# FlutterFire

**TL;DR -** *FlutterFire is a set of Flutter plugins that enable Flutter apps to use Firebase services. It's very close to plug & play, but you'll have to know where and how to start. There are 6 steps for this explanation, but if you follow along, the next time you create a new project you will skip steps 2 and 4 and you will probably already know about 6.*

# Why use FlutterFire over regular Firebase

There are two main reasons why I prefer the use of FlutterFire CLI over the 'regular' Firebase way:

1. Errors. Or better, **the lack of errors**. You will not need to type anything in gradle files or copy-paste json files or whatever. You and your buddy console can just type in happy stuff and be done with it;
    
2. Time. And by time, I mean, the absolute **awardwinning saving of copious amounts of precious time**.
    

# Prerequisites

* Node.js installed: [Node.js](https://nodejs.org/en/) (or any other way to use **npm** commands);
    
* An active account on Firebase: [Firebase Console](https://console.firebase.google.com/);
    
* An IDE. I don't care which one. They're all awesome, but in this example I use [Android Studio](https://developer.android.com/studio);
    
* **SMILE**. This is going to be fun.
    

# Step 1

Create a new Flutter project or open one you would like to use Firebase with:

![flutterfiresetup1-1.png](https://cdn.hashnode.com/res/hashnode/image/upload/v1649322855611/RLxVxGqCV.png align="left")

# Step 2

**BEFORE** we go on, let us change the SdkVersions in the gradle files. **(EDIT: The filename to do this has changed to flutter.groovy. Do NOT alter the flutter.gradle file anymore!).** Why? Flutter sets the minSdk to a lower version than Firebase wants. You can hardcode these in the corresponding files, OR you find this file:

![flutterfiresetup2.png](https://cdn.hashnode.com/res/hashnode/image/upload/v1649319619202/HSYfzO_xA.png align="left")

Change the compileSdkVersion and targetSdkVersion to the latest stable Android SDK version (32 in my case) and set minSdkVersion to **AT LEAST 23** <- Important!

*(This ofcourse might change in the nearby future. Consider upping the minSdkVersion to 24 or higher if errors keep occuring during builds.)*

![flutterfiresetup3.png](https://cdn.hashnode.com/res/hashnode/image/upload/v1649319797077/42OG51G9z.png align="left")

# Step 3

Go back to your project and enter the following commands in your terminal, one after the other:

`flutter pub add firebase_core`

`flutter pub add firebase_auth`

`flutter pub add cloud_firestore`

`flutter pub add firebase_analytics`

`flutter pub get`

*Congratulations! You're now halfway there*.

# Step 4

Now that we have set up the pubspec.yaml file with our dependencies for Firebase, we can focus on the actual CLI. Run:

`npm install -g firebase-tools`

(This will give (deprecation) warnings and stuff, but don't worry for now!)

Now enter:

`dart pub global activate flutterfire_cli`

The result for me is:

![flutterfiresetup4.png](https://cdn.hashnode.com/res/hashnode/image/upload/v1649320634451/UKDQ8n3Wt.png align="left")

But ofcourse, since you don't have it yet, it might look different.

# Step 5

Input:

`flutterfire configure`

![flutterfiresetup5-1.png](https://cdn.hashnode.com/res/hashnode/image/upload/v1649321177403/Z5La0iQq5.png align="left")

Choose `create a new project`

![flutterfiresetup6.png](https://cdn.hashnode.com/res/hashnode/image/upload/v1649321368280/oPMfVHOR4.png align="left")

If you run into an error which does not ring a bell: ***the name has probably already been taken.*** Just start over, choose something else and the error won't occur again.

This is what you should see after you've followed along with the CLI:

![flutterfiresetup7.png](https://cdn.hashnode.com/res/hashnode/image/upload/v1649321689490/6pl-jmGbj.png align="left")

*(This project will have been deleted after I upload this to Hashnode, so please don't bother fiddling around with my appId's :) )*

# Step 6

I assume you know how to work with Firebase from here on, but I will leave you with this last snippet to make sure everything will work:

Change

```plaintext
void main() {
  runApp(const MyApp());
}
```

into

```plaintext
Future<void> main() async {
  WidgetsFlutterBinding.ensureInitialized();
  await Firebase.initializeApp(
    options: DefaultFirebaseOptions.currentPlatform,
  );
  runApp(const MyApp());
}
```

Now **GO AND HAVE FUN!**

If you have ANY feedback on, or questions about this article, do not hesitate one second to contact me on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/plotsklapps)!

I'm planning to write my next article about Firebase authentication with email verification and password resets and stuff, continuing on the current project. So please stay tuned.

Have a great day!