smee.io Alternative Without a GitHub-Only Relay
smee.io is a GitHub webhook relay. Compare history, signup, localhost, and 1-to-N, then pick the tool that matches the job.
smee.io is a webhook relay GitHub documents for local development. You open a channel, run smee-client, and GitHub’s deliveries are forwarded to a localhost URL. That path is short and correct when you are following GitHub’s own guide. This page says when to stay there and when a general inspector is clearer.
OpenWebhook is not a GitHub-only proxy. The inspector accepts any provider. The CLI pulls the same URL to 127.0.0.1 without a tunnel. Neither requires an account on the first run.
Side by side
| smee.io | OpenWebhook | |
|---|---|---|
| History | A channel shows recent deliveries in the smee UI. It is a relay, not a long-lived request bin. | Live events in the browser. Up to 200 kept in IndexedDB locally. Nothing stored on the server. |
| Signup | No account. A channel URL is enough. | No account for the inspector or openwebhook listen --port. Pro is a stable slug and HTTPS fan-out, not the first listen. |
| Localhost | smee -u <channel> --path /webhooks (or smee-client) is the product. |
openwebhook listen --port 3001 replays to 127.0.0.1 only. Same idea, any provider. |
| 1-to-N | One channel, one local target. | One public URL can forward to many HTTPS destinations on Pro. |
| What we do not store | smee is a pass-through. Do not treat a public channel as a secret inbox. | Request bodies are not retained server-side. Close the inspector and the stream stops. |
Use smee.io if…
You are implementing a GitHub App or repository webhook and the official docs already tell you to start smee. You only need GitHub → one local path. You do not care about Stripe, Shopify, or Twilio on the same URL.
smee wins on that narrow path. Switching tools mid-tutorial is wasted motion.
Use a general inspector or CLI if…
You are not on GitHub, or you need the same public URL for more than one vendor. You want to read JSON and headers in the browser before they hit localhost. You want a localhost forward that is not named for a single provider.
npm install --global openwebhook
openwebhook listen --port 3001
Point GitHub’s webhook URL at the printed HTTPS endpoint, or at an inspector UUID path such as /github. A push event payload is on this site if you need the exact headers.
