diff --git a/.gitignore b/.gitignore
index bd7c88b..e3a4d20 100644
--- a/.gitignore
+++ b/.gitignore
@@ -24,11 +24,9 @@ npm-debug.log*
 yarn-debug.log*
 yarn-error.log*
 
-# local env files
-.env
-.env*.local
-.env.test
-.prod.env
+# local env files (exclude all except .example.env)
+.env*
+!.example.env
 
 # vercel
 .vercel