jeremylongshore Groq Install & Auth
Overview
Install the official Groq SDK and configure API key authentication. Groq provides ultra-fast LLM inference on custom LPU hardware through an OpenAI-compatible REST API at api.groq.com/openai/v1/.
The workflow is four steps: install the SDK, mint an API key, export it as an
environment variable, and verify the connection by listing models. Each step is
summarized below; deep detail lives in references/.
Prerequisites
- Node.js 18+ or Python 3.8+
- Package manager (npm, pnpm, or pip)
- Groq account at console.groq.com
- API key from GroqCloud console (Settings > API Keys)
Instructions
Step 1: Install the SDK
set -euo pipefail
# TypeScript / JavaScript
npm install groq-sdk
# Python
pip install groq
Step 2: Get Your API Key
- Go to console.groq.com/keys
- Click "Create API Key"
- Copy the key (starts with
gsk_) - Store it securely -- you cannot view it again
Step 3: Configure Environment
Add the .gitignore template
before writing any .env file so a key can never be committed:
# Set environment variable (recommended)
export GROQ_API_KEY="gsk_your_key_here"
# Or create .env file (add .env to .gitignore first)
echo 'GROQ_API_KEY=gsk_your_key_here' >> .env
Step 4: Verify the Connection
Run a short script that lists the models your key can access — a successful list proves authentication end-to-end. The essential TypeScript skeleton:
import Groq from "groq-sdk";
const groq = new Groq({ apiKey: process.env.GROQ_API_KEY });
const models = await groq.models.list();
console.log(models.data.map((m) => m.id));
Full runnable TypeScript and Python verification scripts, with expected output: verification walkthrough.
Output
A successful setup produces:
groq-sdk(Node) orgroq(Python) installed in the project.GROQ_API_KEYavailable in the environment (or.env, with.envgitignored).- A verification run that prints the accessible models, for example:
Connected! Available models:
llama-3.3-70b-versatile (owned by Meta)
llama-3.1-8b-instant (owned by Meta)
If the verification run prints a 401 instead of a model list, authentication
failed — see Error Handling.
SDK Defaults & Key Formats
The SDK auto-reads GROQ_API_KEY from the environment when no apiKey is passed.
Groq uses a single gsk_ key type with full API access (no read/write scopes).
Constructor options (baseURL, maxRetries, timeout), the OpenAI-SDK
compatibility path, and the key-format table are in the
configuration reference.
Error Handling
| Error | Cause | Solution |
|---|---|---|
401 Invalid API Key |
Key missing, revoked, or mistyped | Verify key at console.groq.com/keys |
MODULE_NOT_FOUND groq-sdk |
SDK not installed | Run npm install groq-sdk |
ModuleNotFoundError: No module named 'groq' |
Python SDK missing | Run pip install groq |
ENOTFOUND api.groq.com |
Network/DNS issue | Check internet connectivity and firewall |
Extended diagnostics (checking the exported variable, .env loading, key
rotation): troubleshooting reference.
Examples
Example 1 — Node project from scratch:
npm install groq-sdk
export GROQ_API_KEY="gsk_your_key_here"
node --env-file=.env verify.mjs # lists models → auth confirmed
Example 2 — Python project:
pip install groq
export GROQ_API_KEY="gsk_your_key_here"
python verify.py # prints accessible models
Example 3 — reuse an existing OpenAI codebase: point the OpenAI SDK at Groq
by overriding baseURL to https://api.groq.com/openai/v1 and passing your
gsk_ key. See the configuration reference.
Complete, runnable versions of the verification scripts are in the verification walkthrough.
Resources
Next Steps
After successful auth, proceed to the groq-hello-world skill to run your first
chat completion. For SDK tuning (retries, timeouts, custom base URL), read the
configuration reference.
Source: jeremylongshore/claude-code-plugins-plus-skills → skills/.curated/groq-install-auth/SKILL.md
Also appears in: jeremylongshore/claude-code-plugins-plus-skills/plugins/saas-packs/groq-pack/skills/groq-install-auth/SKILL.md