# Environment variables
- `NIX_PROFILE`
Location of the Nix profile. Defaults to the target of the symlink
`~/.nix-profile`, if it exists, or `/nix/var/nix/profiles/default`
otherwise.
Title: NIX_PROFILE Environment Variable
Summary
This chunk describes the `NIX_PROFILE` environment variable, which specifies the location of the Nix profile. Its default value is determined by checking for the existence of `~/.nix-profile` (symlink target) and falling back to `/nix/var/nix/profiles/default` if it does not exist.