How To Manage User Secrets In Asp.net Core May 2026

Once initialized, secrets are stored in a secrets.json file located in your user profile folder (e.g., %APPDATA%\Microsoft\UserSecrets\ on Windows or ~/.microsoft/usersecrets/ on macOS/Linux).

dotnet user-secrets set "ServiceApiKey" "12345" ``` To group secrets (e.g., for a "Movies" section), use a colon: ```bash dotnet user-secrets set "Movies:ServiceApiKey" "12345" ``` Use code with caution. Copied to clipboard 3. Access Secrets in Code How to manage user secrets in ASP.NET Core

Adding them directly to the secrets.json file that opens after you select Manage User Secrets . Via .NET CLI: Use the set command to add individual keys: Once initialized, secrets are stored in a secrets

public class MyController : ControllerBase { private readonly IConfiguration _config; public MyController(IConfiguration config) => _config = config; public IActionResult Get() { var apiKey = _config["ServiceApiKey"]; // Retrieves the secret return Ok(); } } ``` ### Key Best Practices * **Development Only:** User secrets are **not encrypted** and are only intended for local development. * **Production Security:** Never use Secret Manager for production. Instead, use more secure providers like [Azure Key Vault](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/aspnet/core/security/key-vault-configuration) or [environment variables](https://microsoft.com). * **Source Control:** Ensure your `secrets.json` file path is never added to `.gitignore`, though it should already be safe since it lives outside the project folder. Use code with caution. Copied to clipboard How to manage user secrets in ASP.NET Core - InfoWorld Access Secrets in Code Adding them directly to the secrets

The tool in ASP.NET Core provides a safe way to store this information during local development by keeping it outside your project directory. 1. Enable Secret Storage