Write your first FiveM script, step by step

Reading about FiveM scripting only goes so far; the moment it clicks is when your own command does something in the game. In this tutorial you build a small but complete resource from an empty folder: a /car command that spawns any vehicle, a message sent to the server, and a log line printed back. Every file is shown in full, and every line is explained.

• A FiveM server you can restart — a local one on your own PC is ideal; see a local development server.
• A code editor; VS Code with a Lua extension is the common choice — see VS Code setup for FiveM.
• Ten minutes.

Inside your server’s resources folder, create a folder named my_first with three files:

resources/
└── my_first/
    ├── fxmanifest.lua
    ├── client.lua
    └── server.lua

fx_version 'cerulean'
game 'gta5'

name 'my_first'
description 'My first FiveM resource'

client_script 'client.lua'
server_script 'server.lua'

The manifest tells FiveM this folder is a resource, that it targets GTA V, and which file runs where. What a FiveM resource is explains every directive.

This runs in each player’s game. It registers a /car command that takes a model name, loads the model, spawns the vehicle in front of the player and puts them in the driver’s seat.

RegisterCommand('car', function(source, args)
    local modelName = args[1] or 'adder'
    local model = joaat(modelName)

    -- 1. Is it a real vehicle model?
    if not IsModelInCdimage(model) or not IsModelAVehicle(model) then
        print(('"%s" is not a vehicle model'):format(modelName))
        return
    end

    -- 2. Load it (with a timeout so we never wait forever)
    RequestModel(model)
    local timeout = GetGameTimer() + 5000
    while not HasModelLoaded(model) do
        if GetGameTimer() > timeout then
            print('model took too long to load')
            return
        end
        Wait(0)
    end

    -- 3. Spawn it where the player stands, facing the same way
    local ped = PlayerPedId()
    local pos = GetEntityCoords(ped)
    local heading = GetEntityHeading(ped)
    local vehicle = CreateVehicle(model, pos.x, pos.y, pos.z, heading, true, false)

    -- 4. Seat the player and tidy up
    SetPedIntoVehicle(ped, vehicle, -1) -- -1 is the driver seat
    SetModelAsNoLongerNeeded(model)

    -- 5. Tell the server
    TriggerServerEvent('my_first:spawned', modelName)
end, false)

RegisterNetEvent('my_first:spawned', function(modelName)
    local src = source
    local name = GetPlayerName(src)
    print(('%s (id %d) spawned a %s'):format(name, src, tostring(modelName)))
end)

RegisterNetEvent allows the event to be triggered from clients, and source is the ID of the player who sent it. Store it in a local immediately — its value changes as soon as your handler waits. More in FiveM events explained.

1. 1Add ensure my_first to server.cfg, after your framework if you have one.
2. 2Start (or restart) the server and join it.
3. 3Open chat (T) and type /car sultan.
4. 4Check the server console for the line … spawned a sultan.
5. 5Change something in client.lua, then type ensure my_first in the server console (or F8 with permission) to reload.

This script is fine for a private test server. Before putting anything like it on a public server, three things change:

• Anyone can spawn anything — restrict the command with an ACE permission as shown in commands and key mapping.
• Spawning on the server with OneSync is more robust — see server-side entities.
• On a framework server, vehicles belong in the garage system, not a free command.

To understand the language itself, continue with Lua basics for FiveM.