bash
curl -H 'Accept: application/json' https://api.example.com/v1/itemsNotes
A standard API request pattern.
cURL HTTP and API Workflows
HTTP methods, auth, JSON APIs, headers, caching, compression, and response inspection with curl.
Export
Copy the compact sheet, download it, or print it.
Download
`D` dense toggle · `C` copy all
HTTP Methods and APIs
GET, POST, PUT, PATCH, DELETE, OPTIONS and common REST patterns.
bash
curl -X POST https://api.example.com/v1/items -H 'Content-Type: application/json' -d '{"name":"demo"}'Notes
Set `Content-Type: application/json` when posting JSON bodies.
bash
curl -X PUT https://api.example.com/v1/items/123 -H 'Content-Type: application/json' -d '{"name":"updated"}'Notes
PUT is commonly used for full replacement of a resource.
bash
curl -X PATCH https://api.example.com/v1/items/123 -H 'Content-Type: application/json' -d '{"status":"archived"}'Notes
PATCH is used for partial updates.
bash
curl -X DELETE https://api.example.com/v1/items/123Notes
Common REST delete pattern.
Inspect allowed methods
Send an OPTIONS request to inspect server capabilities.
bashANYcurloptionscors
bash
curl -X OPTIONS -i https://api.example.com/v1/itemsNotes
Helpful for CORS and API debugging.
bash
curl -X TRACE -i https://example.comNotes
TRACE is often disabled for security reasons.
bash
curl -X POST https://api.example.com/import -H 'Content-Type: application/xml' --data-binary @payload.xmlNotes
Not all APIs use JSON; curl can send any content type.
HTTP Auth and Security
Basic, bearer, API keys, cookies, mTLS, and AWS SigV4.
bash
curl -u 'user:password' https://example.com/protectedNotes
`-u` sends credentials for Basic auth or similar schemes.
bash
curl -H 'Authorization: Bearer TOKEN' https://api.example.com/meNotes
A common pattern for REST and GraphQL APIs.
bash
curl -H 'x-api-key: YOUR_API_KEY' https://api.example.com/dataNotes
Many APIs require custom key headers.
bash
curl 'https://api.example.com/data?api_key=YOUR_API_KEY'Notes
Some APIs still accept query-string keys, though headers are often preferred.
bash
curl --cert client.crt --key client.key https://mtls.example.comNotes
Use mTLS when the server requires client certificates.
bash
curl --cacert ca.pem https://internal.example.comNotes
Useful for private PKI or local development environments.
Skip TLS certificate verification
Disable certificate verification for testing only.
bashANYcurltlsinsecure
bash
curl -k https://selfsigned.example.comNotes
`-k` / `--insecure` is convenient in dev, but avoid it in production workflows.
bash
curl --aws-sigv4 'aws:amz:us-east-1:execute-api' --user 'AKIA...:SECRET' https://abc123.execute-api.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/prod/itemsNotes
curl includes AWS Signature Version 4 support.
Response Inspection
Headers, redirects, cache data, compression, and conditional requests.
Request compressed response
Ask the server for a compressed response body.
bashANYcurlcompressionhttp
bash
curl --compressed https://example.comNotes
curl can request and decode compressed responses automatically.
bash
curl --etag-save etag.txt -O https://example.com/data.jsonNotes
Useful for polling resources efficiently.
Conditional request with ETag
Use a saved ETag to avoid downloading unchanged content.
bashANYcurletagcache
bash
curl --etag-compare etag.txt -O https://example.com/data.jsonNotes
If the content is unchanged the server can return `304 Not Modified`.
Conditional request by modification time
Only fetch if the remote file is newer than a local file.
bashANYcurlconditionalcache
bash
curl -z local-copy.txt -O https://example.com/local-copy.txtNotes
`-z` uses time conditions such as If-Modified-Since.
bash
curl -D headers.txt -o body.html https://example.comNotes
This keeps response body and headers in separate files.
bash
curl -v https://example.comNotes
`-v` is the first switch to reach for when debugging.
bash
curl --trace-ascii trace.txt https://example.comNotes
`--trace-ascii` is more detailed than `-v` and script-friendly.
Multiple requests in one command
Separate different request groups with `--next`.
bashANYcurlmultiplerequests
bash
curl https://example.com --next -I https://api.example.comNotes
`--next` lets one command perform multiple logically separate requests.
More in cURL
cURL Auth, TLS, and Proxy Security
Authentication, cookies, TLS verification, client certs, pinned keys, and proxy-secured curl workflows.
cURL Debugging, Performance, and Scripting
Tracing, DNS overrides, proxies, protocol selection, config files, timeouts, and script-friendly curl patterns.
cURL Download and Upload Workflows
Comprehensive curl patterns for downloads, retries, upload flows, range requests, SMTP, SFTP, and batch transfers.
cURL Cheat Sheet
High-coverage curl commands for HTTP requests, APIs, downloads, uploads, cookies, redirects, and automation.