What is HTTPie CLI used for?

HTTPie CLI is a command-line HTTP client with readable syntax, colored output and built-in JSON support, made for testing and debugging APIs from the terminal. It is a good fit for testing REST APIs from the terminal, and debugging HTTP servers and scripts.

Is HTTPie CLI open source?

Yes. HTTPie CLI is open source under the BSD-3-Clause licence. Its source code is on GitHub at httpie/cli and is written mainly in Python.

Yes. HTTPie CLI is open source, so the software itself is free to use.

What is HTTPie CLI an alternative to?

HTTPie CLI is an open-source alternative to Postman. Other open-source alternatives to Postman include API Dash, Restfox and Resterm.

Is HTTPie CLI actively maintained?

The most recent commit to HTTPie CLI was on 17 December 2024, and the latest release is 3.2.4, published on 1 November 2024. The project has 39k stars on GitHub.

HTTPie CLI: open-source alternative to Postman

About HTTPie CLI

HTTPie is a command-line HTTP client that aims to make working with web services from the terminal as human-friendly as possible. Its http and https commands send arbitrary HTTP requests using a short, natural syntax and print formatted, colorized responses, which makes it useful for testing, debugging and exploring APIs and HTTP servers.

Features include built-in JSON support, forms and file uploads, HTTPS, proxies and authentication, custom headers, arbitrary request data, persistent sessions, wget-like downloads and plugins. An offline mode builds and prints a request without sending it. Examples in the README cover a hello world request, custom methods with JSON data, and posting an authenticated comment through the GitHub API.

HTTPie is written in Python and released under the BSD-3-Clause licence. Community support is offered through Discord, Stack Overflow with the httpie tag and GitHub issues, and there is a newsletter. The README notes the repository was accidentally made private once, which cost it many stars.

Key features

Simple natural syntax for HTTP requests
Formatted and colorized terminal output
Built-in JSON support
Forms, file uploads and custom headers
Persistent sessions and authentication
Downloads and plugin support

Good fit for

→Testing REST APIs from the terminal
→Debugging HTTP servers and scripts

Built with: Python
Tags: http-client; cli; api-testing; json; python; debugging; curl-alternative; devtools

HTTPie CLI: questions and answers

What is HTTPie CLI used for?: HTTPie CLI is a command-line HTTP client with readable syntax, colored output and built-in JSON support, made for testing and debugging APIs from the terminal. It is a good fit for testing REST APIs from the terminal, and debugging HTTP servers and scripts.
Is HTTPie CLI open source?: Yes. HTTPie CLI is open source under the BSD-3-Clause licence. Its source code is on GitHub at httpie/cli and is written mainly in Python.
Is HTTPie CLI free?: Yes. HTTPie CLI is open source, so the software itself is free to use.
What is HTTPie CLI an alternative to?: HTTPie CLI is an open-source alternative to Postman. Other open-source alternatives to Postman include API Dash, Restfox and Resterm.
Is HTTPie CLI actively maintained?: The most recent commit to HTTPie CLI was on 17 December 2024, and the latest release is 3.2.4, published on 1 November 2024. The project has 39k stars on GitHub.