* Use environment variables (see [AUTOTITLE](/actions/reference/variables-reference#default-environment-variables)):

- /variables

title: Variables

intro: 'Learn about variables in {% data variables.product.prodname_actions %} workflows.'

versions:

fpt: '*'

ghes: '*'

ghec: '*'

type: overview

topics:

- Action development

- Fundamentals

Variables provide a way to store and reuse non-sensitive configuration information. You can store any configuration data such as compiler flags, usernames, or server names as variables. Variables are interpolated on the runner machine that runs your workflow. Commands that run in actions or workflow steps can create, read, and modify variables.

You can set your own custom variables or use the default environment variables that {% data variables.product.prodname_dotcom %} sets automatically.

You can set a custom variable in two ways.

* To define an environment variable for use in a single workflow, you can use the `env` key in the workflow file. For more information, see [Defining environment variables for a single workflow](/actions/how-tos/writing-workflows/choosing-what-your-workflow-does/store-information-in-variables#defining-environment-variables-for-a-single-workflow).

* To define a configuration variable across multiple workflows, you can define it at the organization, repository, or environment level. For more information, see [Defining configuration variables for multiple workflows](/actions/how-tos/writing-workflows/choosing-what-your-workflow-does/store-information-in-variables#defining-configuration-variables-for-multiple-workflows).

For reference documentation, see [AUTOTITLE](/actions/reference/variables-reference).

* **Variables:** Scripts have access to the default variables. The full webhook event payload can be found in `GITHUB_EVENT_PATH`. For more information, see [AUTOTITLE](/actions/reference/variables-reference#default-environment-variables).

For more information, see [AUTOTITLE](/actions/reference/variables-reference#default-environment-variables) and [AUTOTITLE](/actions/security-guides/using-secrets-in-github-actions).

Travis CI and {% data variables.product.prodname_actions %} both include default environment variables that you can use in your YAML files. For {% data variables.product.prodname_actions %}, you can see these listed in [AUTOTITLE](/actions/reference/variables-reference#default-environment-variables).