How do you set environment variables for a single command on Windows?

Question

Is there a way to set environment variables for a single command on Windows like ENVVAR=abc command on Unix?

Variables set by set command on Windows seem to remain for the following commands, but this is not what I want.

Answer 1

Is there a way to set environment variables for a single command?

From the current cmd shell:

You have to clear the variable yourself.

set ENVVAR=abc && dir & set ENVVAR=

From a batch file:

You can use setlocal and endlocal.

@echo off
setlocal 
  set ENVVAR=abc && dir
endlocal

Use a child cmd shell:

You can use cmd /c to create a child shell.

The variable is set in the child shell and doesn't affect the parent shell (as pointed out in a comment by jpmc26).

cmd /C "set ENVVAR=abc && dir"

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Further Reading

• An A-Z Index of the Windows CMD command line - An excellent reference for all things Windows cmd line related.
• cmd - Start a new CMD shell and (optionally) run a command/executable program.
• endlocal - End localisation of environment changes in a batch file. Pass variables from one batch file to another.
• redirection - Redirection operators.
• set - Display, set, or remove CMD environment variables. Changes made with SET will remain only for the duration of the current CMD session.
• setlocal - Set options to control the visibility of environment variables in a batch file.