cURL AlternativesHTTP & API Clients like cURL

cURL is described as 'Computer software project providing a library and command-line tool for transferring data using various protocols with URL syntax: supporting FTP, FTPS, SCP, SFTP, HTTP, HTTPS, TFTP, TELNET, DICT, LDAP, LDAPS and FILE' and is a very popular HTTP Client in the development category. There are more than 25 alternatives to cURL for a variety of platforms, including Mac, Windows, Linux, BSD and Xfce apps. The best cURL alternative is Wget, which is both free and Open Source. Other great apps like cURL are aria2, HTTPie for Terminal, Transmit and xh.

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cURL alternatives are mainly API Clients but may also be HTTP Clients or Download Managers.  Filter by these or use the filter bar below if you want a narrower list of alternatives or looking for a specific functionality of cURL.
cURL iconcURL
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cURL is a computer software project providing a library and command-line tool for transferring data using various protocols with URL syntax: supporting FTP, FTPS, SCP, SFTP, HTTP, HTTPS, TFTP, TELNET, DICT, LDAP, LDAPS and...

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cURL alternatives page was last updated Jul 12, 2022
  1. Wget icon
     423 likes

    GNU Wget is a free software package for retrieving files using HTTP(S) and FTP, the most widely-used Internet protocols. It is a non-interactive command line tool, so it may easily be called from scripts, cron jobs, terminals without X-Windows support, etc.

    23 Wget alternatives
    Wget screenshot 1

    License model

    • FreeOpen Source

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • BSD

    Wget Features

    1.  Command line interface
    2.  Website Downloader
    3.  Batch processing
    4.  Resume interrupted downloads
    5.  Portable
    Wget iconcURL Icon

    Wget VS cURL

    Is Wget a good alternative to cURL?
     
    Comments about Wget as an Alternative to cURL
     
    ab1

    Wget has better defaults for troubleshooting

    Positive commentMay 6, 2022
    0
    cURL Icon
    Wget icon
    • Most users think Wget is a great cURL alternative.

    • Wget is the most popular Windows, Mac & Linux alternative to cURL.

    • Wget is the most popular Open Source & free alternative to cURL.

    • Wget is Free and Open SourcecURL is also Free and Open Source
  2. aria2 icon
     225 likes

    aria2 is a multi-protocol & multi-source, cross platform download utility.

    aria2 can download a file from multiple sources/protocols and tries to utilize your maximum download bandwidth. It supports downloading a file from HTTP(S)/FTP and BitTorrent at the same time, while.

    113 aria2 alternatives
    aria2 screenshot 1

    License model

    • FreeOpen Source

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Android
    • Xfce

    Properties

    1.  Lightweight

    Features

    1.  Command line interface
    2.  Ad-free
    3.  Support for Multiple protocols
    4.  Resume interrupted downloads
    5.  No registration required
    6.  Support for Remote Control
    aria2 iconcURL Icon

    aria2 VS cURL

    Is aria2 a good alternative to cURL?
     
    • aria2 is the most popular Android alternative to cURL.

    • aria2 is Free and Open SourcecURL is also Free and Open Source
    • aria2 is LightweightcURL is not according to our users
  3. HTTPie for Terminal icon
     57 likes

    HTTPie (pronounced aitch-tee-tee-pie) is a command line HTTP client. Its goal is to make CLI interaction with web services as human-friendly as possible. It provides a simple http command that allows for sending arbitrary HTTP requests using a simple and natural syntax, and...

    34 HTTPie for Terminal alternatives
    HTTPie for Terminal screenshot 1

    License model

    • FreeOpen Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Python
    • FreeBSD

    Properties

    1.  Lightweight

    Features

    1.  Command line interface
    2.  REST API
    3.  Web Testing
    4.  API Management
    HTTPie for Terminal iconcURL Icon

    HTTPie for Terminal VS cURL

    Is HTTPie for Terminal a good alternative to cURL?
     
    Comments about HTTPie for Terminal as an Alternative to cURL
     
    Guest

    Like cURL, HTTPie also has JSON support, but HTTPie reduces syntax by leaving out the header syntax. This makes a test call to an API easier to remember. Avoiding time spent reviewing a doc. For example: $ http POST https://api.ctl.io/v2/authentication/login 'username=YOUR.USERNAME' 'password=YOUR.PASSWORD' A similar call using cURL requires header syntax.

    Positive commentMar 29, 2017
    0
    cURL Icon
    HTTPie for Terminal icon
    • Almost everyone thinks HTTPie for Terminal is a great cURL alternative.

    • HTTPie for Terminal is Free and Open SourcecURL is also Free and Open Source
    • HTTPie for Terminal is LightweightcURL is not according to our users
  4. Transmit icon
     143 likes

    Transmit is a fast and wonderful file transfer app. It supports every major cloud storage provider, and it looks awfully nice.

    47 Transmit alternatives
    Transmit screenshot 1

    License model

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac

    Transmit Features

    1.  Dark Mode
    2.  Cloud Sync
    3.  Support for FTP
    4.  Support for SFTP
    5.  Miller columns
    6.  SSL
    7.  Mount FTP drives
    Transmit iconcURL Icon

    Transmit VS cURL

    Is Transmit a good alternative to cURL?
     
    • Transmit is the most popular commercial alternative to cURL.

    • Transmit is Paid and ProprietarycURL is Free and Open Source
  5. xh icon
     10 likes

    xh is a friendly and fast tool for sending HTTP requests. It reimplements as much as possible of HTTPie's excellent design, with a focus on improved performance.

    25 xh alternatives
    xh screenshot 1

    License model

    • FreeOpen Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • BSD

    Properties

    1.  Lightweight

    Features

    1.  Command line interface
    2.  REST Client
    3.  Web Testing
    4.  REST API
    5.  Support for Unicode
    6.  Data transfer
    xh iconcURL Icon

    xh VS cURL

    Is xh a good alternative to cURL?
     
  6. Hurl icon
     7 likes

    Hurl is a command line tool that runs HTTP requests defined in a simple plain text format. It can capture values, evaluate queries on headers and body response. It is very versatile: it can be used for both fetching data and testing HTTP sessions.

    34 Hurl alternatives
    Html report

    License model

    • FreeOpen Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux

    Properties

    1.  Lightweight

    Features

    1.  Command line interface
    2.  Portable
    3.  Cross-Platform
    4.  REST API
    5.  API Integration
    Hurl iconcURL Icon

    Hurl VS cURL

    Is Hurl a good alternative to cURL?
     
  7. Pororoca icon
     2 likes

    A HTTP inspection tool with support for HTTP/2 and HTTP/3. Alternative to Postman.

    22 Pororoca alternatives
    Example HTTP request and response

    License model

    • FreeOpen Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux

    Properties

    1.  Lightweight

    Features

    1.  Portable
    2.  Ad-free
    3.  HTTP Testing
    4.  SSL client certificates
    5.  API Testing
    6.  API Management
    7.  GraphQL
    8.  API Integration
    Pororoca iconcURL Icon

    Pororoca VS cURL

    Is Pororoca a good alternative to cURL?
     
  8. lftp icon
     16 likes

    lftp is a command-line file transfer program which besides FTP, also supports FTPS, HTTP, HTTPS, HFTP, FISH, and SFTP. A BitTorrent client is also built-in as torrent command.

    11 lftp alternatives

    License model

    • FreeOpen Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Linux
    • Xfce

    lftp Features

    1.  Command line interface
    2.  Support for SFTP
    lftp iconcURL Icon

    lftp VS cURL

    Is lftp a good alternative to cURL?
     
  9.  2 likes

    This is a tool to manually explore and test HTTP REST webservices. Runs queries from a plain-text query sheet, displays results as a pretty-printed XML, JSON and even images.

    52 restclient.el alternatives
    restclient.el screenshot 1

    License model

    • FreeOpen Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • GNU Emacs

    restclient.el Features

    1.  REST API
    2.  REST Client
    3.  Variables
    4.  Web Testing
    5.  API Testing
    cURL Icon

    restclient.el VS cURL

    Is restclient.el a good alternative to cURL?
     
  10. cliget icon
     13 likes

    Download files using curl or wget. This addon generates curl/wget commands that emulate the request as though it's coming from your browser allowing you to download protected files directly to a separate machine (e.g. server).

    24 cliget alternatives
    cliget screenshot 1

    License model

    • FreeOpen Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Firefox
    cliget iconcURL Icon

    cliget VS cURL

    Is cliget a good alternative to cURL?
     
  11. kurly icon
     2 likes

    kurly is a tool to transfer data from a HTTP(S) server, similar to curl.

    17 kurly alternatives

    License model

    • FreeOpen Source

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux

    kurly Features

    1.  Command line interface
    2.  Ad-free
    kurly iconcURL Icon

    kurly VS cURL

    Is kurly a good alternative to cURL?
     
  12. Kreya icon
     1 like

    Kreya is a GUI client for gRPC and REST APIs with innovative features for environments, authorizations and more.

    53 Kreya alternatives
    Kreya screenshot 1

    License model

    • FreemiumProprietary

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux

    Properties

    1.  Lightweight

    Features

    1.  Ad-free
    2.  REST Client
    3.  Cross-Platform
    Kreya iconcURL Icon

    Kreya VS cURL

    Is Kreya a good alternative to cURL?
     
12 of 26 cURL alternatives