Get started building on Sei and using the JSON-RPC API
To use the Sei API you'll need to create a free Alchemy account first!
Introduction
Sei is a high-performance blockchain designed for decentralized finance (DeFi) applications. It offers fast transaction speeds, scalability, and a developer-friendly environment, making it an ideal platform for deploying DeFi applications and services.
What is the Sei API?
The Sei API allows developers to interact with the Sei network through a collection of JSON-RPC methods. Given its compatibility with standard blockchain APIs, developers familiar with other blockchain JSON-RPC APIs will find working with Sei intuitive and straightforward.
Getting Started Instructions
1. Choose a Package Manager (npm or yarn)
Your first step involves selecting a package manager, which will be crucial for managing your project's dependencies. The choice between npm
and yarn
depends on your personal preference or project requirements.
npm | yarn |
---|---|
Begin with npm by following the npm documentation. | For yarn , refer to yarn's installation guide. |
2. Set Up Your Project
To kickstart your project, open your terminal and execute the following commands:
mkdir sei-api-quickstart
cd sei-api-quickstart
npm init --yes
mkdir sei-api-quickstart
cd sei-api-quickstart
yarn init --yes
This creates a new directory named sei-api-quickstart
and initializes a Node.js project within it.
3. Make Your First Request
For making API requests, we'll use Axios, a widely-used HTTP client. Install Axios with the following command:
npm install axios
# Or with yarn
# yarn add axios
Next, create an index.js
file in your project directory. Paste the following code to send a request to the Sei network:
const axios = require('axios');
const url = `https://sei-mainnet.g.alchemy.com/v2/${yourAPIKey}`;
const payload = {
jsonrpc: '2.0',
id: 1,
method: 'sei_getBlockNumber',
params: []
};
axios.post(url, payload)
.then(response => {
console.log('Block Number:', response.data.result);
})
.catch(error => {
console.error(error);
});
Remember to replace yourAPIKey
with your actual Alchemy API key that you can get from your Alchemy dashboard.
4. Run Your Script
To execute your script and make a request to the Sei network, run:
node index.js
You should see the current block number on Sei (in hexadecimal format) outputted to your console:
Block Number: 0x6d68e
Next Steps
Well done! You've just made your first request to the Sei API. With this foundation, you can dive deeper into the array of JSON-RPC methods available on Sei and start building your dApps on it!