diff --git a/.changeset/rude-jobs-yawn.md b/.changeset/rude-jobs-yawn.md
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..9138d536935
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.changeset/rude-jobs-yawn.md
@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+---
+'@clerk/nextjs': patch
+'@clerk/remix': patch
+'gatsby-plugin-clerk': patch
+'@clerk/shared': patch
+---
+
+Improve the default value for CLERK_API_URL by utilizing the publishable key to differentiate between local, staging and prod environments.
diff --git a/packages/gatsby-plugin-clerk/src/constants.ts b/packages/gatsby-plugin-clerk/src/constants.ts
index 4e8e2abf1f9..74c0639a68c 100644
--- a/packages/gatsby-plugin-clerk/src/constants.ts
+++ b/packages/gatsby-plugin-clerk/src/constants.ts
@@ -1,6 +1,8 @@
+import { apiUrlFromPublishableKey } from '@clerk/shared';
 import { deprecated } from '@clerk/shared/deprecated';
 
-export const API_URL = process.env.CLERK_API_URL || 'https://api.clerk.com';
+export const PUBLISHABLE_KEY = process.env.GATSBY_CLERK_PUBLISHABLE_KEY || '';
+export const API_URL = process.env.CLERK_API_URL || apiUrlFromPublishableKey(PUBLISHABLE_KEY);
 export const API_VERSION = process.env.CLERK_API_VERSION || 'v1';
 /**
  * @deprecated Use `CLERK_SECRET_KEY` instead.
@@ -17,7 +19,6 @@ export const FRONTEND_API = process.env.GATSBY_CLERK_FRONTEND_API || '';
 if (FRONTEND_API) {
   deprecated('FRONTEND_API', 'Use `PUBLISHABLE_KEY` environment variable instead.');
 }
-export const PUBLISHABLE_KEY = process.env.GATSBY_CLERK_PUBLISHABLE_KEY || '';
 
 export const CLERK_JS = process.env.GATSBY_CLERK_JS;
 export const PROXY_URL = process.env.GATSBY_CLERK_PROXY_URL;
diff --git a/packages/remix/src/ssr/authenticateRequest.ts b/packages/remix/src/ssr/authenticateRequest.ts
index 713e7c23437..1aa656eec21 100644
--- a/packages/remix/src/ssr/authenticateRequest.ts
+++ b/packages/remix/src/ssr/authenticateRequest.ts
@@ -1,6 +1,12 @@
 import type { RequestState } from '@clerk/backend';
 import { buildRequestUrl, Clerk } from '@clerk/backend';
-import { deprecated, handleValueOrFn, isHttpOrHttps, isProxyUrlRelative } from '@clerk/shared';
+import {
+  apiUrlFromPublishableKey,
+  deprecated,
+  handleValueOrFn,
+  isHttpOrHttps,
+  isProxyUrlRelative,
+} from '@clerk/shared';
 
 import {
   noSecretKeyOrApiKeyError,
@@ -54,7 +60,7 @@ export function authenticateRequest(args: LoaderFunctionArgs, opts: RootAuthLoad
 
   const jwtKey = opts.jwtKey || getEnvVariable('CLERK_JWT_KEY', context);
 
-  const apiUrl = getEnvVariable('CLERK_API_URL', context);
+  const apiUrl = getEnvVariable('CLERK_API_URL', context) || apiUrlFromPublishableKey(publishableKey);
 
   const domain = handleValueOrFn(opts.domain, new URL(request.url)) || getEnvVariable('CLERK_DOMAIN', context) || '';