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

# SDKs

> Official SDKs for programmatic access to Narrative I/O

Narrative provides official SDKs for integrating with the platform programmatically. SDKs simplify authentication, provide type safety, and offer convenient methods for common operations.

## Available SDKs

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="TypeScript SDK" icon="js" href="/reference/sdks/typescript">
    Full-featured SDK for Node.js and TypeScript applications. Includes complete type definitions and supports all API operations.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

## When to use an SDK

| Approach     | Best for                                                   |
| ------------ | ---------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Web UI**   | Manual operations, data exploration, one-off tasks         |
| **REST API** | Custom integrations, languages without SDK support         |
| **SDK**      | TypeScript/JavaScript apps, type safety, rapid development |

### Benefits of using an SDK

* **Type safety** - Full TypeScript support with autocomplete
* **Convenience** - Pre-built methods for common operations
* **Authentication** - Simplified API key management
* **Error handling** - Consistent error types and messages
* **Documentation** - Inline documentation and examples

## Quick comparison

```typescript theme={null}
// With SDK
import { NarrativeApi } from '@narrative.io/data-collaboration-sdk-ts';

const api = new NarrativeApi({ apiKey: process.env.NARRATIVE_API_KEY });
const datasets = await api.getDatasets();
```

```typescript theme={null}
// With REST API directly
const response = await fetch('https://api.narrative.io/datasets', {
  headers: {
    'Authorization': `Bearer ${process.env.NARRATIVE_API_KEY}`,
    'Content-Type': 'application/json',
  },
});
const datasets = await response.json();
```

## Getting started

<Steps>
  <Step title="Create an API key">
    Navigate to [Settings > API Keys](/account-settings/api-keys) and create a new key with appropriate permissions.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Install the SDK">
    ```bash theme={null}
    npm install @narrative.io/data-collaboration-sdk-ts
    ```
  </Step>

  <Step title="Initialize and use">
    ```typescript theme={null}
    import { NarrativeApi } from '@narrative.io/data-collaboration-sdk-ts';

    const api = new NarrativeApi({
      apiKey: process.env.NARRATIVE_API_KEY,
    });

    const datasets = await api.getDatasets();
    ```
  </Step>
</Steps>

## Related resources

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="SDK Quickstart" icon="rocket" href="/getting-started/sdk-quickstart">
    Tutorial for first-time SDK users
  </Card>

  <Card title="API Keys" icon="key" href="/account-settings/api-keys">
    Create and manage API keys
  </Card>

  <Card title="REST API Reference" icon="book" href="/api-reference">
    Full REST API documentation
  </Card>

  <Card title="SDK Guides" icon="book-open" href="/guides/sdk">
    How-to guides for common tasks
  </Card>
</CardGroup>