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Setting up Sidecar

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  • This guide assumes you have an existing Statsig account. Please go here to create a new free account if you don't already have one: https://statsig.com/signup
  • You will need to use Google Chrome web browser for this exercise.

Setup Sidecar Chrome Extension​

Step 1: Install Chrome Extension​

If you don't already have the Sidecar extension, visit the Chrome store and click on the "Add to Chrome" button

Statsig Sidecar Extension in the Chrome Web Store

Step 2: Activate the extension​

Click on the Extensions toolbar button and select "Statsig Sidecar" to activate the Sidecar extension

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You will now see an Experiment Config UI like this:

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Step 3: Update settings​

You will need to update API keys in the Settings Dialog for the extension to work. You can invoke the Settings dialog from the "Settings" link on the top header.

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You can retrieve these keys from your Statsig project. In order to get this, login to Statsig Console here: https://console.statsig.com and navigate to the Settings page (https://console.statsig.com/settings)

Once you're there, select the "Keys & Environments" panel and copy both the Console API Key and Client API Key and paste them in the Settings dialog.

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Hit "OK" to commit the API Keys.

Install Sidecar on your website​

Add a single script tag within the <head> portion of your website, replacing with your own Client SDK Key as shown below.

<script src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/statsig-sidecar/dist/index.min.js?apikey=REPLACE_WITH_YOUR_CLIENT_SDK_KEY"></script>
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Installing Sidecar JS via a Tag Manager can potentially lead to flickering and other unpredictable behavior. We strongly encourage installing Sidecar as a synchronous script tag.

Additional Options​

Add these query string parameters to the Sidecar script URL for additional controls over Sidecar client behavior

  • &reduceflicker=0 will disable the brief hiding of the <body> tag while the client initializes
  • &autocapture=0 will disable event autocapture

Most website builders also support the ability to add script tags on your website. Here are some common website builder examples: Webflow , Wordpress , Wix , Squarespace , Weebly.

You can copy the script code from within the Sidecar Chrome extension statsig banner

You are now all set to create your first experiment​

Next up: Creating Experiments​