Stop retyping your API. Turn cURL into docs instantly.

Jitendra Balla — Fri, 10 Jul 2026 17:35:00 +0000

Here's an absurd thing I did for years.

I'd test an endpoint with a cURL command. It worked. Then, to document it, I'd open a Markdown file and retype the whole thing by hand. The method, the URL, the headers, the body, a sample response. Information I already had, typed twice, in a format I hated.

If that's you, today's a good day.

The cURL to Markdown tool takes your cURL command and turns it into clean, formatted API docs. Paste, get Markdown, done: CURL to Markdown

Why it matters: the cURL command is the thing you actually ran and verified. When your docs come straight from it, they're accurate by default. No translating from memory, which is exactly where mistakes creep in.

My flow now: test the endpoint, paste the cURL, tidy up the description, ship. Fifteen minutes of formatting became two.

Try it on the last endpoint you built. Watch the boring part disappear.

Nobody writes bad docs on purpose. It just happens.

Jitendra Balla — Thu, 09 Jul 2026 17:32:32 +0000

Every project I've worked on had bad docs at some point. Not once was it a decision.

It happens slowly. A feature ships without docs because the deadline was tight. The next one skips docs too, because last time nothing broke. Six months later someone opens the wiki and finds three pages that contradict each other and a README that still says "coming soon."

Here's the reframe that changed things for me: docs are not a writing problem. They're a systems problem. Good docs come from removing the friction that makes people skip writing, not from trying harder.

That's what this series is about. 30 days of making documentation less painful, using free tools you can start with today. No enterprise platform. No approval process. Just less busywork.

Tomorrow we start with the one that fixed my whole workflow: turning API tests into docs without retyping anything.

If your docs are held together with hope and copy-paste right now, welcome. Let's fix it.

DEV Community: Jitendra Balla

Stop retyping your API. Turn cURL into docs instantly.

Nobody writes bad docs on purpose. It just happens.