> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://help.abacusdocs.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Quickstart: upload your first document

> Sign in with Auth0, upload a PDF or image, and open the document viewer.

This walkthrough takes you from a new account to a processed document. You need a PDF or image (JPG, PNG, WEBP, HEIC, or TIFF) no larger than **64 MB**.

<Steps>
  <Step title="Create your account">
    Open [abacusdocs.com/auth/login](https://abacusdocs.com/auth/login) and choose **Sign up** if you do not have an account. Sign-in is handled by **Auth0** (email or the social options your tenant offers). There is no password form on abacusdocs.com itself, and there is no passkey settings page in the product.

    After Auth0 returns you to the site:

    1. On **Get started**, click **Activate free credits** — 1,000 credits, no card.
    2. Read the terms of service, tick the agreement box, and click **Continue**.

    You land on **My Documents**.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Upload a file">
    On **My Documents** (`/app/`):

    1. Drag a file onto the drop zone, or use **browse files**.
    2. Optionally set **Translate to** if you want a translated transcription. Leave **None (original only)** to keep the source language.
    3. Click **Begin Document Extraction**.

    Status chips on the card show **Processing**, then **Done** or **Error**.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Open the document">
    Click the document card. The viewer is a split pane: the original on the left, tabs on the right.

    | Tab               | What it shows                                   |
    | ----------------- | ----------------------------------------------- |
    | **Sections**      | Logical sections with bounding boxes on the PDF |
    | **Transcription** | Full extracted text                             |
    | **Schema**        | Field cards if a schema is applied              |
    | **Chat**          | Questions about this document only              |
    | **Warnings**      | Extraction warnings, hidden when there are none |

    Toolbar actions include **Apply schema** / **Reprocess**, **Create schema**, **Share**, **Download**, and **Delete**.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Ask a question (optional)">
    Open the **Chat** tab on the document and type a question in plain language — for example, payment terms or a list of dates. Answers are grounded in this file.

    For a conversation that can attach several documents or a whole batch, use **Chat** in the sidebar instead. See [Chat](/guides/chat-and-analysis).
  </Step>
</Steps>

## Next steps

<Columns cols={2}>
  <Card title="Design a schema" icon="table" href="/schemas/builder">
    Name the fields you care about, then apply the schema and reprocess.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Run a batch" icon="layers" href="/guides/batch-processing">
    Submit up to 1,024 files from **Batch Processing**.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Share a document" icon="share-2" href="/sharing/public-links">
    Create a public read-only link from the document Share menu.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Mint an API key" icon="key" href="/authentication">
    Generate a `sk-abacus-*` key on the API page.
  </Card>
</Columns>