Quick Start

⏱ ~5 min 📘 Beginner Updated: Nov 12, 2025

Welcome to FlowCMS. This guide will walk you through setting up your workspace, installing the SDK, and making your first API request in under five minutes.

ℹī¸ Prerequisites
✓ Node.js 18+ installed
✓ npm or yarn
✓ Active FlowCMS account
✓ Basic REST/GraphQL knowledge

Step 1: Create Your Workspace

1
Initialize Project

Sign in to your dashboard, click "Create Workspace", and select the "Starter Template". This provisions your project with default content models and API credentials.

Terminal 
# Install the FlowCMS CLI globally
npm install -g @flowcms/cli

# Login with your credentials
flowcms login

# Create a new project directory
mkdir my-flow-app && cd my-flow-app
flowcms init --template starter

Step 2: Configure Environment

2
Set API Credentials

FlowCMS uses a .env file to manage your project tokens. Copy the example file and paste your Project ID and API Key from the dashboard.

.env 
# FlowCMS Configuration
FLOWCMS_PROJECT_ID="proj_8x92k4m2p1qz"
FLOWCMS_API_KEY="sk_live_9f8a7b6c5d4e3f2g1h0i"
FLOWCMS_REGION="us-east-1"
FLOWCMS_ENV="production"

Step 3: Install the SDK

3
Add FlowCMS Client

The official JavaScript/TypeScript SDK provides type-safe methods for querying, creating, and managing content. Install it alongside your preferred package manager.

Terminal 
# Install via npm
npm install @flowcms/sdk

# Or using yarn
yarn add @flowcms/sdk

Step 4: Make Your First Request

4
Query Content

Create a simple script to fetch your blog posts. The SDK automatically handles authentication, pagination, and caching.

JavaScript 
import { FlowClient } from '@flowcms/sdk';
import { config } from 'dotenv';

config();

const client = new FlowClient({
  projectId: process.env.FLOWCMS_PROJECT_ID,
  apiKey: process.env.FLOWCMS_API_KEY,
  region: process.env.FLOWCMS_REGION,
});

async function getPosts() {
  const response = await client.query('posts', {
    fields: ['id', 'title', 'slug', 'published_at'],
    filter: { status: 'published' },
    sort: '-published_at',
    limit: 10,
  });

  console.log(`Found ${response.total} posts`);
  console.log(response.data);
}

getPosts();
⚠ī¸ Security Note

Never commit your .env file to version control. Use environment variables in production and restrict API keys to specific domains when making client-side requests.

What's Next?

Now that your project is set up, explore the following guides to build your full workflow:

  • Define Content Models — Structure your data with flexible schemas
  • GraphQL vs REST — Choose the right API strategy for your stack
  • Media Management — Upload, transform, and optimize assets
  • AI Workflows — Automate tagging, translation, and content generation