---
name: "pcre-config"
section: "1"
platform: "linux"
package: "pcre"
version: "8.45-5"
release: "Arch Linux 2026-11-01"
platforms: ["linux"]
url: "https://new.carta.tech/pcre-config"
---

# pcre-config(1)

program to return PCRE configuration

## NAME

pcre-config - program to return PCRE configuration

## SYNOPSIS

```
pcre-config [--prefix] [--exec-prefix] [--version] [--libs]
            [--libs16] [--libs32] [--libs-cpp] [--libs-posix]
            [--cflags] [--cflags-posix]
```

## DESCRIPTION

**pcre-config** returns the configuration of the installed PCRE libraries and the options required to compile a program to use them. Some of the options apply only to the 8-bit, or 16-bit, or 32-bit libraries, respectively, and are not available if only one of those libraries has been built. If an unavailable option is encountered, the "usage" information is output.

## OPTIONS

- **--prefix**

  Writes the directory prefix used in the PCRE installation for architecture independent files (*/usr* on many systems, */usr/local* on some systems) to the standard output.

- **--exec-prefix**

  Writes the directory prefix used in the PCRE installation for architecture dependent files (normally the same as **--prefix**) to the standard output.

- **--version**

  Writes the version number of the installed PCRE libraries to the standard output.

- **--libs**

  Writes to the standard output the command line options required to link with the 8-bit PCRE library (**-lpcre** on many systems).

- **--libs16**

  Writes to the standard output the command line options required to link with the 16-bit PCRE library (**-lpcre16** on many systems).

- **--libs32**

  Writes to the standard output the command line options required to link with the 32-bit PCRE library (**-lpcre32** on many systems).

- **--libs-cpp**

  Writes to the standard output the command line options required to link with PCRE's C++ wrapper library (**-lpcrecpp** **-lpcre** on many systems).

- **--libs-posix**

  Writes to the standard output the command line options required to link with PCRE's POSIX API wrapper library (**-lpcreposix** **-lpcre** on many systems).

- **--cflags**

  Writes to the standard output the command line options required to compile files that use PCRE (this may include some **-I** options, but is blank on many systems).

- **--cflags-posix**

  Writes to the standard output the command line options required to compile files that use PCRE's POSIX API wrapper library (this may include some **-I** options, but is blank on many systems).

## SEE ALSO

**[pcre(3)](/pcre/3.md)**

## AUTHOR

This manual page was originally written by Mark Baker for the Debian GNU/Linux system. It has been subsequently revised as a generic PCRE man page.

## REVISION

```
Last updated: 24 June 2012
```