---
title: Quickstart | Tabstack
description: Get up and running with Tabstack API in minutes. This guide will walk you through authentication setup and your first API calls.
---

## Prerequisites

- A programming environment (examples use curl and Python)
- Basic knowledge of REST APIs

## Create and Setup Your API Key

Before you can start using Tabstack API, you’ll need to create an API key and set it up in your environment.

### 1. Create Your API Key

1. Visit the [Tabstack Console](https://console.tabstack.ai/)
2. Sign in to your account (or create one if you haven’t already)
3. Navigate to the API Keys section and click the “Manage API Keys”
4. Once you are on the API Keys page, Click “Create New API Key”
5. Give your key a descriptive name (e.g., “Development”, “Production”) and click the “Create API Key”
6. Copy the generated API key and store it securely

Your API key will only be shown once. Make sure to copy and store it in a secure location.

### 2. Set Up Environment Variable

For security and convenience, we recommend storing your API key as an environment variable rather than hardcoding it in your scripts.

macOS/Linux

Terminal window

```
# Add to your shell profile (~/.bashrc, ~/.zshrc, or ~/.bash_profile)
export TABS_API_KEY="your_api_key_here"


# Or set it temporarily for the current session
export TABS_API_KEY="your_api_key_here"


# Reload your shell or run:
source ~/.bashrc  # or ~/.zshrc
```

Windows (Command Prompt)

```
# Set temporarily for current session
set TABS_API_KEY=your_api_key_here


# Set permanently (requires restart)
setx TABS_API_KEY "your_api_key_here"
```

Windows (PowerShell)

```
# Set temporarily for current session
$env:TABS_API_KEY = "your_api_key_here"


# Set permanently for current user
[Environment]::SetEnvironmentVariable("TABS_API_KEY", "your_api_key_here", "User")
```

### 3. Verify Your Setup

Test that your environment variable is set correctly:

**macOS/Linux/Windows (Git Bash):**

Terminal window

```
echo $TABSTACK_API_KEY
```

**Windows (Command Prompt):**

Terminal window

```
echo %TABSTACK_API_KEY%
```

**Windows (PowerShell):**

Terminal window

```
echo $env:TABSTACK_API_KEY
```

You should see your API key printed in the terminal.

## Authentication

Tabstack API uses API key authentication. Include your API key in the `Authorization` header:

Terminal window

```
Authorization: Bearer $TABSTACK_API_KEY
```

Now that you have your environment variable set up, you can use `$TABSTACK_API_KEY` (or `%TABSTACK_API_KEY%` on Windows Command Prompt) in your curl commands.

## Your First API Call

The examples below use placeholder URLs like `example.com`, `blog.example.com`, etc. To test these endpoints successfully, replace these with real, accessible URLs from actual websites you want to fetch content from.

Let’s start with a simple markdown conversion to verify your setup:

Terminal window

```
curl -X POST "https://api.tabstack.ai/v1/extract/markdown" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TABSTACK_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "url": "https://example.com"
  }'
```

**Response:**

```
{
  "url": "https://example.com",
  "content": "---\ntitle: Example Domain\ndescription: Example Domain\nurl: https://example.com\ntype: website\n---\n\n# Example Domain\n\nThis domain is for use in illustrative examples in documents. You may use this domain in literature without prior coordination or asking for permission.\n\n[More information...](https://www.iana.org/domains/example)"
}
```

## Next Steps

Now that you’re up and running:

1. **Explore Examples**: Check out our [Price Monitor Example](/examples/price-monitor/index.md) to see how to build a real-world application
2. **API Reference**: Review the [API Reference](/api/index.md) for detailed endpoint documentation

## Need Help?

- Documentation: [docs.tabstack.ai](https://docs.tabstack.ai)
- Support: <tabstack-support@mozilla.com>