
+        (a.name < b.name ? -1 : a.name > b.name ? 1 : 0),
+    );
+}
diff --git a/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/alloc-trees.json b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/alloc-trees.json
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..d4ae2ae72
--- /dev/null
+++ b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/alloc-trees.json
@@ -0,0 +1,6 @@
+{
+  "entry": "workloads/alloc-trees.ts",
+  "args": [
+    "1"
+  ]
+}
diff --git a/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/ast-interp.json b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/ast-interp.json
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..1817541ac
--- /dev/null
+++ b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/ast-interp.json
@@ -0,0 +1,6 @@
+{
+  "entry": "workloads/ast-interp.ts",
+  "args": [
+    "5"
+  ]
+}
diff --git a/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/async-pipeline.json b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/async-pipeline.json
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..610f62793
--- /dev/null
+++ b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/async-pipeline.json
@@ -0,0 +1,6 @@
+{
+  "entry": "workloads/async-pipeline.ts",
+  "args": [
+    "1"
+  ]
+}
diff --git a/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/atomics-contended.json b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/atomics-contended.json
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..7f78d265b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/atomics-contended.json
@@ -0,0 +1,6 @@
+{
+  "entry": "workloads/atomics-contended.ts",
+  "args": [
+    "2"
+  ]
+}
diff --git a/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/channel-messages.json b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/channel-messages.json
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..56b84dda4
--- /dev/null
+++ b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/channel-messages.json
@@ -0,0 +1,6 @@
+{
+  "entry": "workloads/channel-messages.ts",
+  "args": [
+    "200000"
+  ]
+}
diff --git a/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/cli-config.json b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/cli-config.json
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..db7a4c645
--- /dev/null
+++ b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/cli-config.json
@@ -0,0 +1,12 @@
+{
+  "entry": "workloads/cli-config.ts",
+  "input": "cli-config",
+  "launches": 20,
+  "args": [
+    "{input}",
+    "--env",
+    "production",
+    "--max-wave",
+    "12"
+  ]
+}
diff --git a/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/csv-numbers.json b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/csv-numbers.json
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..acb3c21d7
--- /dev/null
+++ b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/csv-numbers.json
@@ -0,0 +1,6 @@
+{
+  "entry": "workloads/csv-numbers.ts",
+  "args": [
+    "1"
+  ]
+}
diff --git a/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/cyclic-graphs.json b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/cyclic-graphs.json
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..2e62f7fdf
--- /dev/null
+++ b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/cyclic-graphs.json
@@ -0,0 +1,6 @@
+{
+  "entry": "workloads/cyclic-graphs.ts",
+  "args": [
+    "3"
+  ]
+}
diff --git a/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/functional-pipeline.json b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/functional-pipeline.json
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..5ee3af902
--- /dev/null
+++ b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/functional-pipeline.json
@@ -0,0 +1,6 @@
+{
+  "entry": "workloads/functional-pipeline.ts",
+  "args": [
+    "1"
+  ]
+}
diff --git a/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/http-api.json b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/http-api.json
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..145166945
--- /dev/null
+++ b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/http-api.json
@@ -0,0 +1,14 @@
+{
+  "kind": "server",
+  "entry": "workloads/http-api.ts",
+  "args": [],
+  "client": {
+    "script": "clients/http-load.mjs",
+    "args": [
+      "--connections=64",
+      "--threads=2",
+      "--warmup=4000",
+      "--requests=40000"
+    ]
+  }
+}
diff --git a/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/intern-table-1.json b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/intern-table-1.json
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..8a2b253f6
--- /dev/null
+++ b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/intern-table-1.json
@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+{
+  "entry": "workloads/intern-table.ts",
+  "args": [
+    "table",
+    "1",
+    "100000"
+  ]
+}
diff --git a/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/intern-table-map-1.json b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/intern-table-map-1.json
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..fefafac67
--- /dev/null
+++ b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/intern-table-map-1.json
@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+{
+  "entry": "workloads/intern-table.ts",
+  "args": [
+    "map",
+    "1",
+    "100000"
+  ]
+}
diff --git a/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/intern-table-map.json b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/intern-table-map.json
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..136c6c31e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/intern-table-map.json
@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+{
+  "entry": "workloads/intern-table.ts",
+  "args": [
+    "map",
+    "8",
+    "100000"
+  ]
+}
diff --git a/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/intern-table.json b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/intern-table.json
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..86fa11413
--- /dev/null
+++ b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/intern-table.json
@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+{
+  "entry": "workloads/intern-table.ts",
+  "args": [
+    "table",
+    "8",
+    "100000"
+  ]
+}
diff --git a/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/inventory-report.json b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/inventory-report.json
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..e75f5e3e5
--- /dev/null
+++ b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/inventory-report.json
@@ -0,0 +1,7 @@
+{
+  "entry": "../builds/inventory-report/main.ts",
+  "input": "inventory-report",
+  "args": [
+    "{input}"
+  ]
+}
diff --git a/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/json-records.json b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/json-records.json
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..3263ac068
--- /dev/null
+++ b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/json-records.json
@@ -0,0 +1,6 @@
+{
+  "entry": "workloads/json-records.ts",
+  "args": [
+    "4"
+  ]
+}
diff --git a/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/log-lines.json b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/log-lines.json
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..635bcc49f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/log-lines.json
@@ -0,0 +1,6 @@
+{
+  "entry": "workloads/log-lines.ts",
+  "args": [
+    "4"
+  ]
+}
diff --git a/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/log-summary.json b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/log-summary.json
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..274a1cff6
--- /dev/null
+++ b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/log-summary.json
@@ -0,0 +1,11 @@
+{
+  "entry": "../builds/log-summary/main.ts",
+  "input": "log-summary",
+  "args": [
+    "{input}",
+    "--min-status",
+    "200",
+    "--limit",
+    "12"
+  ]
+}
diff --git a/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/number-maps.json b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/number-maps.json
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..2adfbcc47
--- /dev/null
+++ b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/number-maps.json
@@ -0,0 +1,6 @@
+{
+  "entry": "workloads/number-maps.ts",
+  "args": [
+    "4"
+  ]
+}
diff --git a/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/numeric-kernels.json b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/numeric-kernels.json
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..04718346b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/numeric-kernels.json
@@ -0,0 +1,6 @@
+{
+  "entry": "workloads/numeric-kernels.ts",
+  "args": [
+    "0.5"
+  ]
+}
diff --git a/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/optional-fields.json b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/optional-fields.json
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..c54d87437
--- /dev/null
+++ b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/optional-fields.json
@@ -0,0 +1,6 @@
+{
+  "entry": "workloads/optional-fields.ts",
+  "args": [
+    "10"
+  ]
+}
diff --git a/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/published-graphs.json b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/published-graphs.json
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..b22f5a0db
--- /dev/null
+++ b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/published-graphs.json
@@ -0,0 +1,6 @@
+{
+  "entry": "workloads/published-graphs.ts",
+  "args": [
+    "1"
+  ]
+}
diff --git a/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/record-boundaries.json b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/record-boundaries.json
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..a35c346eb
--- /dev/null
+++ b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/record-boundaries.json
@@ -0,0 +1,6 @@
+{
+  "entry": "workloads/record-boundaries.ts",
+  "args": [
+    "8"
+  ]
+}
diff --git a/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/records-sort.json b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/records-sort.json
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..fd0097fe2
--- /dev/null
+++ b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/records-sort.json
@@ -0,0 +1,6 @@
+{
+  "entry": "workloads/records-sort.ts",
+  "args": [
+    "1"
+  ]
+}
diff --git a/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/regex-logs.json b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/regex-logs.json
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..636db124e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/regex-logs.json
@@ -0,0 +1,6 @@
+{
+  "entry": "workloads/regex-logs.ts",
+  "args": [
+    "1"
+  ]
+}
diff --git a/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/region-builds.json b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/region-builds.json
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..dc53dbc36
--- /dev/null
+++ b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/region-builds.json
@@ -0,0 +1,6 @@
+{
+  "entry": "workloads/region-builds.ts",
+  "args": [
+    "1"
+  ]
+}
diff --git a/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/template-render.json b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/template-render.json
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..9897494f6
--- /dev/null
+++ b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/template-render.json
@@ -0,0 +1,6 @@
+{
+  "entry": "workloads/template-render.ts",
+  "args": [
+    "1"
+  ]
+}
diff --git a/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/thread-slots-cache.json b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/thread-slots-cache.json
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..0eb6e11ce
--- /dev/null
+++ b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/thread-slots-cache.json
@@ -0,0 +1,9 @@
+{
+  "entry": "workloads/thread-slots.ts",
+  "args": [
+    "cache",
+    "8",
+    "50000",
+    "20"
+  ]
+}
diff --git a/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/thread-slots.json b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/thread-slots.json
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..b8ed5b140
--- /dev/null
+++ b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/thread-slots.json
@@ -0,0 +1,9 @@
+{
+  "entry": "workloads/thread-slots.ts",
+  "args": [
+    "slots",
+    "8",
+    "50000",
+    "20"
+  ]
+}
diff --git a/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/typed-array-scan-workers.json b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/typed-array-scan-workers.json
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..c01893a2c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/typed-array-scan-workers.json
@@ -0,0 +1,6 @@
+{
+  "entry": "workloads/typed-array-scan-workers.ts",
+  "args": [
+    "3"
+  ]
+}
diff --git a/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/typed-array-scan.json b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/typed-array-scan.json
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..0b2ba0592
--- /dev/null
+++ b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/typed-array-scan.json
@@ -0,0 +1,6 @@
+{
+  "entry": "workloads/typed-array-scan.ts",
+  "args": [
+    "3"
+  ]
+}
diff --git a/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/unicode-lexer.json b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/unicode-lexer.json
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..91ccab087
--- /dev/null
+++ b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/unicode-lexer.json
@@ -0,0 +1,6 @@
+{
+  "entry": "workloads/unicode-lexer.ts",
+  "args": [
+    "1"
+  ]
+}
diff --git a/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/validate-errors.json b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/validate-errors.json
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..b8d457897
--- /dev/null
+++ b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/validate-errors.json
@@ -0,0 +1,6 @@
+{
+  "entry": "workloads/validate-errors.ts",
+  "args": [
+    "1"
+  ]
+}
diff --git a/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/value-objects.json b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/value-objects.json
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..276fa4ab8
--- /dev/null
+++ b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/value-objects.json
@@ -0,0 +1,6 @@
+{
+  "entry": "workloads/value-objects.ts",
+  "args": [
+    "2"
+  ]
+}
diff --git a/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/value-records.json b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/value-records.json
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..84c0e12dd
--- /dev/null
+++ b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/value-records.json
@@ -0,0 +1,6 @@
+{
+  "entry": "workloads/value-records.ts",
+  "args": [
+    "1"
+  ]
+}
diff --git a/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/word-graph.json b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/word-graph.json
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..95ffb27e5
--- /dev/null
+++ b/benchmarks/runtime/workloads/word-graph.json
@@ -0,0 +1,6 @@
+{
+  "entry": "workloads/word-graph.ts",
+  "args": [
+    "2"
+  ]
+}
diff --git a/benchmarks/scaling/strace-workloads.mjs b/benchmarks/scaling/strace-workloads.mjs
index b4db5af19..f0644cf13 100644
--- a/benchmarks/scaling/strace-workloads.mjs
+++ b/benchmarks/scaling/strace-workloads.mjs
@@ -7,6 +7,7 @@ import { mkdirSync, readFileSync, writeFileSync } from "node:fs";
 import { dirname, join, resolve } from "node:path";
 import { fileURLToPath } from "node:url";
 import { parseArgs } from "node:util";
+import { readWorkloads } from "../runtime/workloads.mjs";
 
 const here = dirname(fileURLToPath(import.meta.url));
 const suite = resolve(here, "../runtime");
@@ -18,7 +19,7 @@ const { values } = parseArgs({
   },
 });
 mkdirSync(values.out, { recursive: true });
-const { workloads } = JSON.parse(readFileSync(join(suite, "workloads.json"), "utf8"));
+const workloads = readWorkloads(suite);
 const cli = join(values.scriptc, "packages/cli/dist/bootstrap.js");
 // Same inputs as scripts/bench-runtime.mjs generates.
 function input(kind) {
diff --git a/scripts/bench-runtime.mjs b/scripts/bench-runtime.mjs
index 4e4f2c245..61134fa4c 100644
--- a/scripts/bench-runtime.mjs
+++ b/scripts/bench-runtime.mjs
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 /* Runtime performance A/B harness for compiled programs.
  *
- * Builds every workload in benchmarks/runtime/workloads.json with one or two
+ * Builds every workload in benchmarks/runtime/workloads/ with one or two
  * scriptc checkouts, verifies that each executable's output is identical to
  * Node's (stdout, stderr, exit status), then times interleaved launches and reports
  * per-workload medians with bootstrap confidence intervals for the
@@ -23,6 +23,7 @@ import { tmpdir } from "node:os";
 import { dirname, join, resolve } from "node:path";
 import { fileURLToPath } from "node:url";
 import { parseArgs } from "node:util";
+import { readWorkloads, workloadCategory } from "../benchmarks/runtime/workloads.mjs";
 
 const repoRoot = fileURLToPath(new URL("..", import.meta.url));
 const suiteRoot = join(repoRoot, "benchmarks/runtime");
@@ -62,7 +63,7 @@ evenly over those layouts, so verdicts cover code-placement luck instead of one
 placement.
 Use it for small codegen changes (e.g. --layouts=4 --runs=16).
 
-Workload names are listed in benchmarks/runtime/workloads.json; for example
+Workload names are the file names in benchmarks/runtime/workloads/*.json; for example
 --workloads=cli-config,http-api runs only the startup and server workloads.
 
 --baseline-optimization/--candidate-optimization pick each contender's
@@ -88,13 +89,13 @@ assert.ok(
   "--layouts needs macOS or Linux",
 );
 
-const manifest = JSON.parse(readFileSync(join(suiteRoot, "workloads.json"), "utf8"));
+const allWorkloads = readWorkloads(suiteRoot);
 const selected = values.workloads ? new Set(values.workloads.split(",")) : null;
-const workloads = manifest.workloads.filter((w) => selected === null || selected.has(w.name));
+const workloads = allWorkloads.filter((w) => selected === null || selected.has(w.name));
 if (selected) {
   for (const name of selected)
     assert.ok(
-      manifest.workloads.some((w) => w.name === name),
+      allWorkloads.some((w) => w.name === name),
       `unknown workload ${name}`,
     );
 }
@@ -488,8 +489,6 @@ const report = {
 /* Workload kinds: "process" (default) times whole launches; `launches` > 1
  * makes each sample the median of that many sequential launches (startup-bound
  * CLIs). "server" times the measured phase of a load-client session. */
-const categoryOf = (w) =>
-  w.kind === "server" ? "server" : (w.launches ?? 1) > 1 ? "startup" : "cpu";
 for (const w of workloads) {
   assert.ok((w.kind ?? "process") === "process" || w.kind === "server", `${w.name}: unknown kind`);
   if (w.kind === "server") assert.ok(w.client?.script, `${w.name}: server workloads need a client`);
@@ -569,7 +568,7 @@ try {
     const entry = { name: w.name, args, results: {} };
     if (w.kind === "server") entry.kind = "server";
     if ((w.launches ?? 1) > 1) entry.launches = w.launches;
-    entry.category = categoryOf(w);
+    entry.category = workloadCategory(w);
     const oracleFailure = server ? serverFailure(oracle) : oracle.timedOut ? "timed out" : "";
     if (oracle.status !== 0 || oracleFailure) {
       entry.error = `node oracle failed (status ${oracle.status}${oracleFailure ? `, ${oracleFailure}` : ""}): ${oracle.stderr.slice(0, 2000)}`;
diff --git a/scripts/zero-cost-gate.mjs b/scripts/zero-cost-gate.mjs
index de3c0d0fc..1575fc5ee 100644
--- a/scripts/zero-cost-gate.mjs
+++ b/scripts/zero-cost-gate.mjs
@@ -27,6 +27,7 @@ import { availableParallelism } from "node:os";
 import { dirname, join, relative, resolve } from "node:path";
 import { fileURLToPath } from "node:url";
 import { parseArgs } from "node:util";
+import { readWorkloads } from "../benchmarks/runtime/workloads.mjs";
 import {
   cachegrindCounts,
   compareArtifact,
@@ -173,9 +174,8 @@ function goodCodeSet() {
   const programs = [];
   if (sets.has("bench")) {
     const suite = join(programsRoot, "benchmarks/runtime");
-    const manifest = JSON.parse(readFileSync(join(suite, "workloads.json"), "utf8"));
     const seen = new Set();
-    for (const w of manifest.workloads) {
+    for (const w of readWorkloads(suite)) {
       const entry = join(suite, w.entry);
       if (seen.has(entry)) continue;
       seen.add(entry);
diff --git a/tests/harness/bench-dynamic-tier.test.ts b/tests/harness/bench-dynamic-tier.test.ts
index de19f2b21..9276221ab 100644
--- a/tests/harness/bench-dynamic-tier.test.ts
+++ b/tests/harness/bench-dynamic-tier.test.ts
@@ -7,7 +7,7 @@
  * release binary the gate measures, so other hosts and the sanitized lane
  * skip the builds. */
 import { execFile } from "node:child_process";
-import { mkdirSync, readFileSync } from "node:fs";
+import { mkdirSync } from "node:fs";
 import { join } from "node:path";
 import { promisify } from "node:util";
 import { expect, test } from "vitest";
@@ -17,6 +17,7 @@ import {
   definedFunctionNames,
   dynamicTierSymbols,
 } from "../../scripts/zero-cost-compare.mjs";
+import { readWorkloads } from "../../benchmarks/runtime/workloads.mjs";
 
 const execFileAsync = promisify(execFile);
 const repoRoot = join(import.meta.dirname, "../..");
@@ -31,11 +32,8 @@ interface Workload {
 
 // One program per entry file, named after its first workload, as the gate
 // names them.
-const manifest = JSON.parse(readFileSync(join(suite, "workloads.json"), "utf8")) as {
-  workloads: Workload[];
-};
 const programs = new Map<string, string>();
-for (const w of manifest.workloads)
+for (const w of readWorkloads(suite) as Workload[])
   if (![...programs.values()].includes(w.entry)) programs.set(`bench/${w.name}`, w.entry);
 
 test("every workload the gate lists as dynamic is a bench program", () => {