LocalTunnel: Quick HTTPS Tunnel to Localhost

Needed to share my local dev server externally. LocalTunnel made it instant.

What It Does

LocalTunnel exposes your localhost to the internet with a public HTTPS URL.

No config, no account needed.

Install

npm install -g localtunnel

Usage

Start your local server:

# Your app running on port 9051
python -m http.server 9051

Create tunnel:

lt --port 9051

Get a URL:

your url is: https://random-words-123.loca.lt

Share that URL. Anyone can access your localhost.

Custom Subdomain

Want a predictable URL?

lt --port 9051 --subdomain green-eagles-happen

Get:

https://green-eagles-happen.loca.lt

Same URL every time (if available).

Use Cases

Quick demos:

• Show client your in-progress work
• No deployment needed

Webhook testing:

• Test GitHub webhooks locally
• Stripe, Twilio, etc.

Mobile testing:

• Access localhost from phone
• Test responsive design on real devices

Alternatives

ngrok: More features, requires account for custom domains Cloudflare Tunnel: More reliable, but more setup LocalTunnel: Dead simple, free, no account

Security Note

Anyone with the URL can access your server. Don’t expose sensitive data.

Use authentication if needed:

// Express example
app.use((req, res, next) => {
  const auth = req.headers['authorization'];
  if (auth !== 'Bearer mysecret') {
    return res.status(401).send('Unauthorized');
  }
  next();
});

Quick tool for quick sharing.