diff --git a/.env_sample b/.env_sample
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..30857f4
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.env_sample
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+export SENDGRID_API_KEY=''
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/.gitignore b/.gitignore
index 247a709..c9eea9b 100644
--- a/.gitignore
+++ b/.gitignore
@@ -10,4 +10,5 @@
 # Output of the go coverage tool, specifically when used with LiteIDE
 *.out
 
-.DS_Store
\ No newline at end of file
+.DS_Store
+.env
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 807a08d..6f6c90f 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -38,6 +38,25 @@ All updates to this library is documented in our [CHANGELOG](https://github.com/
 ```bash
 go get github.com/sendgrid/smtpapi-go
 ```
+
+## Setup Environment Variables
+
+### Initial Setup
+
+```bash
+cp .env_sample .env
+```
+
+### Environment Variable
+
+Update the development environment with your [SENDGRID_API_KEY](https://app.sendgrid.com/settings/api_keys), for example:
+
+```bash
+echo "export SENDGRID_API_KEY='YOUR_API_KEY'" > sendgrid.env
+echo "sendgrid.env" >> .gitignore
+source ./sendgrid.env
+```
+
 <a name="quick-start"></a>
 # Quick Start