﻿---
title: Getting started
description: This page guides you through the installation process of the Node.js client, shows you how to instantiate the client, and how to perform basic Elasticsearch...
url: https://www.elastic.co/elastic/docs-builder/docs/2437/reference/elasticsearch/clients/javascript/getting-started
---

# Getting started
This page guides you through the installation process of the Node.js client, shows you how to instantiate the client, and how to perform basic Elasticsearch operations with it.

### Requirements

- [Node.js](https://nodejs.org/) version 14.x or newer
- [`npm`](https://docs.npmjs.com/downloading-and-installing-node-js-and-npm), usually bundled with Node.js


### Installation

To install the latest version of the client, run the following command:
```shell
npm install @elastic/elasticsearch
```

Refer to the [*Installation*](https://www.elastic.co/elastic/docs-builder/docs/2437/reference/elasticsearch/clients/javascript/installation) page to learn more.

### Connecting

You can connect to the Elastic Cloud using an API key and the Elasticsearch endpoint.
```js
const { Client } = require('@elastic/elasticsearch')
const client = new Client({
  node: 'https://...',
  auth: {
    apiKey: {
      id: 'foo',
      api_key: 'bar',
    }
  }
})
```

Your Elasticsearch endpoint can be found on the **My deployment** page of your deployment:
![Finding Elasticsearch endpoint](https://www.elastic.co/elastic/docs-builder/docs/2437/reference/elasticsearch/clients/javascript/images/es-endpoint.jpg)
You can generate an API key on the **Management** page under Security.
![Create API key](https://www.elastic.co/elastic/docs-builder/docs/2437/reference/elasticsearch/clients/javascript/images/create-api-key.png)
For other connection options, refer to the [*Connecting*](https://www.elastic.co/elastic/docs-builder/docs/2437/reference/elasticsearch/clients/javascript/connecting) section.

### Operations

Time to use Elasticsearch! This section walks you through the basic, and most important, operations of Elasticsearch.

#### Creating an index

This is how you create the `my_index` index:
```js
await client.indices.create({ index: 'my_index' })
```


#### Indexing documents

This is a simple way of indexing a document:
```js
await client.index({
  index: 'my_index',
  id: 'my_document_id',
  document: {
    foo: 'foo',
    bar: 'bar',
  },
})
```


#### Getting documents

You can get documents by using the following code:
```js
await client.get({
  index: 'my_index',
  id: 'my_document_id',
})
```


#### Searching documents

This is how you can create a single match query with the client:
```js
await client.search({
  query: {
    match: {
      foo: 'foo'
    }
  }
})
```


#### Updating documents

This is how you can update a document, for example to add a new field:
```js
await client.update({
  index: 'my_index',
  id: 'my_document_id',
  doc: {
    foo: 'bar',
    new_field: 'new value'
  }
})
```


#### Deleting documents

```js
await client.delete({
  index: 'my_index',
  id: 'my_document_id',
})
```


#### Deleting an index

```js
await client.indices.delete({ index: 'my_index' })
```


## Further reading

- Use [*Client helpers*](https://www.elastic.co/elastic/docs-builder/docs/2437/reference/elasticsearch/clients/javascript/client-helpers) for a more comfortable experience with the APIs.
- For an elaborate example of how to ingest data into Elastic Cloud, refer to [this page](https://docs-v3-preview.elastic.dev/elastic/docs-builder/docs/2437/manage-data/ingest/ingesting-data-from-applications/ingest-data-with-nodejs-on-elasticsearch-service).