cURL is a powerful command-line tool for transferring data with URLs. Below are key concepts and examples for working with cURL requests:

Basic GET Request

curl https://example.com/api/data
  • Use -X GET to specify the request method (optional for GET)
  • Add -H "Accept: application/json" for JSON responses
  • Include -o output.json to save the response to a file
curl_command_structure

Advanced Usage

POST Request Example

curl -X POST https://example.com/api/data \
     -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
     -d '{"key":"value"}'
  • Use -d for data payload
  • Add -v to enable verbose mode
curl_post_example

Custom Headers

curl -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_TOKEN" \
     -H "User-Agent: MyApp/1.0" \
     https://api.example.com

Common Issues

  • 403 Forbidden: Check authentication headers
  • Timeout errors: Use -m 30 for 30-second timeout
  • SSL issues: Add -k to skip SSL verification (not recommended for production)

For more details on advanced cURL techniques, see our Advanced Usage Guide.

curl_request_flow