# Thunder Client > Lightweight REST API client that lives directly inside the VS Code extension marketplace. Canonical: https://www.findalternate.com/thunder-client Last updated: 2026-09-11 Lightweight REST API client that lives directly inside the VS Code extension marketplace. ## Key facts - **Website:** https://www.thunderclient.com/ - **Category:** Developer Tools - **Pricing:** FREEMIUM - **Platforms:** Windows, macOS, Linux - **Launched:** 2026-06-29 - **Maker:** adi - **Likes:** 0 - **Points:** 0 - **Comments:** 0 ## Key features - Native VS Code REST Client: Test and debug API endpoints directly inside your editor without switching to separate applications. - Lightweight & Fast Execution: Send HTTP requests with negligible memory consumption compared to heavy Electron API tools. - Git-Integrated Collections: Save API request collections and environment variables directly in your project repository for team sync. - Scriptless API Testing: Write automated test assertions for status codes, response times, and JSON payloads without coding scripts. - GraphQL & Multipart Support: Test REST, GraphQL, and multipart form-data uploads seamlessly within the extension. ## Recommended for Developers and API engineers wanting a lightweight, clutter-free REST client embedded directly inside Visual Studio Code. ## Pros and cons Pros: - Completely embedded in VS Code, eliminating app-switching friction. - Extremely lightweight with lightning-fast startup and execution. - Stores test collections as Git-friendly JSON files in your repository. Cons: - Advanced team synchronization and unlimited collections require a paid license. - Lacks the extensive public API documentation hub of Postman. ## Tags api, testing, vscode ## Alternates - [k6](https://www.findalternate.com/k6): Open-source, developer-centric load testing tool for API and performance testing. — FREEMIUM, 0 likes - [SwaggerHub](https://www.findalternate.com/swaggerhub): Design-first API platform for building, documenting, and governing APIs using the OpenAPI spec. — FREEMIUM, 0 likes - [Insomnia](https://www.findalternate.com/insomnia): Open-source API client from Kong supporting REST, GraphQL, gRPC, and WebSockets. — FREEMIUM, 0 likes - [VirtuProbe Studio](https://www.findalternate.com/virtuprobe-studio): Cross-protocol request workbench for integration and penetration testing. 11 protocols, local-first, no account needed. Put your tests together on your own or supervise your agent helping you achieve your goals via MCP. Chain your tests or script your scenarios in JS or Groovy. Free tier covers HTTP, DNS and SMTP testing. — FREEMIUM, 0 likes - [Reqit](https://www.findalternate.com/reqit): Reqit is a local-first, git-native API client built for developers who want their API collections to live alongside their code instead of locked away in someone else's cloud. Every collection is stored as plain files in your repo, so requests, environments, and test suites version naturally with git: diffable, mergeable, and reviewable just like any other part of your codebase. Beyond the basics of sending requests and organizing collections, reqit includes a mock server for simulating endpoints during development, a Collection Runner with assertions for automated testing, and full OpenAPI import/export so you can move in and out of existing specs without friction. It supports mTLS client certificate authentication for teams working with secured internal APIs, and a BYOK (bring-your-own-key) AI layer that lets you plug in OpenAI, Anthropic, Gemini, Groq, or Ollama for AI-assisted workflows inside the app. For teams building AI agents, reqit ships with its own MCP server, exposing your API collections as tools an agent can call directly, plus Agent Lens, a linter and eval workbench that checks whether your API surface is actually "tool-ready" for agentic use. Collections can also be published via Collection Showcase, with support for custom domains, making it easy to share polished, browsable API documentation without standing up separate infrastructure. The whole experience is wrapped in a distinctive visual identity, deep blacks accented with a signature cyan, giving reqit a sharp, focused feel that stands apart from the cluttered, cloud-first tools it's meant to replace. At its core, reqit is about giving developers ownership: your API workflows shouldn't be trapped in a vendor's database. They should be yours, versioned, portable, and as hackable as the rest of your stack. — FREE, 0 likes - [Hoppscotch](https://www.findalternate.com/hoppscotch): Lightweight, open-source API client that runs entirely in the browser with zero installation. — FREEMIUM, 0 likes - [HTTPie](https://www.findalternate.com/httpie): Developer-friendly command-line HTTP client with intuitive syntax and colorized output. — FREEMIUM, 0 likes - [Bruno](https://www.findalternate.com/bruno): Git-native, offline-first API client that stores collections as plain text files for version control. — FREE, 0 likes - [Postman](https://www.findalternate.com/postman): The most widely used API platform for building, testing, and documenting REST and GraphQL APIs. — FREEMIUM, 0 likes - [geogit](https://www.findalternate.com/geogit): sdfghj ghjg hjg hg hg hhj — PREMIUM, 0 likes ## Related - [Developer Tools category](https://www.findalternate.com/category/developer-tools) - [Compare Thunder Client and k6](https://www.findalternate.com/compare/thunder-client-vs-k6) - [FindAlternate homepage](https://www.findalternate.com/)