> ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.bridgelinepf.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Quickstart > Your first quote in five minutes: get a key, price a policy, read the options and send your client the link. By the end of this page you'll have priced a real policy and have a link you could send to a client. Bridgeline turns on the API for your agency, then an agency admin creates a key in the Bridgeline portal under **API Keys**. The full key is shown once, so put it straight into your secret manager. **Start with a test key if you can.** A `bl_test_` key gets real pricing with no real-world effects: nobody is emailed, and test quotes are kept apart from live ones. Test mode is enabled per agency, so ask your Bridgeline contact to enable test mode. Live keys (`bl_live_`) are by invitation during the beta, and they're safe to build with too: creating a quote prices it and stores it, and nothing reaches your client until you send them the link. See [test and live mode](/concepts/test-and-live-mode). Store the key in an environment variable: ```bash theme={null} export BRIDGELINE_API_KEY="bl_test_..." # or bl_live_... ``` `GET /v1/whoami` tells you which agency the key belongs to and which broker it acts as. ```bash cURL theme={null} curl https://portal.bridgelinepf.com/api/v1/whoami \ -H "Authorization: Bearer $BRIDGELINE_API_KEY" ``` ```javascript Node theme={null} const res = await fetch('https://portal.bridgelinepf.com/api/v1/whoami', { headers: { Authorization: `Bearer ${process.env.BRIDGELINE_API_KEY}` }, }) console.log(await res.json()) ``` ```python Python theme={null} import os import requests res = requests.get( "https://portal.bridgelinepf.com/api/v1/whoami", headers={"Authorization": f"Bearer {os.environ['BRIDGELINE_API_KEY']}"}, timeout=30, ) print(res.json()) ``` ```json Response theme={null} { "object": "whoami", "livemode": true, "brokerage": { "name": "Lone Star Risk Partners" }, "acting_broker": { "email": "maria@lonestarrisk.example", "name": "Maria Delgado" }, "api_key": { "type": "agency", "scopes": ["quotes:read", "quotes:write"] }, "api_version": "2026-09-23" } ``` A `403` with `API_ACCESS_NOT_ENABLED` (a live key) or `TEST_MODE_NOT_ENABLED` (a test key) means that mode isn't switched on for your agency yet. Ask your Bridgeline contact. Send the insured's name and state, and for each policy its premium, minimum earned premium, dates, carrier and coverage. That's enough to price. The state must be a two-letter USPS code, such as `TX`. A full name like `"Texas"` is refused with a `422` whose message names the code to send (`Use the two-letter state code, e.g. "TX" for Texas.`). Today we finance insureds in Texas; any other valid code still gets a quote, marked [ineligible](/concepts/eligibility). ```bash cURL theme={null} curl https://portal.bridgelinepf.com/api/v1/quotes \ -H "Authorization: Bearer $BRIDGELINE_API_KEY" \ -H "Content-Type: application/json" \ -H "Idempotency-Key: $(uuidgen)" \ -d '{ "insured": { "name": "Lone Star Fabrication LLC", "address": { "state": "TX" } }, "policies": [{ "premium": "46100.00", "minimum_earned": { "rate": 0.25 }, "effective_date": "2026-10-15", "expiration_date": "2027-10-15", "carrier": { "name": "Scottsdale Insurance Company" }, "coverages": [{ "type": "general_liability" }] }] }' ``` ```javascript Node theme={null} const res = await fetch('https://portal.bridgelinepf.com/api/v1/quotes', { method: 'POST', headers: { Authorization: `Bearer ${process.env.BRIDGELINE_API_KEY}`, 'Content-Type': 'application/json', 'Idempotency-Key': crypto.randomUUID(), }, body: JSON.stringify({ insured: { name: 'Lone Star Fabrication LLC', address: { state: 'TX' }, }, policies: [{ premium: '46100.00', minimum_earned: { rate: 0.25 }, effective_date: '2026-10-15', expiration_date: '2027-10-15', carrier: { name: 'Scottsdale Insurance Company' }, coverages: [{ type: 'general_liability' }], }], }), }) const quote = await res.json() ``` ```python Python theme={null} import os import uuid import requests res = requests.post( "https://portal.bridgelinepf.com/api/v1/quotes", headers={ "Authorization": f"Bearer {os.environ['BRIDGELINE_API_KEY']}", "Idempotency-Key": str(uuid.uuid4()), }, json={ "insured": { "name": "Lone Star Fabrication LLC", "address": {"state": "TX"}, }, "policies": [{ "premium": "46100.00", "minimum_earned": {"rate": 0.25}, "effective_date": "2026-10-15", "expiration_date": "2027-10-15", "carrier": {"name": "Scottsdale Insurance Company"}, "coverages": [{"type": "general_liability"}], }], }, timeout=30, ) quote = res.json() ``` Money is a decimal string (`"46100.00"`) and rates are fractions (`0.25` means 25%). The policy dates must be within the last 30 days or in the future; change them if you run this later. The quote comes back as `201 Created`. If you're quoting for a colleague, add `"broker_email"` to the body; otherwise the quote belongs to the key's default broker. The response is the whole quote. These are the parts you'll use first (abridged, illustrative figures): ```json 201 Created theme={null} { "id": "qte_2lo4LFk5rf8toDFJHSUZ2O", "object": "quote", "status": "active", "expires_at": "2026-11-03T15:04:05Z", "hosted_url": "https://portal.bridgelinepf.com/q/p98_xZUO2zaltiX49vC59BgOE1EUoRZSpIGtWjFUs0M", "eligibility": { "status": "eligible", "checks": [ ... ], "reasons": [] }, "assumptions": [ { "code": "TAXES_AND_FEES_NOT_PROVIDED", "param": "policies[0].taxes_and_fees", "message": "No taxes or fees provided; the amount financed is the premium only." }, { "code": "AUDITABLE_ASSUMED", "param": "policies[0].auditable", "message": "Not provided; assumed auditable (the conservative choice)." } ], "recommended_option_id": "opt_25_10", "options": [ { "id": "opt_25_10", "down_payment_rate": 0.25, "term_months": 10, "apr": 0.1195, "down_payment": "11525.00", "amount_financed": "34575.00", "monthly_payment": "3649.71", "finance_charge": "1922.08", "total_of_payments": "36497.08", "total_cost": "48022.08", "spread_clamped": false } ] } ``` * **`options`** is every down payment and term we can offer: 30 of them here, five down payments by six terms. * **`recommended_option_id`** is a sensible one to show first. It's a default, not advice. * **`assumptions`** lists what we filled in because you didn't send it. Send the real value and quote again to remove one. * **`eligibility.status`** is `eligible` or `ineligible`. A deal we can't finance still returns `201`, with the reasons and no options. The full response also has `policies`, `totals`, `warnings` and `binding_readiness`. [Quote in one call](/guides/quote-in-one-call) walks through all of it. `hosted_url` opens a page where your client compares every option, picks one and taps **I'm interested**. Email or text it to them yourself; we don't send it for you. `hosted_url` is returned only when the quote is created. Store it. If you lose it, [get a new link](/api-reference/quotes/hosted-link); the old one stops working. When your client responds, we email your broker, and `GET /v1/quotes/{id}` shows `status: "interested"` with their choice and note. ## Next steps Taxes and fees, several policies, your own ids, and every field in the response. What your client sees and how their response reaches you. Make every call safe to retry. Branch on stable codes, not messages. This documentation is built and hosted on [Mintlify](https://mintlify.com), a developer documentation platform.