diff --git a/src/cmds/restic/global.go b/src/cmds/restic/global.go
index 614bf3b9b..2a17379e8 100644
--- a/src/cmds/restic/global.go
+++ b/src/cmds/restic/global.go
@@ -67,7 +67,7 @@ func init() {
 
 	f := cmdRoot.PersistentFlags()
 	f.StringVarP(&globalOptions.Repo, "repo", "r", os.Getenv("RESTIC_REPOSITORY"), "repository to backup to or restore from (default: $RESTIC_REPOSITORY)")
-	f.StringVarP(&globalOptions.PasswordFile, "password-file", "p", "", "read the repository password from a file")
+	f.StringVarP(&globalOptions.PasswordFile, "password-file", "p", os.Getenv("RESTIC_PASSWORD_FILE"), "read the repository password from a file (default: $RESTIC_PASSWORD_FILE)")
 	f.BoolVarP(&globalOptions.Quiet, "quiet", "q", false, "do not output comprehensive progress report")
 	f.BoolVar(&globalOptions.NoLock, "no-lock", false, "do not lock the repo, this allows some operations on read-only repos")
 	f.BoolVarP(&globalOptions.JSON, "json", "", false, "set output mode to JSON for commands that support it")