.env.local Jun 2026

These values are automatically loaded into process.env , allowing you to access them anywhere in your server-side code:

If you need a literal $ in your value, escape it with a backslash: \$ .

# Other environment variables PUBLIC_URL=http://localhost:3000

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# .env (default) API_BASE_URL="https://api.example.com" .env.local

Merely deleting the file and making a new commit will not erase the file from your Git history. Anyone looking at your repository's commit history will still see your exposed keys.

The industry standard is to create and commit a .env.example file. This file contains the exact same keys as your .env.local file, but with placeholder or empty values.

If you need to manage different settings for automated testing, we can explore how to set up a .

Vite follows a similar convention: .env files are loaded using dotenv, with .env.local (and .env.*.local ) being git-ignored. Variables are exposed to the client with the VITE_ prefix. These values are automatically loaded into process

loadEnv overrides content from .env(.mode)?.local ... - GitHub

In modern web development, managing configuration settings across different environments—like development, staging, and production—is a core engineering challenge. Hardcoding API keys, database credentials, or server configurations directly into source code is a major security risk and slows down teamwork.

.env.$NODE_ENV.local → .env.local → .env.$NODE_ENV → .env

When an application loads, it typically looks at .env.local first. If a variable is found there, it "wins" over the same variable defined in .env . Comparison: .env vs. .env.local .env .env.local Purpose Shared default configurations Personal/machine-specific overrides Git Tracking Usually committed to the repo Never committed (ignored by Git) Secrets Should not contain real secrets The primary place for local secrets Priority Lower (default values) Higher (overrides defaults) Best Practices Anyone looking at your repository's commit history will

# .gitignore

Most modern web frameworks (like Next.js, Nuxt, Vite, and Remix) support multiple .env files. To understand why .env.local is so important, you must understand where it sits in the loading hierarchy.

Forgetting to add NEXT_PUBLIC_ or VITE_ can lead to frustrating "undefined" errors when trying to access variables in your React/Vue components.

Don't use .env.local for non-sensitive configuration that should be shared across the team (like a theme color or a public API endpoint). Put those in the standard .env .

In this article, we’ll dive into what .env.local is, why it matters, and how to use it correctly without leaking your most sensitive secrets. What is .env.local?