---
title: "Quickstart"
description: "Install GlassHome, connect it to Home Assistant, and add your first widget in under 5 minutes."
canonical: https://glasshome.app/docs/dash/quickstart
section: "Getting started"
updated: 2026-10-08
---
# Quickstart

End-to-end in under 5 minutes: install, connect, customize. Assumes you already have Home Assistant running.

## Before you start

- A reachable Home Assistant URL (e.g. `http://homeassistant.local:8123`).
- A device to run GlassHome on. Same machine as HA is fine. CPU requirements: SSE4.2 / ARMv8 ([details](/docs/dash/installation#supported-cpus)).
- No HA yet? You can still look around. Skip to step 2 and choose **Look around first** on the welcome screen.

1. **Install** Pick one. Both deploy the same app.

   **HA OS or Supervised users.** Add the [GlassHome Addon repository](/docs/dash/addon) and install from the Add-on Store. One-click, no Docker needed.

   **Everyone else.** Run the container:

   ```bash
   docker run -d \
     --name glasshome-dash \
     -p 3123:3123 \
     -v glasshome_data:/data \
     --restart unless-stopped \
     ghcr.io/glasshome/dash:latest
   ```

2. **Open Dash** Go to `http://<host>:3123` in your browser. The welcome screen opens.

   For addon installs, `<host>` is your Home Assistant machine's IP address (e.g. `http://192.168.1.100:3123`).

   No HA yet? Choose **Look around first** on the welcome screen to explore a demo home with nothing to set up.

3. **Connect and name your home** Choose **Continue with Home Assistant**. GlassHome looks for your Home Assistant on your network by itself. If it cannot find it, type the address you open Home Assistant with.

   Home Assistant's sign-in page opens. Sign in there once, and it sends you back to Dash automatically.

   Then the welcome screen asks for **Your name** and **Your home's name**. GlassHome fills in both for you. Change them if you like, then choose **Open my dashboard**.

   Stuck? See [Connecting](/docs/dash/connecting#troubleshooting).

4. **Add your first widget** The first time your dashboard loads, a short tour starts by itself and walks you through editing it. You can skip it at any point, and replay it later from Settings > General under "How GlassHome works".

   1. Press and hold the dock to start editing. If the dock is hidden, press and hold the background and choose **Edit dashboard**.
   2. Tap **Add widget**, above the dock, and pick a widget.
   3. Pick the entity to bind.
   4. Press and hold the dock again to finish. Changes save automatically.

5. **Make it yours**

   - **Settings > Theme.** Pick a preset or make your own. [Themes guide](/docs/dash/themes).
   - **Settings > Dashboards.** Add more dashboards, each with its own layout.
   - **Settings > Remote access.** Reach the dashboard from outside your home. [How](/docs/dash/remote-access).

## What next

- **Use it well:** [Widgets](/docs/dash/widgets), [Editing](/docs/dash/editing), [Layouts](/docs/dash/layouts).
- **Build your own widgets:** [Getting Started](/docs/widgets/widget-development).
- **Something off:** [Troubleshooting](/docs/dash/troubleshooting) or post in [Discord](https://discord.gg/FJYdeDmrzv) and I'll take a look.

> **Mental model first?:** If terms like Hub, addon, scope, and widget are blurring together, the [Concepts](/docs/dash/concepts) page is one screen.