What is the difference between HttpClient and WebClient?

Question

Accepted Answer

**HttpClient** — modern, async. **WebClient** — legacy, obsolete.

**HttpClient:**
- Async.
- Message handlers.
- Modern.

**WebClient:**
- Sync/async.
- Simple.
- Deprecated.

```csharp
// HttpClient
using var client = new HttpClient();
var response = await client.GetAsync("https://api.example.com");
var data = await response.Content.ReadAsStringAsync();

// WebClient (deprecated)
using var client = new WebClient();
var data = client.DownloadString("https://api.example.com");
```

**Key:** Use HttpClient, avoid WebClient.

C#: What is the difference between HttpClient and WebClient?