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

# Quickstart

> Get from zero to your first API response in under 2 minutes

## 1. Create an Account

Sign up at the [MetaLink Dashboard](https://metalinkapi.com/auth/login) using GitHub or Google.

## 2. Generate an API Key

From the [Dashboard](https://metalinkapi.com/dashboard), click **Create API Key**. Copy the key immediately — it won't be shown again.

Your key looks like: `ml_live_abc123def456...`

## 3. Make Your First Request

```bash theme={null}
curl "https://api.metalinkapi.com/v1/metadata?url=https://github.com" \
  -H "X-API-Key: ml_live_YOUR_KEY_HERE"
```

## 4. See the Response

```json theme={null}
{
  "url": "https://github.com",
  "title": "GitHub: Let's build from here",
  "description": "GitHub is where over 100 million developers shape the future of software.",
  "image": "https://github.githubassets.com/assets/campaign-social-031d6161fa10.png",
  "favicon": "https://github.githubassets.com/favicons/favicon.svg",
  "site_name": "GitHub",
  "type": "website",
  "locale": "en_US",
  "twitter_card": {
    "card": "summary_large_image",
    "site": "@github"
  },
  "fetched_at": "2026-03-25T18:30:00Z",
  "fetch_method": "http",
  "response_time_ms": 142
}
```

That's it! Check out [Authentication](/authentication) for more details on API key usage, or the [API Reference](/api-reference/get-metadata) for the full endpoint documentation.