Debug Webhooks Locally with ngrok or Cloudflare Tunnel

When you self-host n8n behind a NAT or firewall, external services cannot reach its webhook URLs. Expose the local instance with a tunnelling tool -- ngrok or Cloudflare Tunnel -- so services like GitHub, Stripe, or Shopify can deliver real webhook events during development without deploying to a public server. Set WEBHOOK_URL to the tunnel address so n8n shows the correct URLs.

Why do local webhooks need a tunnel?

When self-hosting n8n behind a NAT or firewall, external services cannot reach your webhook URLs. Use a tunneling tool to expose your local n8n instance to the internet during development. This lets you receive real webhook events from services like GitHub, Stripe, or Shopify without deploying to a public server.

Real-world example: You run n8n locally on localhost:5678 and need to test a GitHub webhook that fires on pull request events.

How do you expose local n8n with ngrok?

Using ngrok:

# Install ngrok (macOS)

brew install ngrok

# Start a tunnel to your local n8n

ngrok http 5678

# Output:

# Forwarding https://a1b2c3d4.ngrok-free.app -> http://localhost:5678

Then set your webhook path in n8n and configure GitHub:

# n8n Webhook node path

webhook/github/pull-requests

# Full URL to give GitHub (use the ngrok URL + production webhook path)

https://a1b2c3d4.ngrok-free.app/webhook/github/pull-requests

# Important: Use /webhook/ (production), not /webhook-test/

# and make sure the workflow is activated

How do you expose local n8n with Cloudflare Tunnel?

Using Cloudflare Tunnel (more stable for longer sessions):

# Install cloudflared

brew install cloudflared

# Start a quick tunnel (no account needed)

cloudflared tunnel --url http://localhost:5678

# Output:

# Your quick Tunnel has been created!

# https://random-words-here.trycloudflare.com

How do you make n8n show the correct webhook URL?

# Environment variable alternative (set in .env or docker-compose)

# Tell n8n its public URL so it generates correct webhook URLs:

WEBHOOK_URL=https://a1b2c3d4.ngrok-free.app/

Note: Set WEBHOOK_URL for correct URL display. Without setting WEBHOOK_URL, the n8n editor will still show http://localhost:5678/webhook/... as the production URL. Setting this environment variable makes n8n display the tunnel URL directly in the editor, reducing copy-paste errors.

This lets you develop and debug with real webhook traffic without deploying anything.

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