# Quick Start Guide
source: https://developer.mastercard.com/account-catalog-services/documentation/quick-start-guide/index.md

## Create a Mastercard Developers account {#create-a-mastercard-developers-account}

1. Create a [Mastercard Developers account](https://developer.mastercard.com/account/sign-up).
2. Activate your account by opening the link sent to your email address.

Note:   

* Users must provide their email address to provision the service before selecting it from the dropdown menu. Without provisioning, the service will not appear in the dropdown menu.
* To provision your email address, contact the regional CIS team for further processing. This ensures that all required steps are completed and customers receive appropriate support. Users must use the same email address for both Sandbox (MTF) and Production environments to maintain consistency.

## Request access (if needed) {#request-access-if-needed}

[API's](https://developer.mastercard.com/apis) with a lock icon require permission to view their documentation and create a project. To gain access to these services, you will need to submit an access request form. Once submitted, you will receive an email confirmation approving or denying your access.

## Create a new project {#create-a-new-project}

Once you have found the API that is right for you, it's time to create a project and download your Sandbox credentials.

Create a project on your [My Projects](https://developer.mastercard.com/dashboard) page:

1. Name your project.
2. Indicate whether you are creating a project on behalf of a client. Note: Check **yes** if you are creating an API integration project for a customer. For example, you could be an integrator, a processor, or a service provider and the customer can be a merchant, issuer, acquirer.
3. Provide the client company name and client company address (if applicable).
4. Select the service you intend to integrate with.
5. Provide the Commercials countries for the project. This field represents where you are doing business. Note: If you are creating a project on-behalf of a client, the Commercial countries represent where your client is doing business.

![create-project](https://static.developer.mastercard.com/content/platform/img/border-control-create-project.png)

6. Fill out additional details that the service requires (if applicable). These details can be modified later, though the specific fields you can edit will vary depending on the service. To learn more about updating service and project information, see [Editing Service Details](https://developer.mastercard.com/platform/documentation/managing-your-account/editing-service-details/) and [Editing Project Details](https://developer.mastercard.com/platform/documentation/managing-your-account/editing-project-details/).

7. Enter your Sandbox key alias and keystore password.

![create-project](https://static.developer.mastercard.com/content/platform/img/create-project-oauth-project-key.png)

8. Save your Sandbox credentials.

![create-project](https://static.developer.mastercard.com/content/platform/img/create-project-download-key.png)

9. Begin testing.

## Adding a new service to an existing project {#adding-a-new-service-to-an-existing-project}

If you want to integrate an additional service to a project, you can follow the below steps:

1. Open your project on Mastercard Developers.
2. On the project dashboard summary page, click **Add a new API to this project**.
3. Pick the API that you would like to add, fill out any necessary consents, and create/download your keys.

Your project will show the newly added API, and you can use the same keys and credentials to access any/all APIs in your project.

![add-api-service](https://static.developer.mastercard.com/content/platform/img/add-api-service.png)

## Integrate {#integrate}

Tip: You can use an API Interface Tool like Insomnia or Postman to test your Sandbox keys. Read our [blog post](https://developer.mastercard.com/blog/a-mastercard-plugin-for-insomnia-rest-client/) and accompanying [tutorial](https://developer.mastercard.com/platform/tutorial/use-insomnia-rest-client-for-mastercard-apis/) to learn about using Insomnia app to interact with Mastercard APIs.

### Option 1: Generate Your Own API Client {#option-1-generate-your-own-api-client}

1. Navigate to the API documentation page.
2. Download the API specification (OpenAPI or Swagger).
3. Generate and configure an API client for this API.
4. Configure your client using our client libraries.

For detailed step-by-step guide see [Generating and Configuring a Mastercard API Client](https://developer.mastercard.com/platform/documentation/getting-started-with-mastercard-apis/generating-and-configuring-a-mastercard-api-client/)

### Option 2: Use the Provided SDKs {#option-2-use-the-provided-sdks}

1. Navigate to the API documentation page.
2. Go to the **SDK Reference** section.
3. Select your coding language and use the provided code snippets and samples.

## Go Live {#go-live}

After you have tested your implementation in our Sandbox environments, it is time to move to Production.

1. Within your project, select **Request Production Access**.

![move-to-prod](https://static.developer.mastercard.com/content/platform/img/project-dashboard.png)

2. Fill out additional details that the service requires (if applicable). These details can be modified later, though the specific fields you can edit will vary depending on the service. To learn more about updating service and project information, see [Editing Service Details](https://developer.mastercard.com/platform/documentation/managing-your-account/editing-service-details/) and [Editing Project Details](https://developer.mastercard.com/platform/documentation/managing-your-account/editing-project-details/).

3. Enter your Production key alias and keystore password.

![move-to-prod](https://static.developer.mastercard.com/content/platform/img/prod-project-credentials.png)

4. Save your key alias and keystore password for future reference.
5. Confirm and download your Production keys.

Note: Production Credentials are generated instantaneously, but they still need to be approved for Production environment access before you can go live. Once your Production access request has been reviewed, you will receive a notification confirming your access has been approved or denied.