curl
Networking
Usage
curl [options] <url>Fetches a URL and prints the body to the terminal; unlike a browser it does not follow redirects without `-L`, so a 301 looks like an empty response.
Common flags
| Flag | Meaning |
|---|---|
| -L | Follow redirects. curl does not follow them on its own, unlike a browser. |
| -i | Print the response headers along with the body; -I sends HEAD and prints headers only. |
| -d '{"a":1}' | Send a request body. This alone already means POST. |
| -H "Content-Type: application/json" | Add a request header; repeat -H for more. |
| -X PUT | Override the method. Unnecessary with -d, which is already a POST. |
| -o <file> / -O | Save the body to a file / save it under the remote filename. |
| -s / -sS | No progress meter / silent but still print errors. |
| -f | Exit nonzero on HTTP 4xx and 5xx instead of printing the error page. |
| -k | Skip certificate verification. Debugging only, never in production. |
Examples
curl -fsSL https://example.com/install.sh -o install.shDownload quietly, follow redirects, fail loudly on a 404.
curl -i -H "Content-Type: application/json" -d '{"name":"a"}' https://api.example.com/itemsPOST JSON and read the response headers.
curl -s -o /dev/null -w "%{http_code}\n" https://example.comPrint just the status code.
When a connection fails, these narrow down how far it got — name not resolving, no route, or a blocked port.
How to read this
- Square brackets [ ] mark a part you may leave out.
- An ellipsis … means you can list more than one.
- Flags are case-sensitive — in some commands -r and -R do different things.
Questions
Q. What does curl do?
Fetches a URL and prints the body to the terminal; unlike a browser it does not follow redirects without `-L`, so a 301 looks like an empty response.
Q. How do I type it?
curl [options] <url> — square brackets mark the parts you can leave out.
Q. How many flags are worth knowing?
9 are listed here; the full set is in man curl. This command sits under Networking.
Related commands
man page: man curl