Open source · HTTP · TCP · UDP
Expose localhost to the internet in one command
Port Buddy gives any port on your machine a public HTTPS URL. Test webhooks, demo work in progress, debug on a real phone, or share a local database — without deploying, opening firewall ports or setting up a VPN.
- HTTP and UDP tunnels are free. No credit card.
- macOS, Linux, Windows, Docker
- Single static binary
Your machine is invisible to everything else
Localhost sits behind NAT and a firewall, so anything outside your laptop — a payment provider, a teammate, your phone — simply cannot reach it. These are the four problems developers hit most, and the command that solves each one.
Webhooks can't reach localhost
Stripe, GitHub, Twilio and Telegram need a public HTTPS endpoint. Point them at your tunnel URL and debug the real payload on your machine — no redeploy between attempts.
$portbuddy 3000Deploying just to show someone
Skip the staging deploy for a five-minute review. Send a link to whatever is running on your machine right now and keep editing while they look.
$portbuddy 5173It works on your laptop, not on a phone
Open the same HTTPS URL on any real device or remote browser. Valid certificates, so no self-signed warnings and no broken service workers.
$portbuddy 8080Someone needs your local database or server
Raw TCP and UDP tunnels forward Postgres, Redis, SSH, RDP and game servers — no VPN, no router config, no firewall tickets. UDP is free; tcp tunnels from $5/month.
$portbuddy tcp 5432Running a game server? See the guides for a public Minecraft server or a Hytale server.
Public URL in three commands
No account setup wizard, no config file, no agent running in the background.
- 1
Install the CLI
One static binary, zero dependencies. Also available for Linux, Windows and Docker.
$brew install amak-tech/tap/portbuddy - 2
Link your account
Create an API token in the dashboard and pass it to the CLI once.
$portbuddy init YOUR_API_TOKEN - 3
Expose a port
You get a public HTTPS URL immediately. Use tcp or udp for non-HTTP services.
$portbuddy 3000
What you get with every tunnel
The things you would otherwise build yourself: TLS, stable URLs, access control and support for protocols that are not HTTP.
HTTPS out of the box
Every HTTP tunnel is served over TLS with a valid certificate. Traffic between the edge and your machine runs inside an encrypted tunnel.
Static subdomains
Reserve a subdomain so your URL survives restarts. Webhook endpoints you register once keep working tomorrow.
Custom domains
Point tunnel.yourcompany.com at Port Buddy. Certificates are issued and renewed automatically via Let’s Encrypt.
TCP and UDP tunnels
Not just HTTP. HTTP and UDP tunnels are free. No credit card. TCP tunnels from $5/month, and they carry Postgres, MySQL, Redis, SSH, RDP and Minecraft Java.
WebSockets supported
Long-lived connections pass through untouched, so live reload, chat and multiplayer backends behave like they do locally.
Private tunnels
Put basic auth or an IP allowlist in front of a tunnel when a public URL should not actually be public.
How the tunnel works
The CLI opens one outbound connection to the Port Buddy edge. Incoming traffic travels back down that connection, so nothing has to be open on your network.
Visitor or webhook
Requests your public URL
*.portbuddy.dev
Port Buddy edge
TLS termination, access rules and routing to the right tunnel
Your machine
Simple, transparent pricing
HTTP and UDP tunnels are free. No credit card. Add tunnels for $1/month in blocks of 5 when you need them, and tcp tunnels from $5/month.
Transfer is unmetered on every plan: no bandwidth caps, no overage charges.
Pro
Perfect for hobbyists and individual developers working on side projects.
- 1 free HTTP or UDP tunnel, no credit card
- Unlimited custom domains
- Static subdomains
- Unmetered transfer
- TCP tunnels from $5/month
- $1/mo per extra tunnel, in blocks of 5
Team
For growing teams that need more resources and collaboration features.
- 10 free tunnels included
- TCP tunnels included
- Unmetered transfer
- Team member management
- Priority email support
- $1/mo per extra tunnel, in blocks of 5
Detailed Comparison
Choose the plan that fits your development needs.
| Feature | Pro | Team |
|---|---|---|
| HTTP Tunnels | Included | Included |
| UDP Tunnels | Included | Included |
| TCP Tunnels | From $5/mo | Included |
| SSL for HTTP | Included | Included |
| Static Subdomains | Included | Included |
| Custom Domains | Included | Included |
| Private Tunnels | Included | Included |
| Web Socket Support | Included | Included |
| Free Tunnels | 1 tunnel | 10 tunnels |
| Extra Tunnels | $1/mo each | $1/mo each |
| Transfer | Unmetered | Unmetered |
| Team Members | Not included | Included |
| SSO | Not included | Coming soon |
| Support | Community | Priority |
TCP tunnels start at $5/month — 5 extra tunnels at $1/month each on the free plan, or included with Team at $10/month — and they carry anything that speaks TCP: Postgres, MySQL, Redis, SSH, RDP and Minecraft Java. HTTP and UDP tunnels are free and need no credit card.
TCP switches on once your account holds 5 extra tunnels — 6 concurrent tunnels in total, since the free plan already includes one — or as soon as you are on Team. Extra tunnels are sold in blocks of 5 at $1/month each, so $5/month is the smallest TCP purchase on the free plan.
Transfer is unmetered on every plan: no bandwidth caps, no overage charges.
For comparison, ngrok's cheapest plan with a reserved TCP address is Hobbyist at $8/month billed annually ($10/month month-to-month). ngrok pricing as of August 2026.
Frequently asked questions
Port Buddy is a tunneling service for developers. You run one command against a local port and get a public URL that forwards traffic to your machine, so external services, teammates and devices can reach an app that only runs on localhost.
Port Buddy focuses on a simpler workflow: static subdomains, custom domains and private tunnels are available on the free tier, which includes one tunnel and needs no credit card. It is also open source under Apache 2.0, so you can read the code or run your own instance.
Yes. The Pro plan starts at $0/month with one free HTTP or UDP tunnel and no credit card. Extra tunnels cost $1/month each in blocks of 5, and the Team plan is $10/month with 10 tunnels included plus team member management. Transfer is unmetered on every plan: no bandwidth caps, no overage charges.
HTTP tunnels are served over HTTPS with automatic certificates, and the connection between the CLI on your machine and the Port Buddy edge is encrypted. For tunnels that should not be open to everyone you can require basic auth or restrict access to an IP allowlist.
Yes. Use portbuddy tcp 5432 for Postgres, or portbuddy udp 19132 for UDP services such as Minecraft Bedrock. TCP tunnels start at $5/month — 5 extra tunnels at $1/month each on the free plan, or included with Team at $10/month — and they carry anything that speaks TCP: Postgres, MySQL, Redis, SSH, RDP and Minecraft Java. HTTP and UDP tunnels are free and need no credit card. TCP switches on once your account holds 5 extra tunnels — 6 concurrent tunnels in total, since the free plan already includes one — or as soon as you are on Team. Extra tunnels are sold in blocks of 5 at $1/month each, so $5/month is the smallest TCP purchase on the free plan.
Yes. Connect a custom domain such as tunnel.yourcompany.com and Port Buddy provisions and renews the SSL certificate for it automatically.
Reserve a static subdomain and your tunnel keeps the same address every time you start it, which matters when a webhook provider or a mobile build has the URL hardcoded.
Yes. The full stack — CLI, tunnel server, gateway and dashboard — is published on GitHub under the Apache 2.0 license, so you can run it on your own infrastructure instead of the hosted service.
Give your localhost a public URL
Install the CLI, run one command, and share the link. The free tier needs no credit card.