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

# .NET quick start

> Get started with Meilisearch using the .NET SDK in 5 minutes.

This guide walks you through setting up Meilisearch with .NET (C#).

## Prerequisites

* .NET 6.0 or higher
* A Meilisearch instance ([Cloud](https://cloud.meilisearch.com) or [self-hosted](/resources/self_hosting/getting_started/quick_start))

## 1. Install the SDK

<Tabs>
  <Tab title=".NET CLI">
    ```bash theme={null}
    dotnet add package MeiliSearch
    ```
  </Tab>

  <Tab title="Package Manager">
    ```bash theme={null}
    Install-Package MeiliSearch
    ```
  </Tab>
</Tabs>

## 2. Connect to Meilisearch

```csharp theme={null}
using Meilisearch;

var client = new MeilisearchClient(
    Environment.GetEnvironmentVariable("MEILISEARCH_URL"),
    Environment.GetEnvironmentVariable("MEILISEARCH_KEY")
);
```

<Note>
  **Set your environment variables:**

  ```bash theme={null}
  export MEILISEARCH_URL="https://your-instance.meilisearch.io"  # or http://localhost:7700
  export MEILISEARCH_KEY="your_api_key"
  ```

  [Get a free Cloud instance →](https://cloud.meilisearch.com)
</Note>

## 3. Add documents

```csharp theme={null}
// Define your document class
public class Movie
{
    public int Id { get; set; }
    public string Title { get; set; }
    public string[] Genres { get; set; }
    public int Year { get; set; }
}

// Add documents
var movies = new Movie[]
{
    new Movie { Id = 1, Title = "The Matrix", Genres = new[] { "Action", "Sci-Fi" }, Year = 1999 },
    new Movie { Id = 2, Title = "Inception", Genres = new[] { "Action", "Thriller" }, Year = 2010 },
    new Movie { Id = 3, Title = "Interstellar", Genres = new[] { "Drama", "Sci-Fi" }, Year = 2014 }
};

var index = client.Index("movies");
var task = await index.AddDocumentsAsync(movies);

// Wait for indexing to complete
await client.WaitForTaskAsync(task.TaskUid);
```

## 4. Search

```csharp theme={null}
var results = await index.SearchAsync<Movie>("matrix");

foreach (var hit in results.Hits)
{
    Console.WriteLine($"{hit.Title} ({hit.Year})");
}
// The Matrix (1999)
```

## 5. Search with filters

First, configure filterable attributes:

```csharp theme={null}
await index.UpdateFilterableAttributesAsync(new[] { "genres", "year" });
```

Then search with filters:

```csharp theme={null}
var results = await index.SearchAsync<Movie>("", new SearchQuery
{
    Filter = "genres = \"Sci-Fi\" AND year > 2000"
});
```

## Full example

```csharp theme={null}
using Meilisearch;

var client = new MeilisearchClient(
    Environment.GetEnvironmentVariable("MEILISEARCH_URL"),
    Environment.GetEnvironmentVariable("MEILISEARCH_KEY")
);

// Add documents
var movies = new[]
{
    new { Id = 1, Title = "The Matrix", Year = 1999 },
    new { Id = 2, Title = "Inception", Year = 2010 },
    new { Id = 3, Title = "Interstellar", Year = 2014 }
};

var index = client.Index("movies");
var task = await index.AddDocumentsAsync(movies);
await client.WaitForTaskAsync(task.TaskUid);

// Search
var results = await index.SearchAsync<dynamic>("inter");
foreach (var hit in results.Hits)
{
    Console.WriteLine(hit);
}
```

## Next steps

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Full-text search" icon="magnifying-glass" href="/capabilities/full_text_search/relevancy/relevancy">
    Configure ranking and relevancy
  </Card>

  <Card title="Filtering" icon="filter" href="/capabilities/filtering_sorting_faceting/getting_started">
    Add filters and facets
  </Card>

  <Card title="AI-powered search" icon="brain" href="/capabilities/hybrid_search/getting_started">
    Add semantic search
  </Card>

  <Card title="API reference" icon="code" href="/reference/api/search/search-with-post">
    Explore all search parameters
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

## Resources

* [meilisearch-dotnet on GitHub](https://github.com/meilisearch/meilisearch-dotnet)
* [SDK documentation](https://github.com/meilisearch/meilisearch-dotnet#readme)