# TypeScript / Node.js

Send an email from a plain Node.js script with `@messagebird/sdk`. You need a Bird API key: create one in **Developers → API keys** ([Send your first email](/docs/get-started/send-your-first-email) walks through it), then export it as `BIRD_API_KEY`.

## 1. Install

```bash
npm install @messagebird/sdk
# pnpm add @messagebird/sdk
# yarn add @messagebird/sdk
# bun add @messagebird/sdk
```

The SDK requires Node.js 20.3+ and is ESM-only.

## 2. Send

Create `send.ts`:

<!-- bird:snippet quickstart-email -->

```typescript
import { BirdClient } from "@messagebird/sdk";

const bird = new BirdClient({ apiKey: process.env.BIRD_API_KEY! });

const msg = await bird.email.send({
  from: { email: "onboarding@messagebird.dev", name: "Bird" },
  to: ["delivered@messagebird.dev"],
  subject: "Hello from Bird",
  html: "<p>My first Bird email.</p>",
});

console.log(msg.id, msg.status);
```

`onboarding@messagebird.dev` is Bird's shared onboarding sender and `delivered@messagebird.dev` is a [sandbox recipient](/docs/guides/email/testing-sandbox) that always delivers: no domain verification needed. The SDK infers the region from your key's `bk_us1_` / `bk_eu1_` prefix (no base URL to configure) and auto-generates an `Idempotency-Key` per call, so retried sends are safe.

## 3. Run it

```bash
npx tsx send.ts
```

The script prints the message ID and status:

```text
em_01ky7ma8y2es1s2akzk53tmjn0 accepted
```

`accepted` is the API's `202`: Bird has the message and delivers it asynchronously. Fetch it by its `em_` ID with `bird.email.get(msg.id)` and watch the status move to `delivered`.

## Next steps

- [TypeScript email SDK](/docs/sdks/typescript): the full email surface (`send`, `get`, `list`) and the error model.
- [Send your first email](/docs/get-started/send-your-first-email): creating an API key and the full set of sandbox addresses.
- [Sending domains](/docs/guides/email/sending-domains): verify your own domain for production sending.
- [Email API reference](/docs/api/reference/create-email-message): the full request and response schema.