How to Use Environment Variables in Node.js

Environment variables play a crucial role in configuring and securing Node.js applications by allowing developers to store sensitive information, configuration settings, and other variables outside the codebase. In this blog post, we will explore how to use environment variables in Node.js, covering topics such as setting, accessing, and managing them in your applications. Environment variables are dynamic values that can affect the behavior of a running process, and can be accessed using the `process.env` object. To set environment variables, you can use various methods depending on your operating system or deployment platform. In many Node.js projects, developers use a `.env` file to store and manage environment variables. Once you've set your environment variables, you can access them in your Node.js application using `process.env`. For better organization, consider creating a module to centralize environment variable access. You can also provide default values for environment variables if they are not set, using the `||` operator. Effectively using environment variables in your Node.js applications is crucial for maintaining security and configurability.