curl_free(3)               Library Functions Manual               curl_free(3)

NAME
       curl_free - reclaim memory that has been obtained through a libcurl
       call

SYNOPSIS
       #include <curl/curl.h>

       void curl_free(void *ptr);

DESCRIPTION
       curl_free reclaims memory that has been obtained through a libcurl
       call. Use curl_free(3) instead of free() to avoid anomalies that can
       result from differences in memory management between your application
       and libcurl.

       Passing in a NULL pointer in ptr makes this function return immediately
       with no action.

PROTOCOLS
       This functionality affects all supported protocols

EXAMPLE
       int main(void)
       {
         char *width = curl_getenv("COLUMNS");
         if(width) {
           /* it was set */
           curl_free(width);
         }
       }

AVAILABILITY
       Added in curl 7.1

RETURN VALUE
       None

SEE ALSO
       curl_easy_escape(3), curl_easy_unescape(3)

libcurl                           2026-03-11                      curl_free(3)