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Home/Categories/Developer Tools/Tunnelmole
icon of Tunnelmole

Tunnelmole

Open source alternative to ngrok, LocalXpose and Cloudflare Tunnel

  • 1.9K stars
  • MIT
  • Updated this year
  • Last commit 192 days ago

Last verified Oct 6, 2026

Connect local HTTP or HTTPS servers to a public URL for webhook testing, client demos, and cross-device debugging.

Visit websiteGitHub1.9K starsDeploy on Hostinger
image of Tunnelmole
TL;DR

Tunnelmole is an open source tunneling client that gives locally running HTTP or HTTPS servers a public URL. It replaces hosted tunnel tools like ngrok for developers who need to share local apps, test webhooks, or demo work without deploying. MIT licensed.

Read the full breakdownHide the full breakdownWho it is for, how it works, trade-offs and the FAQ
who it's for

Who Tunnelmole is for#

Developers testing webhooks locally

Use Tunnelmole when Stripe, GitHub, Slack, or another external service needs to call your local endpoint.

Skip if:

The endpoint is production-facing or needs long-term uptime guarantees.

Teams sharing local demos

Use Tunnelmole to give a teammate or client a temporary URL for a local app without deploying a preview environment.

Skip if:

Your team already has secure preview deployments attached to every branch.

the problem

The problem it solves#

Local development breaks down when an external service needs to reach your machine. Webhook providers, mobile devices, teammates, and clients cannot access localhost, so developers either deploy unfinished work or fight with network configuration.

Hosted tunnel tools solve the access problem, but they add account, pricing, and vendor dependency concerns. Some teams want a simpler open source path for temporary public URLs.

how Tunnelmole solves it

How it solves it#

Public URLs for localhost

Creates a public URL for locally running HTTP or HTTPS servers, including web servers, APIs, Docker containers, and React or Node apps.

Webhook testing workflow

Lets services such as payment providers or automation tools call a local endpoint during development without deploying the app.

Open source tunneling client

Provides a client-side tunnel workflow with source access, giving developers more inspection and self-hosting options than a closed tunnel service.

strengths · trade-offs

Strengths and trade-offs#

Strengths

  • Fast path from localhost to public URLTunnelmole focuses on the core developer job: expose a local server so another system can reach it. That keeps demos and webhook tests simple.
  • Useful before deploymentDevelopers can share work or test callbacks before CI/CD, staging infrastructure, or DNS setup is ready.

Trade-offs

  • -Temporary tunnel, not production ingressTunnelmole is for development access and demos. Production workloads need stable ingress, authentication, rate limits, observability, and operational ownership.
tech stack · detected from GitHub

What it's built on#

Languages
JavaScriptTypeScript
Frameworks
Express
frequently asked

FAQ#

What is Tunnelmole used for?

Tunnelmole is used to expose local HTTP or HTTPS servers through a public URL for development, demos, and webhook testing.

Is Tunnelmole an ngrok alternative?

Yes. Tunnelmole can replace ngrok for common local tunneling jobs, especially when developers want an open source client.

Should Tunnelmole be used in production?

No. Tunnelmole is best for temporary development tunnels. Production services need stable ingress and security controls.

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Hostinger

Run Tunnelmole on your own server

Self-host Tunnelmole on a Hostinger VPS.

Deploy on Hostinger

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