> For clean Markdown of any page, append .md to the page URL.
> For a complete documentation index, see https://documentation.apexverify.com/llms.txt.
> For AI client integration (Claude Code, Cursor, etc.), connect to the MCP server at https://documentation.apexverify.com/_mcp/server.

# Your First API Key

Every request to the ApexVerify API must be authenticated with an API key. This guide walks you through creating your account, generating your first key, and verifying it works — in under 2 minutes.

ApexVerify uses a custom HTTP header for authentication: `X-Api-Key: YOUR_API_KEY`. Include this header on every API request. Requests without a valid key return `401 Unauthorized`.

---

## Steps

#### Create your account

Go to [app.apexverify.com](https://app.apexverify.com) and sign up for a free account through your preferred provider.

![Sign up for an ApexVerify account](https://fdr-prod-docs-files-public.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/documentation.apexverify.com/b6ffdc430aceb1957b50c56dbbb3c1dc304a588f0afb74e074408d4c1ad26726/docs/assets/images/overview/quickstart/first-api-key-signup.png?X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Content-Sha256=UNSIGNED-PAYLOAD&X-Amz-Credential=AKIA6KXJSKKNFOCF7G4B%2F20260905%2Fus-east-1%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Date=20260905T175140Z&X-Amz-Expires=604800&X-Amz-Signature=33420b4095ae605483f4d8d235bba74714f37cfe8057e5da488ca2c06672bb16&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&x-amz-checksum-mode=ENABLED&x-id=GetObject)

#### Open the Dashboard

Log in at [app.apexverify.com](https://app.apexverify.com). The dashboard is your control center for API keys, uploads, credit usage, and settings.

![ApexVerify dashboard overview](https://fdr-prod-docs-files-public.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/documentation.apexverify.com/7546c0b2afeefabf3d6c51cf5906c536a5ad762b1a48c0f3149d620622cb56f1/docs/assets/images/overview/quickstart/first-api-key-dashboard.png?X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Content-Sha256=UNSIGNED-PAYLOAD&X-Amz-Credential=AKIA6KXJSKKNFOCF7G4B%2F20260905%2Fus-east-1%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Date=20260905T175140Z&X-Amz-Expires=604800&X-Amz-Signature=d039fbef2717f32a4d2b5344cfd3eeb1d077ee87d1909a791d98703b376e4c94&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&x-amz-checksum-mode=ENABLED&x-id=GetObject)

#### Generate your API key

Navigate to **API Access** and click **ADD API KEY**.

Rename the key (e.g. `production`, `dev-local`, or `ci-pipeline`) to describe it for later easy analytics. Copy the key immediately and start use it.

![Generate a new API key](https://fdr-prod-docs-files-public.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/documentation.apexverify.com/6f99f934e00d736ec491f8215bf88bde4f7bd59bc9ee9c9c51e407524be8045d/docs/assets/images/overview/quickstart/first-api-key-generate.png?X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Content-Sha256=UNSIGNED-PAYLOAD&X-Amz-Credential=AKIA6KXJSKKNFOCF7G4B%2F20260905%2Fus-east-1%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Date=20260905T175140Z&X-Amz-Expires=604800&X-Amz-Signature=c9cf305e62a8cabcd5d7f0b548e6e576d9ec4b02bf3d516d280ee7b3b7c813da&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&x-amz-checksum-mode=ENABLED&x-id=GetObject)

#### Test your key

Run the following request to confirm the key is working. It fetches your current credit balance:

```bash
curl -X GET https://api.apexverify.com/v1/account/credits \
  -H "X-Api-Key: YOUR_API_KEY"
```

A successful response looks like this:

```json
{
  "email_credit": 1000.0,
  "phone_credit": 500.0
}
```

If you receive `401 Unauthorized`, double-check that the key was copied correctly and the header name is exactly `X-Api-Key`.

![Successful API key test response](https://fdr-prod-docs-files-public.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/documentation.apexverify.com/b140564f04b3caa955424de012ad330110e2bf4b727afe8dcae7141791a4d0e1/docs/assets/images/overview/quickstart/first-api-key-test.png?X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Content-Sha256=UNSIGNED-PAYLOAD&X-Amz-Credential=AKIA6KXJSKKNFOCF7G4B%2F20260905%2Fus-east-1%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Date=20260905T175140Z&X-Amz-Expires=604800&X-Amz-Signature=88baa1df1db1b9bebce64c736396683f2f0e0e4c335500a562403296feea9e5d&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&x-amz-checksum-mode=ENABLED&x-id=GetObject)

You can also try it from documentation like above on [ApexVerify API Web UI](/api-reference/apex-verify-api)

---

**Never expose your API key in client-side code, public repositories, or unsecured environments.** Treat it like a password. If a key is compromised, revoke it immediately from the Dashboard and generate a replacement.

See [Creating Additional API Keys](/tutorials/creating-additional-api-keys) for key rotation best practices.

---

## What's Next?

#### [Your First Upload](/quickstart/your-first-upload)

Learn how to upload a TXT file of emails or phone numbers to create your first batch.

#### [Your First Verification](/quickstart/your-first-verification)

Walk through the complete lifecycle from upload to exported results.