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ExpressJS VS HTTPie

Compare ExpressJS VS HTTPie and see what are their differences

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ExpressJS logo ExpressJS

Sinatra inspired web development framework for node.js -- insanely fast, flexible, and simple

HTTPie logo HTTPie

CLI HTTP that will make you smile. JSON support, syntax highlighting, wget-like downloads, extensions, and more.
  • ExpressJS Landing page
    Landing page //
    2021-10-14
  • HTTPie Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-07-28

ExpressJS features and specs

  • Fast Setup
    ExpressJS provides a minimal and flexible framework that allows rapid setup and development of web and mobile applications.
  • Middleware Support
    ExpressJS has a robust middleware system, allowing developers to add reusable functions to the request-handling pipeline.
  • Extensibility
    ExpressJS is highly extensible through third-party libraries and built-in functionality, catering to the needs of various applications.
  • Performance
    Due to its minimalist core, ExpressJS provides efficient performance and is capable of handling a high number of requests per second.
  • Community and Ecosystem
    A large and active community provides extensive documentation, support, and a wide array of open-source packages to extend functionality.
  • Flexibility
    Compared to full-stack frameworks, ExpressJS gives developers the freedom to structure their applications as they see fit.
  • Compatibility
    ExpressJS works seamlessly with various template engines, databases, and other frameworks, making it versatile for different project requirements.

Possible disadvantages of ExpressJS

  • Minimalist Core
    The minimalist nature of ExpressJS may require additional time and effort to integrate required plugins and libraries for specific features.
  • Learning Curve
    While ExpressJS is straightforward, mastering the middleware pattern and effective usage can have a learning curve for new developers.
  • Callback Hell
    Developers can encounter 'callback hell' due to nested callback functions, though this can be mitigated using Promises and async/await in modern JavaScript.
  • Lack of Convention
    Unlike opinionated frameworks, ExpressJS lacks conventions, which can lead to inconsistent code structure and maintenance challenges across different projects.
  • Security
    ExpressJS does not have built-in security features and relies on third-party solutions, requiring developers to be vigilant about applying best security practices.
  • Scalability
    While ExpressJS can handle high traffic, building and maintaining a highly scalable application might require significant additional effort, particularly in terms of codebase organization and resource management.

HTTPie features and specs

  • User-Friendly Syntax
    HTTPie offers a simplified and intuitive syntax for making HTTP requests compared to tools like curl. This makes it easier to use, especially for beginners.
  • JSON Support
    HTTPie automatically handles JSON data, making it simple to send and receive JSON payloads. It formats JSON responses in a readable way.
  • Cross-Platform
    HTTPie can be used on multiple operating systems including Windows, macOS, and Linux, ensuring broad compatibility.
  • Plugin Support
    HTTPie supports extensions and plugins that can extend its functionality, offering users the ability to customize their experience.
  • Automatic Headers
    Certain headers are automatically generated by HTTPie, reducing the need to manually specify common headers like Content-Type.
  • Color-coded Output
    The tool offers color-coded and formatted output, making it easier to read and debug HTTP responses.

Possible disadvantages of HTTPie

  • Performance
    HTTPie's performance may be slower compared to more stripped-down tools like curl due to its additional features and user-friendly design.
  • Dependency on Python
    HTTPie is a Python-based tool, requiring users to have Python installed. This may add complexity for users who do not already have a Python environment set up.
  • Learning Curve for Advanced Features
    While basic usage is straightforward, getting the most out of HTTPie's advanced features may require additional learning.
  • Not Pre-Installed
    Unlike curl, HTTPie is not pre-installed on most Unix-based systems, requiring an extra step for installation.
  • Limited Raw Socket Options
    HTTPie lacks some low-level networking capabilities and raw socket options available in other tools, limiting its functionality for some advanced use cases.

ExpressJS videos

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HTTPie videos

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Testing REST APIs con HTTPie y Postman

More videos:

  • Review - Testing REST APIs con HTTPie y Postman - Parte 3

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to ExpressJS and HTTPie)

ExpressJS

HTTPie

JavaScript Framework
100 100%
JavaScript Framework
0% 0
CLI
0 0%
CLI
100% 100
Developer Tools
91 91%
Developer Tools
9% 9
API Tools
0 0%
API Tools
100% 100

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare ExpressJS and HTTPie

ExpressJS Reviews

Top JavaScript Frameworks in 2025
Express.JS is used to create Restful APIs, which is useful for accepting requests from the front end and sending the appropriate response. Express.JS supports Node.js, which is one of the best reasons developers choose to use it. Moreover, debugging becomes faster and helps in finding errors in less time.
Source: solguruz.com
The 20 Best Laravel Alternatives for Web Development
Express.js — or Express for the cool cats — is Node.js’s minimalist wingman. It’s the train tracks for your web app, setting the path, defining the stops, but letting you drive the engine.
Source: tms-outsource.com
Top 9 best Frameworks for web development
The best frameworks for web development include React, Angular, Vue.js, Django, Spring, Laravel, Ruby on Rails, Flask and Express.js. Each of these frameworks has its own advantages and distinctive features, so it is important to choose the framework that best suits the needs of your project.
Source: www.kiwop.com
9 Best JavaScript Frameworks to Use in 2023
Additionally, Express.js v4 now comes with built-in middleware for handling AJAX requests from the client side, making it even easier to get started without having to worry about 3rd party libraries. Express.js is a great tool for quickly building out web applications and APIs in Node.js.
Source: ninetailed.io
JavaScript: What Are The Most Used Frameworks For This Language?
Express.JS is a popular open-source web application framework for Node.JS, which is a server-side JavaScript runtime environment. Express.JS provides a simple, flexible and scalable way to build web applications and APIs using Node.JS. It is known for its minimalist and unimposing approach, which means it provides a basic set of features and tools but allows developers to...
Source: www.bocasay.com

HTTPie Reviews

Top 20 Open Source & Cloud Free Postman Alternatives (2024 Updated)
With the growing demand for effective API testing tools, numerous alternatives to Postman have emerged, each offering unique features tailored to different needs. From comprehensive platforms like APIDog to lightweight solutions like HTTPie and Milkman, there is an option for every developer.
Source: medium.com
Postman Alternatives for API Testing and Monitoring
HTTPie is a command-line HTTP client, widely appreciated for its user-friendly and human-readable syntax. It's designed as a modern alternative to curl and wget, offering a more intuitive way to interact with HTTP servers, web services, and RESTful APIs.
Source: www.blazemeter.com
Top 10 HTTP Client and Web Debugging Proxy Tools (2023)
Aside from that, since HTTPie has a simple syntax, it can be used for testing, sending requests, and most specifically, debugging. Its combability goes with the three major OS, Windows, macOS, and Linux, and majorly for web and desktop. When it comes to API testing, many developers hope for it because it is open-source with enhanced UI, best for anything HTTP.
Source: www.bestproxyreviews.com
12 HTTP Client and Web Debugging Proxy Tools
The ultimate aim of HTTPie is to make CLI interaction with web services user interface friendly. This tool provides an HTTP command for sending requests, all with the use of a natural syntax.
Source: geekflare.com
Best Postman Alternatives: Fastest API Testing Tools
You can easily use its interactive features for easy testing, debugging, and various other interactions with HTTP servers. If we talk about the price, HTTPie is completely free to use.
Source: www.pcstacks.com

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, ExpressJS should be more popular than HTTPie. It has been mentiond 469 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

ExpressJS mentions (469)

  • Not a Middy Fan
    Express.js was created around the time callbacks were _the_ architecture in Node.js. The world, including UI, quickly found callbacks do not compose well, and void return values are hard to test because of side-effects. Promises were created so you could compose functions, but still have control where your side-effects go. This negates the need for middlewares / callbacks. - Source: dev.to / 6 days ago
  • Experimental Devvit Web Views
    The Devvit team just announced a new experimental way to build WebView based apps for Reddit. Previously only static HTML/JS/CSS could be used. With this new version, it is possible to run server-side code through Node including spinning up an Express server. - Source: dev.to / 10 days ago
  • How to Handle File Uploads with Node.js and Express - Multer Edition
    Basic knowledge of JavaScript and Express. - Source: dev.to / 12 days ago
  • Reusable API proxy in just a few lines of JavaScript
    The basis of my small API proxy is the NPM package http-proxy-middleware from Steven Chim, which I utilized to build a system that can be used via configuration for various endpoints and that runs on a server under the Node.js framework Express. - Source: dev.to / 27 days ago
  • How To Fetch Image From Database and Display In React JS
    Express Documentation This site has comprehensive guides on setting up routes, handling requests, and working with middleware in Express. - Source: dev.to / about 2 months ago
View more

HTTPie mentions (52)

  • 6 Game-Changing Postman Alternatives That Will Revolutionize Your API Development in 2025
    For developers who prefer terminal-based workflows, HTTPie offers a more user-friendly alternative to curl while maintaining the efficiency of command-line tools. Its intuitive syntax and colorized output make API testing from the terminal more accessible and productive. - Source: dev.to / 15 days ago
  • How to connect and query multiple databases with a single REST API
    Let's see how querying the table employee from our DB2 looks like after we inserted the record previously. Instead of curl, let's use httpie:. - Source: dev.to / 7 months ago
  • Ask HN: What's the Best Postman Alternative?
    I've been using HTTPie[1] for over a year and it's been great. Super light and does the job really well. [1]: https://httpie.io/. - Source: Hacker News / 8 months ago
  • cURL vs Postman
    HTTPie: This command-line tool is designed to be user-friendly compared to cURL. It provides a more readable output format and supports JSON natively, making it easier for developers to work with APIs directly from the terminal. - Source: dev.to / 8 months ago
  • Automating DNS with Confidence: Terraform + DNScontrol
    Use curl or https://httpie.io/ to validate the DNS entries. - Source: dev.to / 8 months ago
View more

What are some alternatives?

When comparing ExpressJS and HTTPie, you can also consider the following products

Node.js - Node.js is a platform built on Chrome's JavaScript runtime for easily building fast, scalable network applications

Insomnia REST - Design, debug, test, and mock APIs locally, on Git, or cloud. Build better APIs collaboratively for the most popular protocols with a dev‑friendly UI, built-in automation, and an extensible plugin ecosystem.

Ruby on Rails - Ruby on Rails is an open source full-stack web application framework for the Ruby programming...

cURL - cURL is a computer software project providing a library and command-line tool for transferring data...

Django - The Web framework for perfectionists with deadlines

Postman - The Collaboration Platform for API Development

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