SOP-001: Getting Started with Claude API

Fresh

Source: Building with the Claude API

Document Control

Field	Value
SOP ID	SOP-001
Version	1.0
Status	Active
Last Updated	2024-12

Overview

This procedure covers setting up the Anthropic Claude API for direct integration.

Prerequisites

• Python 3.8+ installed
• Basic JSON knowledge
• Anthropic API key

Setup Process

Step 1: Get API Key

1. Navigate to console.anthropic.com
2. Sign up or log in
3. Go to API Keys section
4. Click Create Key
5. Copy and save securely

Security

Never commit API keys to version control. Use environment variables.

Step 2: Install SDK

pip install anthropic

Or with specific version:

pip install anthropic==0.39.0

Step 3: Configure Environment

Option A: Environment Variable

export ANTHROPIC_API_KEY="sk-ant-api03-..."

Option B: .env file

ANTHROPIC_API_KEY=sk-ant-api03-...

Step 4: Test API Call

import anthropic

client = anthropic.Anthropic()  # Uses ANTHROPIC_API_KEY env var

message = client.messages.create(
    model="claude-sonnet-4-20250514",
    max_tokens=1024,
    messages=[
        {"role": "user", "content": "Hello, Claude!"}
    ]
)

print(message.content[0].text)

Available Models

Verification Checklist

• [ ] API key obtained from console
• [ ] SDK installed successfully
• [ ] Environment variable configured
• [ ] Test call returns response
• [ ] No errors in console

Troubleshooting

Issue	Solution
AuthenticationError	Check API key is correct
RateLimitError	Wait and retry, or upgrade tier
InvalidRequestError	Check message format
Connection Error	Check network/firewall

See Also

• SOP-002: Amazon Bedrock Setup
• SOP-003: Google Vertex Setup
• Workflow-001: Prompt Engineering