OS X: equivalent of Linux's wget

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Mastering Downloads on macOS: The curl Command and Alternatives

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Explore the macOS equivalents to Linux's wget command, focusing on the powerful curl utility and other convenient download methods.

Linux users often rely on wget for command-line file downloads. When transitioning to macOS, a common question arises: what's the equivalent? While wget isn't pre-installed on macOS, the operating system provides an even more versatile and powerful tool: curl. This article will guide you through using curl for various download scenarios and introduce other methods to achieve similar results on your Mac.

Introducing curl: The macOS Download Workhorse

curl is a command-line tool and library for transferring data with URLs. It supports a wide range of protocols, including HTTP, HTTPS, FTP, FTPS, SCP, SFTP, TFTP, DICT, TELNET, LDAP, LDAPS, FILE, POP3, POP3S, IMAP, IMAPS, SMTP, SMTPS, RTMP and RTSP. Unlike wget, which primarily focuses on HTTP/FTP downloads and recursive retrieval, curl is designed for more general data transfer, making it incredibly flexible for both downloading and uploading. It's pre-installed on macOS, making it the go-to utility for command-line transfers.

curl -O https://example.com/path/to/file.zip

Downloading a file and saving it with its original filename.

curl -o custom_name.zip https://example.com/path/to/file.zip

Downloading a file and saving it with a custom filename.

Advanced curl Usage and Common Scenarios

curl can handle much more than simple file downloads. You can use it to fetch web page content, send POST requests, manage cookies, and even simulate browser behavior. Understanding these options unlocks its full potential for web development, scripting, and automation tasks.

curl https://www.example.com > homepage.html

Fetching the content of a web page and saving it to a file.

curl -X POST -d "param1=value1&param2=value2" https://api.example.com/submit

Sending a POST request with form data.

flowchart TD
    A[Start Download] --> B{URL Provided?}
    B -- Yes --> C{Output File Specified?}
    C -- Yes (-o) --> D[Save as Custom Name]
    C -- No (-O) --> E[Save as Original Name]
    B -- No --> F[Error: No URL]
    D --> G[Download Complete]
    E --> G
    F --> G

Basic curl download logic for file saving.

Installing wget on macOS (Optional)

While curl is highly capable, some users might prefer the familiarity of wget or need it for scripts originally written for Linux environments. You can easily install wget on macOS using Homebrew, the popular package manager for macOS. This process is straightforward and provides access to the exact wget utility you're used to.

1. Install Homebrew (if not already installed)

Open your Terminal application and run the following command to install Homebrew. Follow the on-screen instructions, which may include installing Xcode Command Line Tools.

2. Install wget using Homebrew

Once Homebrew is installed, you can install wget with a simple command in your Terminal.

3. Verify Installation

After installation, you can check if wget is correctly installed and accessible by running the version command.

/bin/bash -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/HEAD/install.sh)"

Command to install Homebrew.

brew install wget

Command to install wget via Homebrew.

wget --version

Verifying wget installation.