---
title: Environment variables
description: The same settings can be defined as environment variables instead of a configuration file or to override certain settings of the YAML file. If setting...
url: https://www.elastic.co/elastic/docs-builder/docs/3016/reference/ecctl/ecctl-environment-variables
products:
  - Elastic Cloud Control
---

# Environment variables
The same settings can be defined as environment variables instead of a configuration file or to override certain settings of the `YAML` file. If setting environment variables, you’ll need to prefix the configuration parameter with `EC_` and capitalize the setting, i.e. `EC_HOST` or `EC_USER`.
```sh
export EC_API_KEY=bWFyYzo4ZTJmNmZkNjY5ZmQ0MDBkOTQ3ZjI3MTg3ZWI5MWZhYjpOQktHY05jclE0cTBzcUlnTXg3QTd3
```


## Special Environment Variables

```sh
export EC_CONFIG=$HOME/.ecctl/cloud.yaml
```