HTTPie
A human-friendly API testing client for the command line, desktop, and web
About HTTPie
HTTPie is a modern, user-friendly API testing client available as an open-source CLI tool, desktop app, and web app. It makes interacting with HTTP APIs intuitive with colorized output, JSON support, and natural syntax, while its desktop and web apps add workspaces, collections, environments, AI-assisted request generation, and real-time sync across devices.
Pros & Cons
Pros
- Completely free with no paid tiers — all features available to everyone
- Exceptionally clean, readable CLI output with syntax highlighting and JSON formatting
- Intuitive command syntax that's easier to learn than curl for API testing
- Cross-platform availability: CLI, desktop app, and browser-based web app
- AI assistant generates requests from natural language, reducing boilerplate
- Open-source CLI under MIT license with active community and plugin ecosystem
- No account required to start using the web app immediately
Cons
- Fewer integrations and ecosystem compared to Postman
- No built-in automated test runner or CI/CD pipeline tooling
- Limited team collaboration features (no role-based access or shared billing)
- GraphQL support is basic compared to dedicated GraphQL clients
- AI assistant still in preview and may have limitations
Key Features
Human-Friendly CLI
Intuitive command-line syntax with colorized and formatted output, making HTTP requests as readable as possible
Desktop & Web App
Cross-platform GUI application for macOS, Windows, and Linux, plus a browser-based version requiring no installation
AI-Assisted Requests
Built-in AI assistant that generates API requests from natural language descriptions typed directly in the URL bar
Workspaces & Collections
Organize API requests into spaces, collections, and drafts with real-time sync across all your devices
Environment Management
Define variables for development, staging, and production environments with collection-level and request-level scoping
Multi-Protocol Support
Test REST, GraphQL, and standard HTTP APIs from a single interface with built-in JSON support
Session Persistence
Maintain cookies, authentication tokens, and custom headers across multiple requests automatically
Export & Import
Export and import entire workspaces, collections, environments, and individual requests for team sharing and backups
Plugin Ecosystem
Extensible CLI with community plugins for authentication schemes, output formats, and transport adapters
Pricing
- Full CLI tool (open-source, MIT license)
- Desktop app for macOS, Windows, Linux
- Web app with no account required
- Unlimited requests and collections
- Workspaces with real-time sync
- Environment management
- AI-assisted request generation (preview)
- Export/import workspaces and collections
- Session persistence and authentication
- Plugin support (CLI)
Best For
Quick API Testing from Terminal
Send HTTP requests with readable output and intuitive syntax directly from the command line
API Exploration & Debugging
Use the desktop or web app to visually explore and debug REST and GraphQL APIs with organized collections
Developer Onboarding
Provide new team members an easy-to-learn API client with no setup cost or subscription required
AI-Powered Request Building
Describe what you need in plain English and let the AI assistant generate the proper API request
Cross-Environment Testing
Switch between development, staging, and production environments with managed variables and sessions
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