Render Environment Variables

Manage environment variables, secrets, and environment groups.

renderdeploymentcloudinfrastructureconfiguration-management

Read exactly what Claude will be told

SKILL.md

---
name: render-env-vars
description: >-
  Configures environment variables, secrets, and env groups on Render. Use when
  the user needs to set env vars, wire secrets between services, create env
  groups, use generateValue, set sync: false, or troubleshoot missing or
  incorrect environment variable values in Blueprints or the Dashboard.
license: MIT
compatibility: Render Dashboard, CLI, or MCP tools
metadata:
  author: Render
  version: "1.0.0"
  category: configuration
---

# Environment Variables on Render

Render exposes configuration to services as **environment variables**. Values are always **strings** at the platform layer—applications must parse numbers, booleans, and structured data explicitly.

There are **three** primary ways to set variables:

1. **Render Dashboard** — per-service UI, bulk import from `.env`, save/redeploy options
2. **Blueprint** — `envVars` (and related keys) in `render.yaml`
3. **MCP / API** — e.g. `update_environment_variables` on a service
… install to load the full skill