Create an Account
Learn how to create a new Hedera account on testnet using the JavaScript, Java, or Go SDK. A Hedera account
is your identity on‑chain. It holds your HBAR (the network’s currency) and lets you sign transactions.
Prerequisites
A Hedera testnet operator account ID and ECDSA DER-encoded private key (from the Quickstart).
A small amount of testnet HBAR (ℏ) to pay the
$0.05
account‑creation fee.
NoteYou can always check the "✅ Code Check" section at the bottom of each page to view the entire code if you run into issues. You can also post your issue to the respective SDK channel in our Discord community here.
Install the SDK
Open your terminal and create a directory hedera-examples
directory. Then change into the newly created directory:
mkdir hedera-examples && cd hedera-examples
Initialize a node.js
project in this new directory:
npm init -y
Ensure you have Node.js v18
or later installed on your machine. Then, install the JavaScript SDK.
npm install --save @hashgraph/sdk
Update your package.json
file to enable ES6 modules and configure the project:
{
"name": "hedera-examples",
"version": "1.0.0",
"type": "module",
"main": "createAccountDemo.js",
"scripts": {
"start": "node createAccountDemo.js"
},
"keywords": [],
"author": "",
"license": "ISC",
"dependencies": {
"@hashgraph/sdk": "^2.69.0"
}
}
Create a createAccountDemo.js
file and add the following imports:
import {
Client,
PrivateKey,
AccountCreateTransaction,
Hbar
} from "@hashgraph/sdk";
Environment Variables
Set your testnet operator credentials as environment variables. Your OPERATOR_ID
is your testnet account ID. Your OPERATOR_KEY
is your testnet account's corresponding ECDSA private key.
export OPERATOR_ID="0.0.1234"
export OPERATOR_KEY="3030020100300506032b657004220420..."
Step 1: Initialize Hedera Client
Load your operator credentials from environment variables and initialize your Hedera testnet client. This client will connect to the Hedera test network and use your operator account to sign transactions and pay transaction fees.
// Load your operator credentials
const operatorId = process.env.OPERATOR_ID;
const operatorKey = process.env.OPERATOR_KEY;
// Initialize your testnet client and set operator
const client = Client.forTestnet()
.setOperator(operatorId, operatorKey);
Step 2: Generate a New Key Pair
Generate a new ECDSA private/public key pair for the account you'll create.
Why keys?
On the Hedera network, a private key allows you to sign transactions, ensuring only you control your assets, while a public key, shared on-chain, verifies your identity. This key pair is essential for account security.
// generates a new ECDSA key pair in memory
const newPrivateKey = PrivateKey.generateECDSA();
const newPublicKey = newPrivateKey.publicKey;
‼️ Security reminder: Keep your private keys secure - anyone with access can control your account and funds.
Step 3: Create Your First Account on Hedera
Build an AccountCreateTransaction
with the new public key and initial balance, then execute it. Specify the public key , an optional initial HBAR balance, and once you execute it, the network creates the account and returns the new AccountId
in the receipt.
// Build & execute the account creation transaction
const transaction = new AccountCreateTransaction()
.setECDSAKeyWithAlias(newPublicKey) // set the account key
.setInitialBalance(new Hbar(20)); // fund with 20 HBAR
const txResponse = await transaction.execute(client);
const receipt = await txResponse.getReceipt(client);
const newAccountId = receipt.accountId;
console.log(`\nHedera Account created: ${newAccountId}`);
console.log(`EVM Address: 0x${newPublicKey.toEvmAddress()}`);
Step 4: Query the Account Balance Using Mirror Node API
Use the Mirror Node REST API to check your new account's HBAR balance. Mirror nodes provide free access to network data without transaction fees.
API endpoint:
/api/v1/balances?account.id={accountId}
Replace the placeholder:
{accountId}
- Your new account ID from the creation transaction
Why this endpoint?This endpoint queries account balances directly by account ID. It returns detailed information including HBAR balance in tinybars, making it ideal for verifying the new account was funded with the expected initial balance.
Example URLs:
const mirrorNodeUrl = `https://testnet.mirrornode.hedera.com/api/v1/balances?account.id=${newAccountId}`;
Complete Implementation:
// Wait for Mirror Node to populate data
console.log("\nWaiting for Mirror Node to update...");
await new Promise(resolve => setTimeout(resolve, 6000));
// Query balance using Mirror Node
const mirrorNodeUrl = `https://testnet.mirrornode.hedera.com/api/v1/balances?account.id=${newAccountId}`;
const response = await fetch(mirrorNodeUrl );
const data = await response.json();
if (data.balances && data.balances.length > 0) {
const balanceInTinybars = data.balances[0].balance;
const balanceInHbar = balanceInTinybars / 100000000;
console.log(`\nAccount balance: ${balanceInHbar} ℏ\n`);
} else {
console.log("Account balance not yet available in Mirror Node");
}
client.close();
✅ Code check
Before running your project, verify your code matches the complete example:
Run Your Project
Ensure your environment variables are set:
export OPERATOR_ID="0.0.1234"
export OPERATOR_KEY="3030020100300506032b657004220420..."
node createAccountDemo.js
Expected sample output:
Hedera account created: 0.0.12345
EVM Address: 0xabcdef0123456789abcdef0123456789abcdef01
Waiting for Mirror Node to update...
Account balance: 20 ℏ
‼️ Troubleshooting
What just happened?
The SDK built an
AccountCreateTransaction
and signed it with your operator key.A consensus node validated the signature and charged the account creation fee.
After network consensus, a unique account ID and EVM address were assigned and returned in the receipt.
The account was funded with 20 HBAR from your operator account.
The Mirror Node API confirmed your new account exists with the expected balance.
Next steps
Explore more examples in the SDK repos (JavaScript, Java, Go)
🎉 Great work! You now control a brand new Hedera account secured by your fresh key pair. Keep the private key safe and never commit it to source control.
Additional resources
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