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Gemini API quickstart

This quickstart shows you how to install our libraries and make your first Gemini API request.

Before you begin

Using the Gemini API requires an API key, you can create one for free to get started.

Create a Gemini API Key

Install the Google GenAI SDK

Python JavaScript Go Java C#Apps ScriptMore

Using Python 3.9+, install the google-genai package using the following pip command:

pip install -q -U google-genai

Using Node.js v18+, install the Google Gen AI SDK for TypeScript and JavaScript using the following npm command:

npm install @google/genai

Install google.golang.org/genai in your module directory using the go get command:

go get google.golang.org/genai

If you're using Maven, you can install google-genai by adding the following to your dependencies:

<dependencies>
  <dependency>
    <groupId>com.google.genai</groupId>
    <artifactId>google-genai</artifactId>
    <version>1.0.0</version>
  </dependency>
</dependencies>

Install googleapis/go-genai in your module directory using the dotnet add command

dotnet add package Google.GenAI

To create a new Apps Script project, go to script.new.
Click Untitled project.
Rename the Apps Script project AI Studio and click Rename.
Set your API key
At the left, click Project Settings.
Under Script Properties click Add script property.
For Property, enter the key name: GEMINI_API_KEY.
For Value, enter the value for the API key.
Click Save script properties.
Replace the Code.gs file contents with the following code:

Make your first request

Here is an example that uses the generateContent method to send a request to the Gemini API using the Gemini 2.5 Flash model.

If you set your API key as the environment variable GEMINI_API_KEY, it will be picked up automatically by the client when using the Gemini API libraries. Otherwise you will need to pass your API key as an argument when initializing the client.

Note that all code samples in the Gemini API docs assume that you have set the environment variable GEMINI_API_KEY.

Python JavaScript Go Java C#Apps Script RESTMore

from google import genai

# The client gets the API key from the environment variable `GEMINI_API_KEY`.
client = genai.Client()

response = client.models.generate_content(
    model="gemini-3-flash-preview", contents="Explain how AI works in a few words"
)
print(response.text)

import { GoogleGenAI } from "@google/genai";

// The client gets the API key from the environment variable `GEMINI_API_KEY`.
const ai = new GoogleGenAI({});

async function main() {
  const response = await ai.models.generateContent({
    model: "gemini-3-flash-preview",
    contents: "Explain how AI works in a few words",
  });
  console.log(response.text);
}

main();

package main

import (
    "context"
    "fmt"
    "log"
    "google.golang.org/genai"
)

func main() {
    ctx := context.Background()
    // The client gets the API key from the environment variable `GEMINI_API_KEY`.
    client, err := genai.NewClient(ctx, nil)
    if err != nil {
        log.Fatal(err)
    }

    result, err := client.Models.GenerateContent(
        ctx,
        "gemini-3-flash-preview",
        genai.Text("Explain how AI works in a few words"),
        nil,
    )
    if err != nil {
        log.Fatal(err)
    }
    fmt.Println(result.Text())
}

package com.example;

import com.google.genai.Client;
import com.google.genai.types.GenerateContentResponse;

public class GenerateTextFromTextInput {
  public static void main(String[] args) {
    // The client gets the API key from the environment variable `GEMINI_API_KEY`.
    Client client = new Client();

    GenerateContentResponse response =
        client.models.generateContent(
            "gemini-3-flash-preview",
            "Explain how AI works in a few words",
            null);

    System.out.println(response.text());
  }
}

using System.Threading.Tasks;
using Google.GenAI;
using Google.GenAI.Types;

public class GenerateContentSimpleText {
  public static async Task main() {
    // The client gets the API key from the environment variable `GOOGLE_API_KEY`.
    var client = new Client();
    var response = await client.Models.GenerateContentAsync(
      model: "gemini-3-flash-preview", contents: "Explain how AI works in a few words"
    );
    Console.WriteLine(response.Candidates[0].Content.Parts[0].Text);
  }
}

// See https://developers.google.com/apps-script/guides/properties
// for instructions on how to set the API key.
const apiKey = PropertiesService.getScriptProperties().getProperty('GEMINI_API_KEY');
function main() {
  const payload = {
    contents: [\
      {\
        parts: [\
          { text: 'Explain how AI works in a few words' },\
        ],\
      },\
    ],
  };

  const url = 'https://generativelanguage.googleapis.com/v1beta/models/gemini-3-flash-preview:generateContent';
  const options = {
    method: 'POST',
    contentType: 'application/json',
    headers: {
      'x-goog-api-key': apiKey,
    },
    payload: JSON.stringify(payload)
  };

  const response = UrlFetchApp.fetch(url, options);
  const data = JSON.parse(response);
  const content = data['candidates'][0]['content']['parts'][0]['text'];
  console.log(content);
}

curl "https://generativelanguage.googleapis.com/v1beta/models/gemini-3-flash-preview:generateContent" \
  -H "x-goog-api-key: $GEMINI_API_KEY" \
  -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  -X POST \
  -d '{
    "contents": [\
      {\
        "parts": [\
          {\
            "text": "Explain how AI works in a few words"\
          }\
        ]\
      }\
    ]
  }'

What's next

Now that you made your first API request, you might want to explore the following guides that show Gemini in action: