Environment Variables

Environment variable reference for Qwen Code

Qwen Code uses environment variables for API keys, configuration, and runtime behavior.

Loading Priority

Environment variables are loaded in the following order (highest to lowest priority):

1. CLI flags (highest priority)
2. System/Shell environment variables (export or inline)
3. .env files (searched from current directory upward)
4. settings.json → env field (lowest priority)

.env Files

Qwen Code automatically searches for .env files in the following order:

1. .qwen/.env in current directory (searched upward to home)
2. .env in current directory (searched upward to home)
3. ~/.qwen/.env (user-level fallback)
4. ~/.env (home directory fallback)

Example .env File

.env

# API Keys
DASHSCOPE_API_KEY=sk-xxxxxxxxxxxxx
OPENAI_API_KEY=sk-xxxxxxxxxxxxx
ANTHROPIC_API_KEY=sk-ant-xxxxxxxxxxxxx
GEMINI_API_KEY=AIzaxxxxxxxxxxxxx

# Optional: Custom base URLs
OPENAI_BASE_URL=https://api.openai.com/v1
ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL=https://api.anthropic.com

# Optional: Web search
TAVILY_API_KEY=tvly-xxxxxxxxxxxxx
GOOGLE_API_KEY=AIzaxxxxxxxxxxxxx
GOOGLE_SEARCH_ENGINE_ID=xxxxxxxxxxxxx

# Optional: Proxy configuration
HTTPS_PROXY=http://proxy.example.com:8080
NO_PROXY=localhost,127.0.0.1

Security: Never commit .env files to version control. Add .env to your .gitignore.

API Key Variables

Model Providers

DASHSCOPE_API_KEY · string

API key for Alibaba Cloud DashScope (Qwen models).

Get your key at: Alibaba Cloud ModelStudio

BAILIAN_CODING_PLAN_API_KEY · string

API key for Alibaba Cloud Bailian Coding Plan subscription.

Get your key at: Bailian Coding Plan

OPENAI_API_KEY · string

API key for OpenAI models.

Get your key at: OpenAI API Keys

ANTHROPIC_API_KEY · string

API key for Anthropic Claude models.

Get your key at: Anthropic Console

GEMINI_API_KEY · string

API key for Google Gemini models (via Google AI Studio).

Get your key at: Google AI Studio

GOOGLE_API_KEY · string

API key for Google services (Vertex AI, Custom Search).

Custom Environment Variables

You can define custom environment variable names in modelProviders:

{
  "modelProviders": {
    "openai": [
      {
        "id": "qwen3-coder-plus",
        "name": "Qwen3 Coder Plus",
        "baseUrl": "https://dashscope.aliyuncs.com/compatible-mode/v1",
        "envKey": "MY_CUSTOM_API_KEY"  // Custom variable name
      }
    ]
  }
}

Then set it in your environment:

export MY_CUSTOM_API_KEY=sk-xxxxxxxxxxxxx

Base URL Variables

OPENAI_BASE_URL · string

Custom base URL for OpenAI-compatible APIs.

Example: https://api.openai.com/v1

ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL · string

Custom base URL for Anthropic API.

Example: https://api.anthropic.com

Web Search Variables

TAVILY_API_KEY · string

API key for Tavily web search.

Get your key at: Tavily

GOOGLE_SEARCH_ENGINE_ID · string

Google Custom Search Engine ID.

Set up at: Google Custom Search

Proxy Variables

HTTPS_PROXY · string

HTTPS proxy server URL.

Example: http://proxy.example.com:8080

HTTP_PROXY · string

HTTP proxy server URL.

Example: http://proxy.example.com:8080

NO_PROXY · string

Comma-separated list of hosts to bypass proxy.

Example: localhost,127.0.0.1,.local

Google Cloud Variables

GOOGLE_APPLICATION_CREDENTIALS · string

Path to Google Cloud service account key file (for Vertex AI).

Example: /path/to/service-account-key.json

GOOGLE_CLOUD_PROJECT · string

Google Cloud project ID (for Vertex AI).

GOOGLE_GENAI_USE_VERTEXAI · string

Set to true to use Vertex AI instead of Google AI.

System Variables

DEBUG · string

Enable debug mode. Set to true or 1.

DEBUG=true qwen

DEBUG_MODE · string

Alternative to DEBUG. Set to true or 1.

NO_BROWSER · string

Disable browser opening for OAuth flows. Set to true or 1.

QWEN_OAUTH · string

Force Qwen OAuth authentication.

CLOUD_SHELL · string

Indicates running in Google Cloud Shell (set automatically).

Path Overrides

QWEN_CODE_SYSTEM_SETTINGS_PATH · string

Override system settings file path.

QWEN_CODE_SYSTEM_DEFAULTS_PATH · string

Override system defaults file path.

QWEN_CODE_TRUSTED_FOLDERS_PATH · string

Override trusted folders file path.

Sandbox Variables

SANDBOX · string

Sandbox execution environment identifier.

SANDBOX_SET_UID_GID · string

Set UID/GID in sandbox. Set to true or false.

SANDBOX_PORTS · string

Comma-separated list of ports to expose in sandbox.

Example: 8080,3000,5000

SANDBOX_MOUNTS · string

Comma-separated list of volume mounts for sandbox.

Example: /host/path:/container/path,/another:/path

BUILD_SANDBOX · string

Enable sandbox build mode.

QWEN_SANDBOX_PROXY_COMMAND · string

Custom proxy command for sandbox.

Testing Variables

QWEN_CODE_INTEGRATION_TEST · string

Enable integration test mode. Set to true.

NODE_ENV · string

Node.js environment. Set to development, production, or test.

Usage Examples

Setting Variables via Export

# Set for current session
export DASHSCOPE_API_KEY=sk-xxxxxxxxxxxxx
export OPENAI_API_KEY=sk-xxxxxxxxxxxxx

# Run Qwen Code
qwen

Setting Variables Inline

# Set for single command
DASHSCOPE_API_KEY=sk-xxxxxxxxxxxxx qwen

Using .env File

Create ~/.qwen/.env:

DASHSCOPE_API_KEY=sk-xxxxxxxxxxxxx
OPENAI_API_KEY=sk-xxxxxxxxxxxxx

Variables are loaded automatically:

qwen  # API keys loaded from .env

Project-Specific .env

Create .qwen/.env in your project:

# Project-specific API key
DASHSCOPE_API_KEY=sk-project-specific-key

# Proxy for this project
HTTPS_PROXY=http://corporate-proxy:8080

Fallback in settings.json

For non-sensitive variables or defaults:

{
  "env": {
    "DASHSCOPE_API_KEY": "sk-xxxxxxxxxxxxx"
  }
}

This is not recommended for sensitive credentials. Use .env files instead.

Excluded Variables

Some environment variables are excluded from project context by default:

• DEBUG
• DEBUG_MODE

You can customize this list in settings:

{
  "advanced": {
    "excludedEnvVars": ["DEBUG", "DEBUG_MODE", "MY_SECRET_VAR"]
  }
}

Workspace Trust

When folder trust is enabled, project-level .env files are only loaded from trusted workspaces. User-level .env files (~/.qwen/.env, ~/.env) are always loaded.

See Trusted Folders for more information.

Security Best Practices

1. Never commit .env files - Add to .gitignore:

   .env
   .qwen/.env
   

2. Use user-level .env for personal keys - Store in ~/.qwen/.env

3. Use project .env for team settings - Document required variables without including actual keys

4. Rotate keys regularly - Update API keys periodically

5. Use environment-specific files - Consider .env.development, .env.production patterns

6. Set file permissions - Restrict access to .env files:

   chmod 600 ~/.qwen/.env
   

Troubleshooting

Variable Not Loading

1. Check the file location:

   ls -la .qwen/.env
   ls -la ~/.qwen/.env
   

2. Verify file syntax (no quotes around values unless needed):

   # Correct
   API_KEY=sk-123456
   
   # Usually not needed
   API_KEY="sk-123456"
   

3. Check for typos in variable names (case-sensitive)

4. Ensure no trailing whitespace

Priority Issues

If a variable isn’t using the expected value:

1. Check system environment: echo $VARIABLE_NAME
2. Check .env file in current directory
3. Check ~/.qwen/.env
4. Check settings.json → env

Workspace Trust Issues

If project .env isn’t loading:

1. Check if folder trust is enabled:

   {
     "security": {
       "folderTrust": {
         "enabled": true
       }
     }
   }
   

2. Trust the workspace or move variables to ~/.qwen/.env

See Also

• Settings.json Reference
• Model Providers
• Trusted Folders