# dotenv / .env Files: how AI models rank it, November 2026

Gane Index, November 2026 Edition. Named in 1 judge label across 1 category by 1 of 14 models. Page: https://www.gane.ai/index/it/vendors/dotenv-env-files

## Standing by category

| Category | Share | Rank | Negative rate | Labels |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| [Secrets management](https://www.gane.ai/index/it/identity/secrets-management/index.md) | 0% | 54 | 100% | 1 |

## And against it

- "These are not secrets management tools—they're convenience utilities" (Kimi K2, Secrets)

## By model

| Model | First choice | Alternative | Mention | Warning | Labels |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Claude Haiku 4.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| GPT-5.4 mini | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Gemini 3.5 Flash | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Perplexity Sonar | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Grok 4.20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Mistral Small | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| DeepSeek V4 Flash | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Llama 4 Maverick | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Qwen 3.7 Flash | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Kimi K2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| GLM 4.7 FlashX | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| MiniMax M2.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| GPT-6 Luna | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Muse Glimmer 30B | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |

## Sources returned with these answers

The sites and pages cited by the answers that named dotenv / .env Files, from 1 of the 1 answers that named it (only the models that return a source list).

### Domains cited

- akeyless.io: 1
- aws.amazon.com: 1
- checkmarx.com: 1
- dev.to: 1
- digital.va.gov: 1
- docs.ansible.com: 1
- docs.github.com: 1
- docs.redhat.com: 1
- github.com: 1
- ibm.com: 1

### Pages cited

- https://akeyless.io/blog/a-hashicorp-vault-alternative-how-akeyless-simplifies-your-security-and-cuts-costs: 1
- https://akeyless.io/blog/akeyless-the-leading-hashicorp-vault-alternative: 1
- https://akeyless.io/blog/blog-azure-key-vault-vs-hashicorp-vault: 1
- https://aws.amazon.com/blogs/security/migrating-your-secrets-to-aws-secrets-manager-part-i-discovery-and-design: 1
- https://checkmarx.com/learn/secrets-detection/rethinking-secrets-management-tools-why-vaults-alone-arent-enough: 1
- https://dev.to/alitron/seeking-cost-effective-externally-hosted-secrets-management-for-personal-and-collaborative-projects-52jg: 1
- https://dev.to/kotakanbe/your-dependencies-are-48-unmaintained-and-sca-tools-cant-see-it-2h7h: 1
- https://dev.to/varunvarde/secrets-management-in-modern-devops-vault-irsa-external-secrets-when-to-use-each-352m: 1

## Record

- Method: https://www.gane.ai/index/it/methodology
- License: CC BY 4.0. Cite as Gane Index, November 2026 Edition, www.gane.ai/index/it.