---
title: Quickstart
pagination_next: topics/what-is-a-feature-flag
---

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import TabItem from '@theme/TabItem';
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The easiest way to get started with Unleash is through a [cloud-hosted free trial](https://www.getunleash.io/plans/enterprise-payg). This gives you a ready-to-use instance, so you can explore all Unleash features without any local setup.

In this guide, you'll:

1. **Sign up** for a free, cloud-hosted Unleash Enterprise instance.

2. **Create your first feature flag** using the Unleash Admin UI.

3. **Connect Unleash to your application** by integrating an SDK into your codebase.

![The Unleash Admin UI onboarding experience](/img/onboarding-experience.png)

If you prefer to manage your own infrastructure, see the [self-hosted setup guide](./using-unleash/deploy/getting-started). To use the open-source version, see the instructions in the [Unleash GitHub repository](https://github.com/Unleash/unleash?tab=readme-ov-file#get-started-with-unleash).

## Sign up for an Unleash Enterprise Cloud trial

Start by signing up for a [free 14-day trial](https://www.getunleash.io/plans/enterprise-payg) of Unleash Enterprise Cloud.
After you submit the form, you will receive a confirmation email. Follow the link in the email to set your password and log in to your Unleash instance.

## Create your first feature flag

Once you've logged in, it's time to create your first feature flag:

1. In the Unleash Admin UI, open the **Default** project.
2. Click **New feature flag**.
3. Enter a name, and click **Create feature flag**.

For more details on creating feature flags, see [How to create a feature flag](/how-to-create-feature-flag).

## Connect your application to Unleash

Next, use one of the client or server-side [SDKs](/reference/sdks) to connect Unleash with your application. 

<details>
  <summary>Need an example application to test with?</summary>

    Explore our SDK examples directly in your browser with CodeSandbox. Check out the [Unleash SDK Examples](https://github.com/Unleash/unleash-sdk-examples) repository to try one now.
</details>

<Tabs groupId="connect-sdk-quickstart">

<TabItem value="sdk-client-side" label="Connect a client-side SDK">

1. **Create an API token**

    In the Unleash Admin UI, create a [frontend API token](/reference/api-tokens-and-client-keys#frontend-tokens) in **Admin settings > Access control > API access**. 
2. **Get your Unleash API URL**

    Find the base URL of your Unleash Cloud instance (for example, `https://us.app.unleash-hosted.com/some-instance-id`). Your frontend API URL is this base URL with `/api/frontend` appended to it.
3. **Initialize the SDK**
    
    In your application code, initialize the SDK using your API URL and token.

The following example shows how to use the [JavaScript SDK](/reference/sdks/javascript-browser) to connect to your Unleash instance:

```javascript title="JavaScript SDK"
import { UnleashClient } from "unleash-proxy-client";

const unleash = new UnleashClient({
    url: "https://<YOUR_UNLEASH_INSTANCE>/api/frontend",
    clientKey: "<YOUR_TOKEN>",
    appName: "<YOUR_APP_NAME>",
});

unleash.on("synchronized", () => {
    // Unleash is ready to serve updated feature flags.

    // Check a feature flag
    if (unleash.isEnabled("some-flag")) {
        // do cool new things when the flag is enabled
    }
});
```

</TabItem>
<TabItem value="sdk-server-side" label="Connect a server-side SDK">

1. **Create an API token**

    In the Unleash Admin UI, create a [client API token](/reference/api-tokens-and-client-keys#client-tokens) in **Admin settings > Access control > API access**. 
2. **Get your Unleash API URL**

    Find the base URL of your Unleash Cloud instance (for example, `https://us.app.unleash-hosted.com/some-instance-id`). Your API URL is this base URL with `/api` appended to it.
3. **Initialize the SDK**

    In your application code, initialize the SDK using your API URL and token.

The following example shows how to use the [Node.js SDK](/reference/sdks/node) to connect to your Unleash instance:

```javascript title="Node.js SDK"
const { initialize } = require("unleash-client");

const unleash = initialize({
    url: "https://<YOUR_UNLEASH_INSTANCE>/api",
    appName: "<YOUR_APP_NAME>",
    customHeaders: {
        Authorization: "<YOUR_TOKEN>",
    },
});

unleash.on("synchronized", () => {
    // Unleash is ready to serve updated feature flags.

    if (unleash.isEnabled("some-flag")) {
        // do cool new things when the flag is enabled
    }
});
```

</TabItem>
</Tabs>

For examples that show how to connect to Unleash in other programming languages, see the [Unleash SDK Examples repository](https://github.com/Unleash/unleash-sdk-examples).


## Next steps

You have successfully connected Unleash to your application. To continue exploring, see the following resources:

- **Core concepts**: Learn about the [Unleash architecture](/understanding-unleash/unleash-overview), available [hosting options](/understanding-unleash/hosting-options), and other [reference documentation](/reference/projects).
- **Developer guides**: Explore feature flag [best practices](/topics/feature-flags/feature-flag-best-practices) and [language-specific tutorials](/feature-flag-tutorials/react).
- **Join the community**: Have questions or feedback? Join the [Unleash community on Slack](https://slack.unleash.run) to connect with other developers and the Unleash team.