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

# Getting Started

> Create an entity, verify identity, and connect credit cards — the foundational 3-step flow for every commerce integration.

Every commerce integration begins the same way: represent your customer, verify their identity, and discover their credit cards. This 3-step flow is the shared foundation for [Wallet Onboarding](https://docs.methodfi.com/guides/use-cases/commerce/wallet-onboarding.md), [Preauth Signals](https://docs.methodfi.com/guides/use-cases/commerce/preauth-signals.md), and [Wallet Intelligence](https://docs.methodfi.com/guides/use-cases/commerce/wallet-intelligence.md).

**1. Create an Entity**

Every end user maps to an [Entity](https://docs.methodfi.com/guides/entities/overview.md) in Method. Create one with the user's full name and phone number, and provide additional identity information such as date of birth, email address, or SSN when available to improve match rates. This is the foundational object that verification, card discovery, and all downstream products attach to.

```bash theme={null}
curl https://production.methodfi.com/entities \
  -X POST \
  -H "Method-Version: 2026-03-30" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer sk_WyZEWVfTcH7GqmPzUPk65Vjc" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "type": "individual",
    "individual": {
      "first_name": "Emily",
      "last_name": "Park",
      "phone": "+13105550789",
      "email": "emily.park@email.com",
      "dob": "1995-11-08"
    },
    "address": {
      "line1": "789 Sunset Blvd",
      "line2": null,
      "city": "Los Angeles",
      "state": "CA",
      "zip": "90028"
    }
  }'
```

```json response.data theme={null}
{
  "id": "ent_BzirqpLEm3BW7",
  "type": "individual",
  "individual": {
    "first_name": "Emily",
    "last_name": "Park",
    "phone": "+13105550789",
    "dob": "1995-11-08",
    "email": "emily.park@email.com",
    "ssn_4": null,
    "ssn": null
  },
  "error": null,
  "address": {
    "line1": "789 Sunset Blvd",
    "line2": null,
    "city": "Los Angeles",
    "state": "CA",
    "zip": "90028"
  },
  "status": "incomplete",
  "verification": {
    "identity": {
      "verified": false,
      "matched": false,
      "latest_verification_session": null,
      "methods": [
        "element",
        "byo_kyc"
      ]
    },
    "phone": {
      "verified": false,
      "latest_verification_session": null,
      "methods": [
        "sms",
        "sna",
        "byo_sms"
      ]
    }
  },
  "connect": null,
  "credit_score": null,
  "products": [
    "identity"
  ],
  "restricted_products": [
    "connect",
    "credit_score",
    "attribute"
  ],
  "subscriptions": [],
  "available_subscriptions": [
    "connect",
    "credit_score"
  ],
  "restricted_subscriptions": [],
  "metadata": null,
  "created_at": "2025-12-10T14:22:31.024Z",
  "updated_at": "2025-12-10T14:22:31.024Z"
}
```

The Entity is created in `incomplete` status. Before you can discover Emily's credit cards, you need to verify her identity.

**2. Verify Identity**

Method requires phone verification before card discovery. Verify the customer's phone number using either **Method OTP** (Method sends and verifies the one-time passcode) or **Bring Your Own OTP** (you verify the phone number yourself and provide the verification result to Method). The example below initiates a Method-sent SMS verification session, which sends a one-time code to Emily's phone number on record.

```bash theme={null}
curl https://production.methodfi.com/entities/ent_BzirqpLEm3BW7/verification_sessions \
  -X POST \
  -H "Method-Version: 2026-03-30" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer sk_WyZEWVfTcH7GqmPzUPk65Vjc" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "type": "phone",
    "method": "sms",
    "sms": {}
  }'
```

```json response.data theme={null}
{
  "id": "evf_nKLp7WzQdR4mF",
  "entity_id": "ent_BzirqpLEm3BW7",
  "status": "in_progress",
  "type": "phone",
  "method": "sms",
  "sms": {},
  "error": null,
  "created_at": "2025-12-10T14:23:12.271Z",
  "updated_at": "2025-12-10T14:23:12.271Z"
}
```

Submit the code from the most recent SMS to complete phone verification:

```bash theme={null}
curl https://production.methodfi.com/entities/ent_BzirqpLEm3BW7/verification_sessions/evf_nKLp7WzQdR4mF \
  -X PUT \
  -H "Method-Version: 2026-03-30" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer sk_WyZEWVfTcH7GqmPzUPk65Vjc" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "type": "phone",
    "method": "sms",
    "sms": {
      "sms_code": "123456"
    }
  }'
```

Phone verification alone does not activate the Entity. Complete identity verification through [Opal](https://docs.methodfi.com/guides/opal.md), or, if your team is authorized for BYO KYC and has verified this customer's identity through its own process, report that result to Method:

```bash theme={null}
curl https://production.methodfi.com/entities/ent_BzirqpLEm3BW7/verification_sessions \
  -X POST \
  -H "Method-Version: 2026-03-30" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer sk_WyZEWVfTcH7GqmPzUPk65Vjc" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "type": "identity",
    "method": "byo_kyc",
    "byo_kyc": {}
  }'
```

After both sessions are verified, the Entity status updates to `active` and Connect becomes available.

> [!NOTE]
>
> For a complete overview of all verification methods (SMS, SNA, BYO SMS, BYO KYC, and Opal), see the [Identity Verification](https://docs.methodfi.com/guides/identity-verification/overview.md) guide.

**3. Connect Credit Cards**

With verification complete, call Connect to discover Emily's credit cards via a soft-pull credit report. This has no impact on the user's credit score.

For commerce use cases, the key discovery is **credit cards**: these are the accounts you'll use for wallet onboarding, preauth signals, and wallet intelligence.

```bash theme={null}
curl https://production.methodfi.com/entities/ent_BzirqpLEm3BW7/connect \
  -X POST \
  -H "Method-Version: 2026-03-30" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer sk_WyZEWVfTcH7GqmPzUPk65Vjc"
```

```json response.data theme={null}
{
  "id": "cxn_7hTmRvXkYpN3w",
  "entity_id": "ent_BzirqpLEm3BW7",
  "status": "completed",
  "accounts": [
    "acc_LxwEqNicr66yP",
    "acc_4m9amk4KFiaQX",
    "acc_XtKTpHLGhD9Qn",
    "acc_GAzrD99cUqGEN"
  ],
  "requested_products": [],
  "requested_subscriptions": [],
  "error": null,
  "created_at": "2025-12-10T14:24:45.645Z",
  "updated_at": "2025-12-10T14:24:45.645Z"
}
```

Method discovered 4 credit card accounts for Emily:

| Account ID | Card |
| - | - |
| `acc_LxwEqNicr66yP` | Chase Sapphire Preferred (Visa) |
| `acc_4m9amk4KFiaQX` | Amex Gold (Amex) |
| `acc_XtKTpHLGhD9Qn` | Citi Double Cash (Mastercard) |
| `acc_GAzrD99cUqGEN` | Capital One Venture X (Visa) |

These accounts are now ready for every Commerce use case.

## What's Next

> [card] [Wallet Onboarding](https://docs.methodfi.com/guides/use-cases/commerce/wallet-onboarding.md)
>
> Enrich cards with brand art and retrieve payment credentials to render a complete wallet.

> [card] [Preauth Signals](https://docs.methodfi.com/guides/use-cases/commerce/preauth-signals.md)
>
> Evaluate payment readiness before authorization and optimize payment retries.

> [card] [Wallet Intelligence](https://docs.methodfi.com/guides/use-cases/commerce/wallet-intelligence.md)
>
> Retrieve wallet-level insights to personalize customer experiences.


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