Reference

Configuration

Environment variables, profiles, RPC conventions, and config precedence.

Configuration

lifi resolves configuration from multiple sources, merged in this priority order (highest wins):

Command-line flags — e.g. --chain base, --from-token USDC
Environment variables — exported shell variables or values loaded from .env
~/.config/lifi/config.yaml — the persistent config file, with optional profile support
Built-in defaults — e.g. slippage_bps: 50

Environment variables

Wallet

Variable	Description
`LIFI_WALLET_PRIVATE_KEY`	Hex-encoded private key (with or without `0x` prefix). Required for all write commands. The public address is derived automatically.
`LIFI_WALLET_ADDRESS`	Explicit wallet address. Optional when `LIFI_WALLET_PRIVATE_KEY` is set — the address is derived from the key. Set this explicitly when you want to query a wallet without holding its key.

RPC endpoints

bash

LIFI_RPC_<CHAIN_KEY>=<url>

Add one entry per chain you intend to use. The <CHAIN_KEY> suffix is normalized (lowercased, stripped of _/-) and matched against:

The chain's canonical key (e.g. opt for Optimism, base for Base)
The chain's full name (e.g. ethereum, arbitrumone)
The chain's numeric ID (e.g. 8453 for Base, 42161 for Arbitrum)

To find the correct key for any chain:

bash

lifi chains --search optimism

Examples:

bash

LIFI_RPC_BASE=https://mainnet.base.org
LIFI_RPC_OPT=https://mainnet.optimism.io
LIFI_RPC_8453=https://my-private-base-rpc.example.com   # by chain ID

If no matching LIFI_RPC_* variable is found, lifi falls back to a public RPC URL from the LI.FI API (when available). This is unreliable for write operations — always configure an explicit RPC for chains you deposit on.

API and defaults

Variable	Default	Description
`LIFI_API_KEY`	(none)	LI.FI API key for higher rate limits. The public tier works without a key.
`LIFI_DEFAULT_FROM_CHAIN`	(none)	Default chain when `--chain` is omitted.
`LIFI_DEFAULT_SLIPPAGE_BPS`	`50`	Default slippage in basis points (100 = 1%).

`.env` file

lifi loads .env from the current working directory on every run. Lines are parsed as KEY=VALUE. Comments (#) and export prefixes are supported. Shell variables already exported take precedence — the .env file never overwrites them.

bash

# .env
LIFI_WALLET_PRIVATE_KEY=0xdeadbeef...
LIFI_RPC_BASE=https://mainnet.base.org
LIFI_DEFAULT_FROM_CHAIN=base

Never commit .env to version control. Add it to .gitignore.

Config file (`config.yaml`)

The config file lives at ~/.config/lifi/config.yaml by default. Generate a starter file with:

bash

lifi config init

Override the path with --config <path> or inspect what is loaded with:

bash

lifi config show

Top-level structure

yaml

# Active profile (can be overridden with --profile)
profile: default

# Top-level values apply to all profiles as a base
defaults:
  from_chain: base
  slippage_bps: "50"

wallet:
  private_key_env: LIFI_WALLET_PRIVATE_KEY   # reads this env var at runtime

rpcs:
  base: https://mainnet.base.org

# Named profiles — each one merges on top of the top-level base
profiles:
  default:
    defaults:
      from_chain: base
    wallet:
      private_key_env: LIFI_WALLET_PRIVATE_KEY
    rpcs:
      base: https://mainnet.base.org
      opt: https://mainnet.optimism.io

  prod:
    defaults:
      from_chain: optimism
    wallet:
      address: "0xYourProdWalletAddress"
      private_key_env: PROD_PRIVATE_KEY
    rpcs:
      opt: https://my-private-optimism-rpc.example.com

Profile fields

Field	Description
`defaults.from_chain`	Default chain for `--chain`
`defaults.slippage_bps`	Default slippage
`wallet.address`	Explicit wallet address
`wallet.private_key_env`	Name of the env var that holds the private key
`api.lifi_api_key`	LI.FI API key (prefer env var instead)
`rpcs.<key>`	RPC URL for a chain (key is the chain name or key)

Switching profiles

bash

lifi --profile prod vaults --chain opt --asset USDC
lifi --profile prod deposit --vault 0xVault --from-chain opt --from-token USDC --amount 50

`lifi config` commands

`lifi config init`

Writes a starter config.yaml to the default path.

bash

lifi config init            # fails if file already exists
lifi config init --force    # overwrite

`lifi config show`

Prints the resolved configuration for the active profile — useful for debugging what secrets and RPCs are loaded.

bash

lifi config show
lifi --profile prod config show
lifi config show --json

Output includes:

Config file path and whether it exists
.env path and whether it exists
Active profile name and all available profiles
Whether LIFI_API_KEY, wallet address, and wallet key are set
Which RPC chain keys are configured