---
title: Getting Started
description: Sign up, create an API key, and make your first request to the Insighthread News API in a few minutes.
sidebar:
  label: Getting Started
  order: 1
---

1. **Create a developer account**

    Sign up for a developer account on the Insighthread dashboard. Signing up automatically provisions your developer record — no separate onboarding step needed.

2. **Create an API key**

    From your dashboard, create a key under **API Keys**. Start with a **test key** (`ik_test_...`) — it returns deterministic sample data and never counts against your quota, so you can integrate safely before switching to a live key.

    The raw key is shown **once**, at creation time. Only its hash is stored, so if you lose it you'll need to revoke it and create a new one.

3. **Make your first request**

    Call `/v1/ping` to confirm your key works:

    ```bash
    curl https://newsapi.insighthread.com/api/v1/ping \
      -H "Authorization: Bearer ik_test_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx"
    ```

    ```json
    {
      "ok": true,
      "message": "Authenticated as \"my test key\"",
      "client": { "id": "...", "label": "my test key", "prefix": "ik_test_xxxxxxxx" },
      "served_at": "2026-08-24T10:15:00.000Z"
    }
    ```

4. **Fetch news**

    Call `/v1/news` for a page of articles:

    ```bash
    curl "https://newsapi.insighthread.com/api/v1/news?ticker=AAPL&limit=5" \
      -H "Authorization: Bearer ik_test_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx"
    ```

    See the [API Reference](/docs/reference/news) for every filter and the full response shape.

:::tip
Test keys (`ik_test_...`) return the same response shape as live keys, so code written against a test key works unchanged once you switch to a live one.
:::

## Next steps

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Authentication" href="/docs/authentication" icon="file">
    Key types, headers, and error responses.
  </Card>
  <Card title="API Reference" href="/docs/reference" icon="folder">
    ping, events, and news endpoints in detail.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>