diff --git a/.env.example b/.env.example
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..e8a30b1
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.env.example
@@ -0,0 +1,14 @@
+# Database Configuration
+POSTGRES_USER=postgres
+POSTGRES_PASSWORD=postgres
+POSTGRES_DB=my_first_elixir_vibe_code_dev
+
+# Phoenix Configuration
+DATABASE_URL=ecto://postgres:postgres@db/my_first_elixir_vibe_code_dev
+SECRET_KEY_BASE=PNosxXTGA8DhjwcE5QWJkJZr400AFXjIWu27dEFQg/QJE3RyCna6HePec1Sjgz6W
+PHX_HOST=localhost
+PORT=4000
+
+# Important: For production, generate a new SECRET_KEY_BASE with:
+# docker-compose run --rm web bin/my_first_elixir_vibe_code eval "IO.puts(:crypto.strong_rand_bytes(64) |> Base.encode64())"
+# or locally with: mix phx.gen.secret
diff --git a/.gitignore b/.gitignore
index 81f5da4..519870e 100644
--- a/.gitignore
+++ b/.gitignore
@@ -35,3 +35,6 @@ my_first_elixir_vibe_code-*.tar
 npm-debug.log
 /assets/node_modules/
 
+# Environment variables
+.env
+