Creating a Claude (Anthropic) API key and using it

Claude is the AI made by the company Anthropic. It is the recommended and default AI family inside NerrieBuilder, so this is the smoothest choice if you want to use your own key. In this guide you will create a free Anthropic account, add a small amount of credit, create a key, and paste it in the right place in NerrieBuilder. You do not need any technical skills, just follow the steps.

What you need

You need your own free Anthropic account. Important to know up front: at Anthropic a key only works once your account has credit on it. You buy a small amount of prepaid credit with a payment card first. Without credit the key exists but returns errors. That is the most common reason a brand-new key does not work.

Step 1: Create an account

1. Go to platform.claude.com. Tip: the old address console.anthropic.com automatically sends you to the same place.
2. Click Sign up to create a new account (or Sign in if you already have one).
3. Register with your email address or a Google account and confirm your email. Fill in the requested account details.

Step 2: Add credit (required)

1. Click Settings in the menu.
2. Go to the Billing section.
3. Add a payment card and buy a small starting amount of credit. A small amount is enough to begin, and you can top up later at any time.

Do not skip this step. A key without credit will not work and returns an error, even if everything else looks set up correctly.

Step 3: Create the API key

1. In the menu, go to Settings and then API keys. You can also go straight there via platform.claude.com/settings/keys.
2. Click the Create Key button.
3. Give the key a recognizable name, for example NerrieBuilder, so you know later what it is for.
4. You can choose an expiration (for example 3 hours, 1 day, 7 days, 30 days, or Never). Because your website uses this key continuously, it is best to choose Never or a long period. If you pick a short period, your key will stop working after that time.
5. Confirm to create the key.

Step 4: Copy the key

You will now see the key. It starts with sk-ant- followed by a long string of characters. Copy it right away and keep it safe for a moment, for example in a scratch note.

Note: the full key is shown only once. If you close the window without copying, you will not be able to see it again and will have to create a new one.

Step 5: Paste the key into NerrieBuilder

1. Top-right, click your name/account.
2. Go to Settings.
3. Open the AI tab. This tab holds both the AI keys and the Stock photo keys.
4. Paste your key into the correct field for the AI key.
5. Click Test to check that the key works.
6. Then click Save.

Keeping your key safe

Treat your key like a password: do not share it with anyone. You can delete or replace (rotate) it at any time in your Anthropic account. NerrieBuilder stores your key encrypted and never shows it in full again. Suspect someone has seen your key? Delete it at Anthropic and create a new one.

What this unlocks

With your own Claude key, NerrieBuilder uses your account to generate and improve your website and webshop. Because Claude is the default and recommended choice, everything works most smoothly with this key.

Done! You have created your own Claude key and connected it. If you saw a green check when testing, you are all set and can get started right away.