Store environment variables in Kinde

Environment variables are key-value pairs that enable access to applications across different environments and systems.

Once you can bring your code into Kinde via workflows (coming soon), it’s important to be able to reference environment variables using a key, instead of hardcoding these values into your code.

Kinde allows you to create and store sensitive (secret) and non-sensitive key-value pairs.

Store variables for each environment

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You need to set environment variables separately, in each of your Kinde environments. You can’t share keys across development, testing, staging, and production, etc.

Sensitive and non-sensitive environment variables

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The environment variables you store in Kinde can be sensitive or non-sensitive.

• Sensitive environment variables contain confidential data (e.g., passwords, API keys, credentials) that must be handled with care to avoid security risks and data breaches. When you mark an existing environment variable as sensitive, Kinde converts it to a non-readable format and the value can no longer be read by you or your team. It can only be read by Kinde workflows at runtime. The value will also be redacted in any logs.
• Non-sensitive environment variables handle non-confidential settings (e.g., language, application name, etc.) that don’t pose a risk if exposed.

Examples of environment variables

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Variable Name	Type	Description	Example Value
API_KEY	Sensitive	Authentication key for external services	********
CLIENT_SECRET	Sensitive	OAuth client secret	********
APP_NAME	Non-sensitive	Application identifier	my-kinde-app
LOG_LEVEL	Non-sensitive	Application logging configuration	debug