# Quickstart

import { Steps, Tabs, TabItem, Aside, Code } from '@astrojs/starlight/components';

This quickstart walks you through creating an account, generating an API key,
and making your first request. Replace the placeholder URLs and resource names
with your own.

<Aside type="note">
	Prefer to read the API surface first? Jump to the **[API reference](/api/)**.
</Aside>

## Before you begin

You need:

- An account on **[your product]**. [Sign up](https://example.com/signup) if you don't have one.
- A terminal with `curl`, or a project set up with the language SDK of your choice.

## Steps

<Steps>

1. **Create an API key.**

   Sign in, open **Settings → API keys**, and click **Create key**. Copy it
   somewhere safe — you'll only see it once.

2. **Export the key as an environment variable.**

   ```bash
   export API_KEY="sk_live_replace_me"
   ```

3. **Send your first request.**

   <Tabs syncKey="lang">
     <TabItem label="curl">
       ```bash
       curl https://api.example.com/v1/widgets \
         -H "Authorization: Bearer $API_KEY" \
         -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
         -d '{"name": "My first widget"}'
       ```
     </TabItem>
     <TabItem label="JavaScript">
       ```js
       const res = await fetch('https://api.example.com/v1/widgets', {
         method: 'POST',
         headers: {
           Authorization: `Bearer ${process.env.API_KEY}`,
           'Content-Type': 'application/json',
         },
         body: JSON.stringify({ name: 'My first widget' }),
       });
       const widget = await res.json();
       ```
     </TabItem>
     <TabItem label="Python">
       ```python
       import os, requests

       res = requests.post(
           "https://api.example.com/v1/widgets",
           headers={"Authorization": f"Bearer {os.environ['API_KEY']}"},
           json={"name": "My first widget"},
       )
       widget = res.json()
       ```
     </TabItem>
   </Tabs>

4. **Inspect the response.**

   ```json title="Response"
   {
     "id": "wdg_01H8Z9XJ7M3K4P5Q6R7S8T9V0W",
     "name": "My first widget",
     "created_at": "2026-05-10T12:00:00Z"
   }
   ```

</Steps>

## What's next

- Read **[How it works](/concepts/how-it-works/)** to understand the data model.
- Browse the **[API reference](/api/)** for every endpoint.
- See **[Authentication](/get-started/authentication/)** for key rotation and scoping.