---
title: Get started · Cloudflare Web3 docs
description: Use this tutorial to start using Cloudflare's Web3 Gateways to the IPFS and Ethereum networks.
lastUpdated: 2024-08-13T19:56:56.000Z
source_url:
  html: https://a74404c8.preview.developers.cloudflare.com/web3/get-started/index.md
  md: https://a74404c8.preview.developers.cloudflare.com/web3/get-started/
---

Use this tutorial to start using Cloudflare's Web3 Gateways to the IPFS and Ethereum networks.

## Before you begin

Before you start, make sure the you have [set up an account](https://developers.cloudflare.com/fundamentals/setup/account/) and [added your website](https://developers.cloudflare.com/fundamentals/setup/manage-domains/add-site/) to Cloudflare.

## Step 1 - Subscribe to a gateway

To get access to Web3 gateways for your account, you need to first [subscribe to a gateway](https://developers.cloudflare.com/web3/how-to/enable-gateways/).

## Step 2 - Create a gateway

After purchasing a gateway subscription, create a gateway.

When you create a gateway, Cloudflare automatically:

* Creates and adds [records to your Cloudflare DNS](https://developers.cloudflare.com/web3/reference/gateway-dns-records/) so your gateway can receive and route traffic appropriately.
* [Proxies](https://developers.cloudflare.com/dns/proxy-status/) traffic to that hostname.
* Issues an SSL/TLS certificate to cover the specified hostname.

## Step 3 - Customize Cloudflare settings

Once your gateway becomes [active](https://developers.cloudflare.com/web3/reference/gateway-status/), you can customize the Cloudflare settings associated with your hostname.

Since your traffic is automatically proxied through Cloudflare, you customize your website settings to take advantage of various [security, performance, and reliability](https://developers.cloudflare.com/learning-paths/get-started/concepts/how-cloudflare-works/#benefits) benefits.

## Step 4 - Restrict gateway access (optional)

If you are using your gateway for backend services, you may want to use Cloudflare Zero Trust to [restrict gateway access](https://developers.cloudflare.com/web3/how-to/restrict-gateway-access/).

## Step 5 - Set up usage notifications

Since this is a service with [usage-based billing](https://developers.cloudflare.com/support/account-management-billing/billing-add-on-service/), Cloudflare recommends that you set up usage-based billing notifications to avoid unexpected bills.

To set up those notifications:

1. Log in to the [Cloudflare dashboard](https://dash.cloudflare.com).

2. Select your account.

3. Go to **Notifications**.

4. On **Alert Type** of **Usage Based Billing**, click **Select**.

5. Fill out the following information:

   * **Name**
   * **Product**
   * **Notification limit** (exact metric will vary based on product)
   * **Notification email**

   Note

   Some plans also have access to alerts through [PagerDuty](https://developers.cloudflare.com/notifications/get-started/configure-pagerduty/) and [Webhooks](https://developers.cloudflare.com/notifications/get-started/configure-webhooks/).

6. Select **Save**.

## Step 6 - Use the gateway

Once you have created a gateway and updated your Cloudflare settings, you can start using your [IPFS](https://developers.cloudflare.com/web3/how-to/use-ipfs-gateway/) or [Ethereum](https://developers.cloudflare.com/web3/how-to/use-ethereum-gateway/).
