***

title: Quickstart
description: >-
Get started with Unleash in minutes. Sign up for a free trial, create your
first feature flag, and connect your application using our SDKs.
keywords: >-
quickstart, getting started, feature flags, unleash cloud, free trial, sdk
integration
'og:site\_name': Unleash Documentation
'og:title': Unleash Quickstart - Get Started in Minutes
max-toc-depth: 3
----------------

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:

<Steps>
  <Step>
    **Sign up** for a free, cloud-hosted Unleash Enterprise instance.
  </Step>

  <Step>
    **Create your first feature flag** using the Unleash Admin UI.
  </Step>

  <Step>
    **Connect Unleash to your application** by integrating an SDK into your codebase.
  </Step>
</Steps>

<Frame background="subtle">
  ![The Unleash Admin UI onboarding experience](https://files.buildwithfern.com/unleash.docs.buildwithfern.com/1d5e74632bdcab730e7ee53cecfaf915681ab8d8ee5899cf30e217ab41cac00b/assets/onboarding-experience.png)
</Frame>

If you prefer to manage your own infrastructure, see the [self-hosted setup guide](/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 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.

<Button href="https://www.getunleash.io/plans" rightIcon="arrow-right">
  Start free trial
</Button>

## Create your first feature flag

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

<Steps>
  <Step>
    In the Unleash Admin UI, open the **Default** project.
  </Step>

  <Step>
    Click **New feature flag**.
  </Step>

  <Step>
    Enter a name, and click **Create feature flag**.
  </Step>
</Steps>

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

## Connect your application to Unleash

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

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="Need an example application to test with?">
    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.
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

<Tabs>
  <Tab title="Connect a frontend SDK" language="javascript">
    <Steps>
      <Step title="Create an API token">
        In the Unleash Admin UI, create a [frontend API token](/concepts/api-tokens-and-client-keys#frontend-tokens) in **Admin settings > Access control > API access**.
      </Step>

      <Step title="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.
      </Step>

      <Step title="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](/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
            }
        });
        ```
      </Step>
    </Steps>
  </Tab>

  <Tab title="Connect a backend SDK" language="javascript">
    <Steps>
      <Step title="Create an API token">
        In the Unleash Admin UI, create a [backend token](/concepts/api-tokens-and-client-keys#backend-tokens) in **Admin settings > Access control > API access**.
      </Step>

      <Step title="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.
      </Step>

      <Step title="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](/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
            }
        });
        ```
      </Step>
    </Steps>
  </Tab>
</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](/get-started/unleash-overview), available [hosting options](/deploy/hosting-options), and other [reference documentation](/concepts/projects).
* **Developer guides**: Explore feature flag [best practices](/guides/feature-flag-best-practices) and [language-specific tutorials](/guides/implement-feature-flags-in-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.