---
title: "Environment Variable Formatter | Free DevOps Tool | FOSSA"
description: "Free online tool to convert environment variables between different formats (.env, Docker Compose, Kubernetes Secrets, Shell export, JSON). Parse, validate, and format your environment variables for different deployment environments."
canonical_url: "https://fossa.com/resources/devops-tools/env-formatter/"
markdown_url: "https://fossa.com/resources/devops-tools/env-formatter.md"
language: "en"
author: "FOSSA"
organization: "FOSSA"
---

# Environment Variable Formatter | Free DevOps Tool | FOSSA

> Free online tool to convert environment variables between different formats (.env, Docker Compose, Kubernetes Secrets, Shell export, JSON). Parse, validate, and format your environment variables for different deployment environments.

## Environment Variable Formatter

Convert environment variables between different formats for your deployment environments.

### About Environment Variables

Environment variables are a set of dynamic named values that can affect the way running processes will behave on a computer. They are used to configure applications and are widely used in DevOps workflows for managing different environments, configurations, and secrets.

#### Common Formats

##### .env Files

The most common format for environment variables. Each line contains a key-value pair separated by an equals sign. Comments start with #.

\# Database settings  
DB\_HOST=localhost  
DB\_PORT=5432

##### Docker Compose

In Docker Compose files, environment variables are specified under the "environment" section for each service.

version: '3'  
services:  
 app:  
 environment:  
 \- DB\_HOST=localhost  
 \- DB\_PORT=5432

##### Kubernetes Secrets

In Kubernetes, sensitive information is stored as Secrets. Values are Base64 encoded.

apiVersion: v1  
kind: Secret  
metadata:  
 name: database-credentials  
type: Opaque  
data:  
 DB\_HOST: bG9jYWxob3N0  
 DB\_PORT: NTQzMg==

##### Shell Export Commands

Shell scripts often set environment variables using the export command.

\#!/bin/bash  
export DB\_HOST="localhost"  
export DB\_PORT="5432"  
export API\_KEY="secret-key"

#### Best Practices

- Never commit secrets to version control. Use a secret management tool instead.
- Use consistent naming for environment variables, typically UPPERCASE with underscores.
- Group related variables with common prefixes (DB\_\*, API\_\*, etc).
- Provide default values in your application code for non-critical configuration.
- Document all variables used by your application for easier onboarding.
- Validate environment variables at application startup to fail fast if required variables are missing.

### Get Started with FOSSA

Start managing your dependencies, licenses, and vulnerabilities today.

## Source

Canonical page: https://fossa.com/resources/devops-tools/env-formatter/