Most developers use .env.example to show what variables are needed. However, .env.example is just a placeholder. .env.default.local serves a more functional purpose: 1. Pre-configuring Local Tooling
that are safer than global defaults but broader than individual secret overrides. .env.default.local
: By having a dedicated file for local environment variables, developers can quickly set up their local development environment without having to manually configure each variable. This file ensures that essential services like databases, mock APIs, or local file paths are correctly referenced. Most developers use
# .env.default (committed to Git) APP_NAME=MyAwesomeApp APP_ENV=production APP_DEBUG=false DB_HOST=localhost DB_PORT=5432 CACHE_DRIVER=file SESSION_DRIVER=file .env.default.local