> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://chatkitty-1.gitbook.io/chatkitty/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://chatkitty-1.gitbook.io/chatkitty/getting-started/setting-up-project.md).

# Setting up a ChatKitty project

The basics. Create a ChatKitty project, then install and configure the ChatKitty client.

## Creating a ChatKitty project

You'll need a **ChatKitty account** before you can begin building chat with ChatKitty.

You can [create a free ChatKitty account here](https://dashboard.chatkitty.com/authorization/register).

Once you've created a ChatKitty account, create an application for your project:

![Create an application for your project](https://936099615-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FKClJ16jIeBhZmEoZ4KTW%2Fuploads%2Fgit-blob-077758a7d1b1b91b82c4155b49a14fbb9b690ee3%2Fscreenshot-chatkitty-create-application%20\(1\).png?alt=media)

## Installing the ChatKitty JS SDK

To use the ChatKitty JavaScript Chat SDK, you'll need to add the [ChatKitty JavaScript SDK](https://www.npmjs.com/package/chatkitty) NPM package to your JavaScript front-end project:

{% tabs %}
{% tab title="NPM" %}

```bash
npm install chatkitty
```

{% endtab %}

{% tab title="Yarn" %}

```bash
yarn add chatkitty
```

{% endtab %}
{% endtabs %}

Next, you'll need to configure the ChatKitty SDK with your ChatKitty API key. You can find your API key on the **ChatKitty dashboard**, in the "**Settings**" page.

![From the ChatKitty dashboard](https://936099615-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FKClJ16jIeBhZmEoZ4KTW%2Fuploads%2Fgit-blob-ee24db212c00912f3ad4b1b33c188a8d53b33237%2Fscreenshot-chatkitty-side-menu-settings%20\(1\).png?alt=media)

Copy the string value under "**API Key**", you'll need it to initialize a ChatKitty client instance:

![Unique string used to identify your project](https://936099615-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FKClJ16jIeBhZmEoZ4KTW%2Fuploads%2Fgit-blob-cb62c87cd6fecf4a3649ea0dba30058dd537fb37%2Fscreenshot-chatkitty-settings-api-key%20\(1\).png?alt=media)

## Initializing the ChatKitty SDK with your API key

With your API key from the ChatKitty dashboard, you can initialize a new instance of the **ChatKitty client:**

```javascript
import ChatKitty from 'chatkitty';

export const kitty = ChatKitty.getInstance('YOUR CHATKITTY API KEY HERE');
```

With that, you can now use the ChatKitty SDK to begin building real-time chat features into your application.