> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.firmium.de/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Quickstart

> From registration to your first Firmium API call

# Quickstart

This guide walks through creating an account, issuing an API key, and making the first request.

## 1. Sign up

1. Open the [Firmium dashboard](https://www.firmium.de/).
2. Create an account with your email address.
3. Confirm the address via the link we send.

## 2. Get an API key

1. Sign in to the dashboard.
2. Go to **API / Schnittstelle**.
3. Create an API key (Bearer token) and store it securely.

> **Note:** Treat the key like a password. Do not commit it to source control.

## 3. First API request

### Search companies

```bash theme={null}
curl -X POST https://www.firmium.de/api/v1/companies/search/ \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"name": "Beispiel GmbH"}'
```

**Example response:**

```json theme={null}
[
  {
    "uuid": "550e8400-e29b-41d4-a716-446655440000",
    "name": "Beispiel GmbH",
    "registration_number": "FN 123456a",
    "status": "active",
    "legal_form": "GmbH"
  }
]
```

### Deep Search

```bash theme={null}
curl -X POST https://www.firmium.de/api/v1/companies/search/ \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"name": "Beispiel GmbH", "deep": true}'
```

## 4. Error handling

* **401 Unauthorized:** Token missing, invalid, or expired.
* **403 Forbidden:** Authenticated, but not allowed to access the resource.

## 5. Best practices

* Never store API keys in source code or public repositories.
* Rotate keys regularly and delete unused ones.
* Respect the [rate limits](/rate-limits).
* See [Authentication](/authentication) for header details.

## Next steps

* [Search companies](/api-reference/v1/search-companies)
* [Introduction](/introduction)
* [MCP server](/mcp-server)