Django Dotenv

1.4.2 · maintenance · verified Sun Apr 12

django-dotenv is a Python library designed to simplify the loading of environment variables from .env files specifically within Django projects. It aims to make `manage.py` and WSGI applications aware of .env configurations, addressing a common configuration challenge for Django applications. As of its last release, it offers basic .env file parsing functionality.

Warnings

breaking Support for Python 2.6 and Python 3.2 was removed in version 1.4.1. Projects still using these Python versions will need to either upgrade their Python environment or pin `django-dotenv` to an earlier version (e.g., `<1.4.1`).
Fix: Upgrade to a supported Python version (3.4+), or downgrade `django-dotenv` to a version older than 1.4.1.
gotcha A common `AttributeError: module 'dotenv' has no attribute 'read_dotenv'` occurs if `python-dotenv` is installed alongside `django-dotenv`. The `dotenv` module provided by `python-dotenv` can shadow the `django-dotenv`'s module, causing the `read_dotenv` function to be unavailable.
Fix: If using `django-dotenv`, ensure `python-dotenv` is *not* installed in the same environment. Uninstall `python-dotenv` to resolve the conflict (`pip uninstall python-dotenv`). If `python-dotenv` functionality is preferred, migrate to using `python-dotenv` instead, which is generally more actively maintained.
gotcha By default, environment variables already defined in the shell take precedence over those specified in the `.env` file. This means shell variables will not be overridden by the `.env` file's contents unless explicitly instructed.
Fix: To force the `.env` file's variables to override existing shell environment variables, call `dotenv.read_dotenv(override=True)`.
gotcha The `django-dotenv` library has not been actively maintained since its last release (v1.4.2) in December 2017. For new projects or more robust and actively maintained `.env` handling, the `python-dotenv` library is generally recommended as a more universal solution, even for Django applications, due to its ongoing development and broader feature set.
Fix: Consider migrating to `python-dotenv` (`pip install python-dotenv`) and using `from dotenv import load_dotenv; load_dotenv()` instead, along with `os.getenv()` or similar mechanisms for accessing variables.

Install

pip install django-dotenv Install stable version

Imports

read_dotenv
```
import dotenv; dotenv.read_dotenv()
```
The `load_dotenv` function is part of `python-dotenv`, which conflicts with `django-dotenv`.

Quickstart

To integrate django-dotenv, call `dotenv.read_dotenv()` early in your Django project's `manage.py` or `wsgi.py` file. This loads variables from a `.env` file (typically in the project root) into `os.environ`, making them accessible throughout your application.

import os
import dotenv

# Recommended to call early in manage.py or wsgi.py
# For manage.py, place before os.environ.setdefault(...)
# For wsgi.py, place before application = get_wsgi_application()
dotenv.read_dotenv()

# Access environment variables as usual
SECRET_KEY = os.environ.get('SECRET_KEY', 'your-fallback-secret-key')
DEBUG = os.environ.get('DEBUG', 'False').lower() == 'true'
DATABASE_URL = os.environ.get('DATABASE_URL', '')

print(f"SECRET_KEY: {SECRET_KEY}")
print(f"DEBUG: {DEBUG}")
print(f"DATABASE_URL: {DATABASE_URL}")

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