> ## 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.

# JavaScript quick start

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

This guide walks you through setting up Meilisearch with JavaScript/Node.js.

## Prerequisites

* Node.js 14 or higher
* A Meilisearch instance ([Cloud](https://cloud.meilisearch.com) or [self-hosted](/resources/self_hosting/getting_started/quick_start))

## 1. Install the SDK

```bash theme={null}
npm install meilisearch
# or
yarn add meilisearch
```

## 2. Connect to Meilisearch

```javascript theme={null}
import { Meilisearch } from 'meilisearch'

const client = new Meilisearch({
  host: process.env.MEILISEARCH_URL,
  apiKey: process.env.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

```javascript theme={null}
const movies = [
  { id: 1, title: 'The Matrix', genres: ['Action', 'Sci-Fi'], year: 1999 },
  { id: 2, title: 'Inception', genres: ['Action', 'Thriller'], year: 2010 },
  { id: 3, title: 'Interstellar', genres: ['Drama', 'Sci-Fi'], year: 2014 }
]

// Add documents to the 'movies' index
const task = await client.index('movies').addDocuments(movies)

// Wait for indexing to complete
await client.waitForTask(task.taskUid)
```

## 4. Search

```javascript theme={null}
const results = await client.index('movies').search('matrix')

console.log(results.hits)
// [{ id: 1, title: 'The Matrix', genres: ['Action', 'Sci-Fi'], year: 1999 }]
```

## 5. Search with filters

First, configure filterable attributes:

```javascript theme={null}
await client.index('movies').updateFilterableAttributes(['genres', 'year'])
```

Then search with filters:

```javascript theme={null}
const results = await client.index('movies').search('', {
  filter: 'genres = "Sci-Fi" AND year > 2000'
})
```

## Full example

```javascript theme={null}
import { Meilisearch } from 'meilisearch'

const client = new Meilisearch({
  host: process.env.MEILISEARCH_URL,
  apiKey: process.env.MEILISEARCH_KEY
})

async function main() {
  // Add documents
  const movies = [
    { id: 1, title: 'The Matrix', genres: ['Action', 'Sci-Fi'], year: 1999 },
    { id: 2, title: 'Inception', genres: ['Action', 'Thriller'], year: 2010 },
    { id: 3, title: 'Interstellar', genres: ['Drama', 'Sci-Fi'], year: 2014 }
  ]

  const task = await client.index('movies').addDocuments(movies)
  await client.waitForTask(task.taskUid)

  // Search
  const results = await client.index('movies').search('inter')
  console.log(results.hits)
}

main()
```

## Next steps

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Front-end integration" icon="browser" href="/getting_started/instant_meilisearch/javascript">
    Add search to your React, Vue, or Angular app
  </Card>

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

## Resources

* [meilisearch-js on GitHub](https://github.com/meilisearch/meilisearch-js)
* [SDK documentation](https://github.com/meilisearch/meilisearch-js#readme)
* [instant-meilisearch](https://github.com/meilisearch/meilisearch-js-plugins/tree/main/packages/instant-meilisearch) - InstantSearch adapter