Curl

curl Command Reference

The curl tool is used for transferring data to or from a server. It supports multiple protocols like HTTP, HTTPS, FTP, and more.

Syntax

curl [options] [URL...]

Common Options

• -A, --user-agent: Specify the User-Agent string.

  curl -A "Mozilla/5.0" https://example.com

• -b, --cookie: Send data as a cookie.

  curl -b "name=data" https://example.com

• -c, --cookie-jar: Save cookies to a file.

  curl -c cookies.txt https://example.com

• --compressed: Request a compressed response.

  curl --compressed https://example.com

Data and POST Requests

• -d, --data: Send data with a POST request.

  curl -d "name=daniel&skill=lousy" https://example.com

• -F, --form: Emulate form submission.

  curl -F "file=@/path/to/file" https://example.com/upload

• -T, --upload-file: Upload a file.

  curl -T localfile.txt https://example.com/upload

• -u, --user: Provide user credentials.

  curl -u username:password https://example.com

• -X, --request: Specify custom HTTP methods.

  curl -X PUT https://example.com

HTTP Headers and Responses

• -I, --head: Fetch only the headers of the response.

  curl -I https://example.com

• -H, --header: Add custom HTTP headers.

  curl -H "User-Agent: MyAgent/1.0" https://example.com

• -v, --verbose: Enable verbose output for debugging.

  curl --verbose https://example.com

• --limit-rate: Limit the transfer rate.

  curl --limit-rate 1k https://example.com

• -L, --location: Follow redirects.

  curl --location https://example.com

Miscellaneous

• -k, --insecure: Allow insecure SSL connections.

  curl -k https://example.com

• -o, --output: Save the output to a file.

  curl https://example.com -o example.html

• -O, --remote-name: Save the output with the remote file name.

  curl -O https://example.com/file.txt

• -s, --silent: Silent mode, no progress or error messages.

  curl --silent https://example.com

• -w, --write-out: Output additional information.

  curl --write-out "%{http_code}" https://example.com

• -x, --proxy: Use a proxy server.

  curl -x proxy.example.com:3128 https://example.com

Examples

• Retrieve a Web Page

  curl https://example.com

• Save Output to a File

  curl https://example.com -o example.html

• Follow Redirects

  curl --location https://example.com

• Upload a File

  curl -T /path/to/localfile.txt https://example.com/upload

• Use a Proxy

  curl -x proxy.example.com:3128 https://example.com

• Display Only HTTP Headers

  curl -I https://example.com