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You can run a real quantum circuit on IonQ without owning quantum hardware. Create an IonQ account, generate an API key, install a supported Python SDK, run a two-qubit Bell-pair circuit on a simulator, and then submit the same circuit to an IonQ QPU if your account has QPU access. The simulator gives immediate feedback; QPU jobs may queue and their measurements include hardware noise.
This guide uses Qiskit and Cirq, explains what the results mean, and shows how direct IonQ access differs from marketplace routes.
What you need before writing code
- An IonQ account with an API key or token for direct SDK access.
- Python installed on your computer and a virtual environment for the project.
- Either Qiskit with the IonQ provider package or Cirq with its IonQ integration.
- Simulator access for the first run. IonQ describes simulator access for early exploration and separate QPU access models, including on-demand, reservation and volume-based options.
- QPU permission if you want to submit to real hardware. Availability and pricing depend on the access route and the current IonQ offering, so do not assume that simulator access automatically includes QPU access.
Direct SDK submission requires the API key. Keep it private: do not commit it to a repository, paste it into a public notebook, or embed it in a client-side application.
Decide early whether you want direct IonQ access or a marketplace route. Direct access gives you IonQ’s own console and API flow. Amazon Braket, Azure Quantum and Google Cloud can place IonQ targets inside an account your organization may already use, but they add that marketplace’s workspace, identity and billing setup. The code examples below assume direct IonQ access.
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Create an IonQ account and API key
- Open IonQ’s current signup and access flow and create an account.
- In the account or developer area, create an API key/token for programmatic access.
- Store the key in an environment variable rather than placing the real value in source code. For example, set an environment variable named
IONQ_API_KEYin your shell or development environment. - Check which targets your account exposes. A simulator may be available immediately, while QPU targets can require separate enablement, a reservation or another commercial access arrangement.
The access model matters when you estimate cost and waiting time. IonQ offers several ways to reach its cloud, but no universal price or guaranteed queue time applies to every account. Treat any price or availability shown in your account as the current authority for your region and plan. On-demand, reservation and volume-based access can suit different workloads; a one-off tutorial should not be planned as though it has a reservation.
If a key is ever exposed, revoke it and create another one. For team projects, keep secrets in the team’s approved secret store and give each developer the minimum access needed. The API key authenticates requests; it does not turn simulator access into QPU permission.
Install a Python client
Qiskit option
IonQ’s official beginner pattern uses Qiskit and the qiskit_ionq provider. Create and activate a virtual environment, then install the packages:
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python -m venv ionq-first-circuit
# macOS/Linux
source ionq-first-circuit/bin/activate
# Windows PowerShell
# .\ionq-first-circuit\Scripts\Activate.ps1
python -m pip install --upgrade pip
python -m pip install qiskit qiskit-ionqPackage names and compatibility can change. If installation reports a version conflict, follow the versions supported by the current IonQ provider documentation instead of forcing unrelated package upgrades.
Cirq option
Cirq is another direct Python route. Install Cirq and the IonQ integration in the same environment:
python -m pip install cirq cirq-ionqUse Qiskit if you already know its circuit and job abstractions. Use Cirq if you prefer Cirq’s circuit objects and histogram results. Both routes submit the same logical Bell circuit.
IonQ’s resource center also lists guidance for PennyLane, ProjectQ, CUDA-Q, Q#, Azure Quantum, Google Cloud and Amazon Braket. Those are useful alternatives when an existing project already uses one of those ecosystems; they are not required for this first two-qubit experiment.
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Understand the first circuit: a Bell pair
The circuit begins in the two-qubit state |00⟩. A Hadamard gate on qubit 0 changes that qubit into a superposition. A controlled-NOT (CNOT, written CX) then uses qubit 0 as the control and qubit 1 as the target. The two qubits become entangled, and measurement samples should be correlated.
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- Apply
Hto qubit 0. - Apply
CX(0, 1), with qubit 0 controlling qubit 1. - Measure both qubits.
In an ideal, noiseless run, the only outcomes are 00 and 11, at roughly equal frequencies. The circuit does not force one of those two strings on every shot; each measurement is a sample from the entangled state.
The order matters. Applying the CNOT before the Hadamard, reversing control and target, or measuring only one qubit creates a different experiment. So does wiring the measured qubits to classical bits in the opposite order. Keep the logical circuit and the displayed bit order documented when comparing SDKs.
Run the Bell pair with Qiskit
Build and submit the circuit
The following follows IonQ’s documented Qiskit pattern. Replace the placeholder key with a securely supplied value before running it. The code submits 1,000 shots to the QPU target named in the example.
from qiskit import QuantumCircuit
from qiskit_ionq import IonQProvider
from qiskit.providers.jobstatus import JobStatus
import time
API_KEY = "replace-with-your-key"
qc = QuantumCircuit(2, 2)
qc.h(0)
qc.cx(0, 1)
qc.measure([0, 1], [0, 1])
provider = IonQProvider(API_KEY)
qpu = provider.get_backend("ionq_qpu")
job = qpu.run(qc, shots=1000)
while job.status() is not JobStatus.DONE:
time.sleep(60)
print(job.get_counts())The polling loop checks the job until it reaches DONE. A QPU submission can remain queued for a few minutes; IonQ’s tutorial says, “Grab a coffee! This can take up to a few minutes.” In production code, add handling for failed, cancelled or expired jobs rather than waiting forever, and consider a timeout appropriate to your application.
Keep the job identifier and submission time. If a script is interrupted while polling, you may be able to reconnect to the existing job instead of submitting a duplicate. Do not infer completion merely because the submission call returned; completion is when the provider exposes measurement results.
Run a simulator before using QPU time
Use the simulator target exposed by your IonQ account first. The exact target label can depend on the current provider and account configuration, so list the available backends in your installed provider and select the simulator shown there rather than assuming that every account has identical names. Submit the same QuantumCircuit with the same shot count.
A simulator catches common beginner errors: reversed control and target qubits, missing measurements, incorrect classical-bit wiring and result-parsing mistakes. IonQ also documents hardware-noise simulation. That mode is useful for education, but its output is an approximation of a noise model, not a guarantee of what a particular QPU will return.
Shot controls are useful here. A small shot count gives quick feedback while you are debugging; a larger count makes the approximate 50/50 Bell distribution easier to see. More shots do not make an individual measurement deterministic and may affect usage or cost on a QPU route.
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Interpret the documented sample output
IonQ’s tutorial shows one illustrative 1,000-shot result:
{'00': 513, '01': 6, '10': 4, '11': 477}This is one run, not a benchmark or promised distribution. The dominant 00 and 11 counts show the expected correlation. The small number of 01 and 10 results illustrates that real hardware is probabilistic and can produce errors from computational noise.
Run the same circuit with Cirq
Cirq’s IonQ integration expresses the Bell pair with Cirq operations and submits repetitions instead of Qiskit shots:
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import cirq_ionq as ionq
q0, q1 = cirq.LineQubit.range(2)
circuit = cirq.Circuit(
cirq.H(q0),
cirq.CX(q0, q1),
cirq.measure(q0, q1, key="b"),
)
service = ionq.Service(api_key="replace-with-your-key")
result = service.run(
circuit=circuit,
repetitions=1000,
target="qpu",
)
print(result.histogram(key="b"))The target="qpu" setting requests real hardware. For a first check, select the simulator target exposed by your service and run the same circuit there. As with Qiskit, target names and availability are account-dependent.
Why Cirq prints integers
Cirq’s histogram encodes the measured bit string as an integer. For this two-bit circuit, integer 0 represents 00, and integer 3 represents 11. Therefore a histogram concentrated near keys 0 and 3 is the expected Bell-pair pattern. Do not mistake the integer keys for a different circuit or for decimal measurement values.
When comparing Cirq with Qiskit, convert the integer keys back to two-bit strings and verify the qubit order. A result that looks reversed may be a display convention rather than a changed physical circuit.
Read simulator and QPU results correctly
Shots are samples, not a single answer
A shot is one execution followed by measurement. Increasing the number of shots gives a better estimate of the distribution, but it does not remove randomness. Even a perfect simulator can show small fluctuations around a 50/50 split between 00 and 11.
Hardware noise creates occasional anti-correlated results
On real hardware, 01 and 10 can appear even though the ideal Bell state produces correlated outputs. Their presence does not automatically mean the circuit is wired incorrectly. First compare simulator and QPU runs, verify the measurement mapping, and inspect the relative counts. IonQ’s published tutorial explains these deviations as computational noise; it does not establish a universal error rate for IonQ hardware.
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Do not treat one run as a performance benchmark
The published 1,000-shot example is an illustration of result formatting and hardware variability. It does not establish general accuracy, speed, queue performance or superiority over another platform. Record the target, shot count, date and account route if you are collecting results for a real experiment.
For a simple sanity check, ask whether the two correlated bins dominate and whether the simulator behaves as expected. A formal experiment needs more: repeated runs, a defined metric, a fixed circuit, documented software versions and a clear treatment of noise and sampling uncertainty.
Direct IonQ Cloud versus marketplace access
You can reach IonQ through its own cloud interface and API, or through marketplace integrations listed by IonQ. The available routes include Amazon Braket, Azure Quantum and Google Cloud. The logical circuit remains the same, but account setup, credential handling, SDK calls, billing and target names are controlled by the route you choose.
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|---|---|---|---|
| Direct IonQ Cloud | IonQ console or direct API/SDK integration, including Qiskit and Cirq | IonQ describes both simulator and QPU execution; QPU access depends on account enablement and the selected access model | Direct SDK calls require an IonQ API key or token. Current pricing and availability are account- and offering-dependent. |
| Amazon Braket integration | Use the marketplace’s account and SDK flow to select IonQ as a device | Simulator and QPU choices depend on the route and the targets currently exposed to your account | Use that marketplace’s credentials, permissions and billing controls; exact steps vary by account. |
| Azure Quantum integration | Use the Azure Quantum workspace and its provider integration | Targets and access depend on the workspace and current provider availability | Workspace credentials, permissions and billing are handled through the marketplace account. |
| Google Cloud integration | Use the Google Cloud integration and its current provider workflow | Targets and access depend on the project and provider configuration | Project credentials, permissions and billing are handled through the cloud account. |
Choose direct access when you want IonQ’s native account, console and provider flow with the shortest path to the examples above. Choose a marketplace route when your organization already standardizes identity, billing, quotas or auditing there. Do not copy a direct IonQ API key into a marketplace workflow unless that integration explicitly requires it.
Marketplace convenience does not guarantee the same target names, queue behavior or billing units as direct IonQ Cloud. Before submitting a large shot count, confirm which account will be charged, which simulator is free or included, and whether QPU access is enabled in that specific workspace.
Qiskit or Cirq: which should you choose?
- Choose Qiskit if you want the exact provider pattern shown above, already use Qiskit circuits, or prefer a job object with
get_counts(). - Choose Cirq if you prefer Cirq’s circuit syntax, want its native histogram representation, or already have Cirq code to adapt.
- Use either for this Bell pair. The gates, measurements and physical experiment are equivalent when qubit ordering and measurement mapping match.
Keep the first experiment deliberately small. A two-qubit circuit makes it easier to distinguish a software mistake from hardware noise and makes the output easy to inspect by hand.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Troubleshoot the first submission
Authentication fails
- Confirm that the key is copied without surrounding spaces or quotation marks in the environment variable.
- Check that the code is reading the same environment or configuration where you created the key.
- Generate a new key if the old one was revoked, expired or exposed.
- For marketplace access, verify the marketplace credentials instead of assuming the direct IonQ key applies.
The requested backend or target is unavailable
- List the targets visible to your account and select the simulator or QPU name actually returned by the provider.
- Check whether QPU access has been enabled separately from simulator access.
- Verify that your installed provider version matches the current IonQ integration instructions.
The job stays queued
Queueing is normal for QPU work and can last a few minutes. Keep the job identifier, avoid submitting duplicate jobs while the first is pending, and poll at a sensible interval. A robust application should detect failure and cancellation states and report them instead of looping indefinitely.
The counts contain unexpected values
- Run the circuit on a simulator and confirm that
00and11dominate. - Check that qubit 0 controls qubit 1 and that both qubits are measured.
- Verify classical-bit ordering. Different SDKs may display bit strings in different orders.
- On a QPU, allow for occasional
01and10results caused by noise.
The code runs but no results are printed
Confirm that the job reached completion and that the result method matches the SDK. Qiskit uses job.get_counts(); Cirq uses result.histogram(key="b"). A submitted job is not the same as a completed measurement result.
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Advanced path: native gates
Once the abstract Bell circuit works, you can study IonQ’s hardware-native interface and circuit compilation. Native-gate programming can expose more control, but IonQ’s Cirq guidance warns that using the hardware-native interface without a strong understanding of quantum circuits can create a less-optimal circuit structure. Start with standard gates, compare simulator and QPU results, and move to native operations only when you understand the mapping and its trade-offs.
What to try after the Bell pair
- Repeat the circuit with different shot counts and observe statistical fluctuation.
- Run the same circuit through both Qiskit and Cirq and verify that their result representations agree after converting Cirq’s integer keys to bit strings.
- Use IonQ’s documented noise-simulation options to explore how errors alter the histogram, while treating the model as educational rather than as a prediction of a specific device.
- Add one gate at a time to a larger circuit and test each change on a simulator before requesting QPU time.
- Record the target, SDK version, shot count, submission route and date for experiments you need to reproduce.
For repeatable work, save the circuit definition alongside the result counts and the exact target name. Note whether the run was ideal simulation, noise simulation or QPU execution. This prevents a simulator histogram from being compared accidentally with a hardware histogram as though they came from identical conditions.
The essential workflow stays the same: authenticate, build a small measured circuit, validate it on a simulator, submit to an enabled QPU target, wait for completion, and interpret the returned samples as a probability distribution rather than a deterministic answer.
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Can I run a real quantum computer from IonQ’s cloud?
Yes, if your IonQ account or marketplace workspace has QPU access enabled. Simulator access may be available first, while QPU use can require separate enablement, a reservation or another access arrangement.
Do I need an API key for the Qiskit and Cirq examples?
Yes. Direct SDK submission requires an IonQ API key or token. Keep it out of source control and public notebooks. Marketplace integrations use the credentials and permissions of that marketplace unless their instructions say otherwise.
How much does an IonQ QPU job cost?
There is no single price that applies to every route or account. IonQ describes on-demand, reservation and volume-based access, and marketplace billing can differ. Check the current price and availability shown for your account before submitting QPU shots.
Why does my QPU job remain queued?
QPU work can wait in a queue and may take a few minutes before completion. Poll at a sensible interval, retain the job identifier, and handle failed or cancelled states instead of waiting forever.
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An ideal two-qubit Bell pair produces correlated 00 and 11 samples in roughly equal proportions. Real QPU output can include occasional 01 and 10 results because of computational noise.
Why does Cirq show 0 and 3 instead of 00 and 11?
Cirq’s histogram encodes the two measured bits as an integer: 0 is 00 and 3 is 11. A histogram concentrated near those keys is the expected Bell-pair pattern.
Should I use Qiskit or Cirq for my first IonQ circuit?
Either works for this experiment. Qiskit follows IonQ’s documented provider pattern and returns counts with get_counts(); Cirq uses Cirq circuit objects and an integer-key histogram. Choose the SDK you already know.
The Bottom Line
For the shortest first run, create an IonQ account and API key, install qiskit-ionq or cirq-ionq, validate a measured Bell pair on a simulator, then submit 1,000 shots to an enabled QPU target. Expect queueing and probabilistic, occasionally noisy counts; verify the target, billing route and access permissions before scaling up.
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