Api Tools

API Tools

Overview

Tools and techniques for API development, testing, documentation, and debugging.

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HTTP Clients

cURL

# Basic GET
curl https://api.example.com/users

# GET with headers
curl -H "Authorization: Bearer TOKEN" \
     -H "Accept: application/json" \
     https://api.example.com/users

# POST with JSON body
curl -X POST \
     -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
     -d '{"name": "John", "email": "john@example.com"}' \
     https://api.example.com/users

# POST with form data
curl -X POST \
     -F "file=@document.pdf" \
     -F "name=My Document" \
     https://api.example.com/upload

# PUT request
curl -X PUT \
     -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
     -d '{"name": "Updated Name"}' \
     https://api.example.com/users/123

# DELETE request
curl -X DELETE https://api.example.com/users/123

# Show response headers
curl -i https://api.example.com/users

# Verbose output (debugging)
curl -v https://api.example.com/users

# Follow redirects
curl -L https://example.com/redirect

# Save response to file
curl -o response.json https://api.example.com/users

# With authentication
curl -u username:password https://api.example.com/protected
curl --oauth2-bearer TOKEN https://api.example.com/protected

# Measure timing
curl -w "@curl-format.txt" -o /dev/null -s https://api.example.com

# curl-format.txt
     time_namelookup:  %{time_namelookup}s\n
        time_connect:  %{time_connect}s\n
     time_appconnect:  %{time_appconnect}s\n
    time_pretransfer:  %{time_pretransfer}s\n
       time_redirect:  %{time_redirect}s\n
  time_starttransfer:  %{time_starttransfer}s\n
                     ----------\n
          time_total:  %{time_total}s\n

HTTPie

# GET request (more readable output)
http https://api.example.com/users

# With headers
http https://api.example.com/users \
  Authorization:"Bearer TOKEN" \
  Accept:application/json

# POST with JSON (default)
http POST https://api.example.com/users \
  name=John \
  email=john@example.com

# POST with raw JSON
http POST https://api.example.com/users \
   {
  console.log('Request:', {
    method: config.method?.toUpperCase(),
    url: config.url,
    params: config.params,
    data: config.data,
    headers: config.headers,
  });
  return config;
});

// Response interceptor
axios.interceptors.response.use(
  (response) => {
    console.log('Response:', {
      status: response.status,
      headers: response.headers,
      data: response.data,
    });
    return response;
  },
  (error) => {
    console.log('Error:', {
      status: error.response?.status,
      data: error.response?.data,
    });
    return Promise.reject(error);
  }
);

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Related Skills

• [[api-design]] - API design patterns
• [[testing-strategies]] - API testing
• [[backend]] - Backend development

Source & license

This open-source skill is cataloged on AgentStack and links to its original source — we do not rehost the code.

• Author: miles990
• Source: miles990/claude-software-skills
• License: MIT

Install and usage instructions live in the source repository linked above.