Introduction

In the age of rapid development, where every millisecond counts, having the capability to deploy your local web server to a distant client, teammate, or tester at lightning speed is no more a luxury—nor an indulgence. Perhaps you are giving a presentation of your shiny new web app to a stakeholder or tracing an integration problem of a webhook where only public URLs will do, and using the old-school route of staging deployment is overcomplication.

That's where the likes of Ngrok come in handy.

Ngrok allows you to expose your localhost to the internet in a matter of seconds using secure tunnels without needing to configure firewalls, port forwarding, or DNS settings. It's a small, developer-oriented tool that makes your machine a globally accessible endpoint—perfect for real-time testing and collaboration.

Here we'll walk you through exactly how to use Ngrok to expose your local server, step by step. And to make things easy, we've included a visual guide to the video below

The Importance of Sharing Local Servers

When you're developing a web app or API, it all typically begins on your local development environment. It's quick, secure, and entirely in your hands. But how do you share your in-progress work with another person—like a remote client, teammate, or QA tester?

Historically, that would mean:

  • Deploying your code to a test server or cloud environment,
  • Configuring DNS, firewalls, and port forwarding,
  • Or even doing temporary commits just to push code to be reviewed.

Not only is that wasteful, but it breaks your development process.

Real-Life Situations Where Local Sharing Is Important

  • Client Demos: Demonstrate your in-progress features to clients in real-time without deploying to production.
  • Webhook Testing: Applications such as Stripe, GitHub, or PayPal need public URLs for webhooks. It assists in emulating this in an instant.
  • Collaborative Debugging: Send a bug in live to your team members so that they are able to view it as it occurs.
  • Mobile & Cross-Device Testing: Need to test your local application on a tablet or mobile device? It provides you with a public URL you can browse on any device.

The Struggles Without Ngrok

  • Port forwarding setup can be a pain, particularly with dynamic IPs or locked-down networks.
  • Public deployment equals code exposure and additional setup time just to test or share.
  • It's not always possible to provide external testers or clients with access to your internal systems.

That's why developers resort to tunneling solutions like Ngrok—it fills the gap between local development and global access with one simple command.

👍If you're using XAMPP to run your local server, make sure your database credentials are secure. You can change the MySQL root password in XAMPP to protect your local database.

What is Ngrok?

Ngrok is a development tool that enables you to expose a local server to the internet with a secure, public URL. It establishes a tunnel between your localhost and the outside world, making it extremely handy for testing webhooks, demoing work, or allowing remote access to your app.

Rather than setting up firewalls or deploying to a cloud server, you can share your localhost with one command: ngrok http 3000

Ngrok behaves as a reverse proxy, forwarding traffic from a public endpoint to your local machine securely and in real time.

Key Features of Ngrok

1. Public URLs for Local Projects

  • Get HTTPS and HTTP endpoints instantly for your local server.
  • Excellent for demonstrating a prototype or demo to a client.

2. Secure Tunnels with HTTPS by Default

  • All traffic is encrypted with SSL/TLS.
  • No additional configuration is required to secure your data.

3. Built-in Web Interface: It includes a web UI (http://127.0.0.1:4040) for monitoring, inspecting, and replaying HTTP requests.

4. Basic Authentication: Include simple credentials to secure your tunnel against unauthorized access (on paid plans or through config).

Common Use Cases

  • Webhook Testing: Quickly test third-party services such as Stripe, Twilio, or GitHub that need public callback URLs.
  • Demo Environments: Share in-progress work with stakeholders without actually deploying to a live server.
  • Cross-Device Previewing: Access your local app on any device connected to any network.
Ngrok flowchart showing how external requests reach your localhost app via a secure tunnel
Ngrok Tunnel Flow: External Request → Ngrok URL → Localhost App

Step-by-Step Guide to Using Ngrok

Install Ngrok on Your System

1. Visit the official Ngrok website:

  • 👉 https://ngrok.com/download
  • Download the correct version for your operating system (Windows, macOS, or Linux).
  • Extract the ZIP file and move the executable (ngrok.exe for Windows) into a directory that's included in your system’s PATH.

2. Connect Your Ngrok Account

  • Sign up for a free account on Ngrok.com.
  • Once signed in, go to your dashboard → Auth tab, and copy your unique auth token.
  • Paste it in your terminal like this:
ngrok config add-authtoken YOUR_AUTH_TOKEN

3. Start Your Local Server

Assume you're running a server locally on port 3000 (e.g., Node.js, Python Flask, or PHP server).
Example command: node index.js
Or for Python: python3 -m http.server 3000

4. Launch Ngrok and Generate a Public URL

  • Now tunnel your local server with Ngrok using this command: ngrok http 3000
  • It will initialize a secure tunnel and display public-facing URLs.

5. Access the URL from Any Device or Network

  • Open the https://your-ngrok-url.ngrok.io in your browser.
  • You should see your local site running live, accessible over the web.

6. Optional: Use the Ngrok Web Interface
Ngrok provides a web interface at http://127.0.0.1:4040 to: Inspect HTTP traffic, Replay requests, Debug responses.

Pro Tip:
You can also create a configuration file (ngrok.yml) for saved tunnels and advanced settings like authentication, subdomains, and TLS.

Advanced Ngrok Features You Should Know

Once you're comfortable using Ngrok for basic tunneling, it’s worth exploring its powerful advanced features—especially if you're working in a team, testing APIs, or deploying microservices.

Reserved Domains & Subdomains

By default, Ngrok gives you a random subdomain (like https://23ff12.ngrok.io). But with a paid plan, you can reserve a custom subdomain:

ngrok http -subdomain=mydevproject 3000

Now your URL becomes: https://mydevproject.ngrok.io
✅ Great for client demos or webhook configurations where URLs need to stay consistent.

Password-Protected Tunnels

You can protect your public tunnels with basic auth so unauthorized users can’t access them:

ngrok http -auth="user:pass" 3000

When someone visits your Ngrok URL, they’ll need to enter a username and password.

Request Inspection and Replay


Ngrok's web interface at http://127.0.0.1:4040 does more than log traffic—it lets you replay requests and inspect every detail:

  • See full request/response bodies
  • Review headers, query params, and JSON payloads
  • Replay failed webhooks with a single click

✅ This is super useful when debugging APIs or webhooks from services like Stripe or Twilio.

Persistent Configuration with YAML

If you're running the same tunnel often, define it in a ngrok.yml file:

tunnels:
myapp:
addr: 3000
proto: http
auth: "user:password"
subdomain: mycustomdomain


Then launch with: ngrok start myapp

✅ Helpful for teams or CI/CD environments where tunnels need to be automated.

Ngrok in CI/CD & Automation

Ngrok also supports headless automation. You can integrate it with:

  • GitHub Actions
  • Jenkins
  • Local tunnel automation scripts

For example, auto-start Ngrok before running integration tests or during a staging deployment.

Ngrok Alternatives – What Are Your Options?

Ngrok is a market leader, but it’s not the only tool available for creating secure tunnels to localhost. Depending on your use case, budget, or tech stack, you might prefer something more flexible, open-source, or cost-effective.
Here are some top alternatives:

LocalTunnel

LocalTunnel is a free and open-source alternative that lets you expose your local server to the web.

  • Quick setup via npm: npx localtunnel --port 3000
  • Lets you choose a subdomain (if available).
  • No registration required.

Downsides:
💠Less stable than Ngrok under load.
💠No request inspection dashboard.

Cloudflare Tunnel (formerly Argo Tunnel)

Cloudflare Tunnel offers enterprise-grade performance and integrates directly with the Cloudflare platform.

  • Free with a Cloudflare account.
  • Strong focus on security and DDoS protection.
  • Requires setting up a domain managed by Cloudflare.

Downsides:
💠More setup time and complexity.
💠Tied into the Cloudflare ecosystem.

👍For enhanced protection beyond tunneling, especially in production environments, consider exploring Cloudflare Zero Trust security to control and monitor access to internal applications.

Expose by Beyond Code (for PHP/Laravel Devs)

Expose is a PHP-first tunneling tool, ideal for Laravel developers.

  • Self-hosted option available.
  • Dashboard for request inspection.
  • Supports custom domains and HTTPS.

Downsides:
💠Limited to PHP use cases.
💠Requires PHP installed locally.

Telebit & Tailscale (Advanced Networking Tools)

For developers interested in peer-to-peer access, VPN-style tunnels, or mesh networking, tools like:
💠Tailscale (zero-config VPN)
💠Telebit (reverse tunnel via HTTPS)
…offer more advanced use cases but come with learning curves.

When to Choose an Ngrok Alternative?

💠When you need persistent tunnels on a budget
💠When you prefer open-source tooling
💠When you need tighter integration with your own infrastructure
That said, Ngrok remains one of the easiest, fastest, and most polished solutions for most developers, especially when speed and simplicity are key.

👍For full desktop access to your local machine from anywhere, Chrome Remote Desktop offers a reliable way to control your environment beyond just web app tunneling.

Final Thoughts

Ngrok is an incredibly handy tool for developers, freelancers, testers, and even educators who need to share their local projects instantly and securely.
From local server sharing, to webhook testing, to live demos across the world, Ngrok removes the friction of network configurations and port forwarding.
Whether you’re:
💠Debugging a webhook from Stripe or PayPal,
💠Collaborating remotely with a designer,
.......Or presenting your MVP to a client in real-time…
➡️Ngrok can save you hours and impress your team.