Getting Started

Getting Started

Get up and running with ApiArk in under 2 minutes.

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1. Download & Install

Download the latest release for your platform from GitHub Releases:

Platform	Download
Windows	.msi or .exe installer
macOS (Apple Silicon)	.dmg (aarch64)
macOS (Intel)	.dmg (x64)
Linux	.AppImage, .deb, or .rpm

See Installation Guide for detailed instructions.

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2. First Launch

When you launch ApiArk for the first time, you'll see the Welcome screen with three options:

• Start from scratch — Creates a sample collection with example requests
• Import existing collection — Import from Postman, Bruno, Insomnia, or OpenAPI
• Open a folder — Open a directory containing an existing ApiArk collection

No account required. No login. No sign-up. Ever.

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3. Send Your First Request

Quick GET Request

1. Press Ctrl+N (or Cmd+N on macOS) to create a new request
2. Type a URL in the address bar: https://httpbin.org/get
3. Press Ctrl+Enter to send
4. See the response in the panel below

POST with JSON Body

1. Create a new request (Ctrl+N)
2. Change the method dropdown from GET to POST
3. Enter URL: https://httpbin.org/post
4. Click the Body tab
5. Select JSON as the body type
6. Enter:

   {
     "name": "ApiArk",
     "type": "awesome"
   }

7. Press Ctrl+Enter to send

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4. Create a Collection

Collections are how you organize your API requests. Each collection is a folder on your filesystem.

1. Click the + button in the sidebar (or Ctrl+Shift+N)
2. Choose a name and location for your collection
3. ApiArk creates a directory with:

   my-collection/
   ├── .apiark/
   │   ├── apiark.yaml          # Collection config
   │   └── environments/
   │       └── default.yaml     # Default environment
   

4. Right-click the collection to add folders and requests

Save a Request

1. Press Ctrl+S to save your request
2. Choose the collection and folder
3. Name your request (e.g., "Get Users")
4. The request is saved as a .yaml file — human-readable, git-friendly

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5. Use Environment Variables

1. Click the environment dropdown in the header bar
2. Click Manage Environments
3. Add a variable: baseUrl = https://httpbin.org
4. In your request URL, type: {{baseUrl}}/get
5. The variable is resolved when you send the request

See Environment Variables for advanced usage including secrets and .env files.

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6. Explore Key Features

Feature	How to Access
Command Palette	Ctrl+K
Switch Environment	Ctrl+E
Toggle Sidebar	Ctrl+\
Settings	Ctrl+,
Import Collection	File menu or Command Palette
Send Request	Ctrl+Enter

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Next Steps

• Collections & YAML Format — Understand how data is stored
• Environment Variables — Master variable management
• Protocol Support — Try GraphQL, WebSocket, gRPC, and more
• Scripting Engine — Add pre/post request scripts
• Keyboard Shortcuts — Full shortcut reference
• Import & Export — Migrate from other tools