---
title: "Quickstart"
description: "Build Fastcart, bootstrap a store, and run the API and admin locally."
---

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

# Quickstart

This guide takes a clean checkout to a running Fastcart API and admin UI.

## Prerequisites

Fastcart needs:

- **Rust.** The pinned toolchain in `rust-toolchain.toml` is installed automatically by `rustup`.
- **Node.js 22 or later** and **pnpm 10** for the admin, storefront, and docs apps.
- **SQLite.** Fastcart creates the database files for you; no separate server is required.

## Steps

1. **Install front-end dependencies**

   ```sh
   pnpm install
   ```
2. **Build the Rust workspace**

   ```sh
   cargo build --workspace
   ```
3. **Initialize the platform**

   This creates the platform database and default configuration.

   ```sh
   cargo run -p fastcart-cli -- init --dir .
   ```
4. **Create the first owner**

   ```sh
   cargo run -p fastcart-cli -- user create \
     --email owner@example.com --password 'change-me-please'
   ```
5. **Create a store**

   The domain is the `Host` header storefront requests resolve their store from.

   ```sh
   cargo run -p fastcart-cli -- store create \
     --name "Demo Store" --slug demo --domain shop.example.com \
     --owner-email owner@example.com
   ```
6. **Start the API**

   ```sh
   cargo run -p fastcart-cli -- serve
   ```
7. **Start the admin**

   In a second terminal:

   ```sh
   pnpm dev:admin
   ```

## Check it works

The API listens on `http://localhost:8080` and the admin on `http://localhost:5174`. Sign in with
the owner account you created, or choose **Explore the demo store** on the sign-in screen.

> **One-command demo**
>
> To see the admin and the plugin extension points without bootstrapping by hand, run
> `./scripts/plugin-demo.sh`. It creates an isolated demo store under `.fastcart-demo/`, installs
> the chat example plugin, and starts both processes.

## Next steps

- [Introduction](https://docs.fastcart.dev/): what Fastcart is and what it includes.
- [Storefront SSR](https://docs.fastcart.dev/storefront-ssr/): how the universal `workerd` runtime renders pages.
- [Configuration](https://github.com/luozhouyang/fastcart/blob/main/.env.example): environment
  overrides for the server, email, and payments.
- [API reference](https://github.com/luozhouyang/fastcart#http-api): the versioned HTTP surface and
  examples.

Source: https://docs.fastcart.dev/quickstart/index.mdx