Cloudflare Tunnels: A Free ngrok Alternative for Exposing Localhost

November 15, 2025

Need to expose your localhost application to the internet for testing webhooks, sharing demos, or collaborating with teammates? Cloudflare Tunnels is an excellent free alternative to ngrok that gives you HTTPS-enabled public URLs with just two commands.

Why Cloudflare Tunnels?

While ngrok is popular, Cloudflare Tunnels offers several advantages:

Completely free - No time limits or connection restrictions
HTTPS by default - Automatic SSL/TLS encryption
No account required for quick temporary tunnels
Built on Cloudflare's global network - Fast and reliable
Simple setup - Just two commands to get started

Quick Setup

Getting started is incredibly simple. Here's how:

1. Install cloudflared

On macOS using Homebrew:

brew install cloudflared

On Linux:

# Debian/Ubuntu
wget -q https://github.com/cloudflare/cloudflared/releases/latest/download/cloudflared-linux-amd64.deb
sudo dpkg -i cloudflared-linux-amd64.deb

# Other distributions - download from GitHub releases
curl -L https://github.com/cloudflare/cloudflared/releases/latest/download/cloudflared-linux-amd64 -o cloudflared
chmod +x cloudflared
sudo mv cloudflared /usr/local/bin/

On Windows:

# Using Chocolatey
choco install cloudflared

# Or download the installer from Cloudflare's GitHub releases

2. Start the Tunnel

Point it to your local application:

cloudflared tunnel --url http://localhost:6969

That's it! You'll see output like this:

2025-11-15T10:30:45Z INF +--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
2025-11-15T10:30:45Z INF |  Your quick Tunnel has been created! Visit it at (it may take some time to be reachable):  |
2025-11-15T10:30:45Z INF |  https://random-words-1234.trycloudflare.com                                               |
2025-11-15T10:30:45Z INF +--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+

Your application is now accessible from anywhere via the provided HTTPS URL!

Common Use Cases

Testing Webhooks

Perfect for testing webhooks from services like GitHub, Stripe, or Twilio:

# Start your webhook receiver locally
npm run dev  # Running on port 3000

# In another terminal, create the tunnel
cloudflared tunnel --url http://localhost:3000

# Use the generated URL in your webhook configuration

Sharing Development Previews

Show your work to clients or teammates without deploying:

# Your React/Vue/Angular dev server
npm run dev  # localhost:5173

cloudflared tunnel --url http://localhost:5173

Mobile Device Testing

Test your web app on real mobile devices without being on the same network:

cloudflared tunnel --url http://localhost:8080

Advanced Features

Custom Domains

For persistent tunnels with custom domains, you can authenticate and configure named tunnels:

# Login to Cloudflare
cloudflared tunnel login

# Create a named tunnel
cloudflared tunnel create my-app

# Configure and route traffic
cloudflared tunnel route dns my-app myapp.example.com

# Run the tunnel
cloudflared tunnel run my-app

Configuration File

For more complex setups, create a config.yml:

tunnel: my-app-tunnel
credentials-file: /path/to/credentials.json

ingress:
  - hostname: api.example.com
    service: http://localhost:8080
  - hostname: app.example.com
    service: http://localhost:3000
  - service: http_status:404

Security Considerations

Temporary URLs are random - Quick tunnels generate random URLs that are hard to guess
Don't expose sensitive data - Only tunnel applications you're comfortable making public
Add authentication - Consider adding password protection or OAuth to your local app
Monitor access logs - Keep an eye on who's accessing your tunnel

Comparison: Cloudflare vs ngrok

Feature	Cloudflare Tunnels	ngrok (Free)
Price	Free	Free (with limits)
HTTPS	✅ Always	✅ Yes
Custom domains	✅ Free with Cloudflare	❌ Paid only
Connection time limit	✅ Unlimited	⚠️ 2 hour sessions
Bandwidth limit	✅ Unlimited	⚠️ Limited on free plan
Setup complexity	Very simple	Very simple

Troubleshooting

Port Already in Use

Make sure your application is actually running on the port you specified:

# Check what's running on the port
lsof -i :6969  # macOS/Linux
netstat -ano | findstr :6969  # Windows

Connection Refused

Ensure your app accepts connections from all interfaces or at least localhost:

# Good - listening on all interfaces
python -m http.server 8000

# Also good - explicit localhost
node server.js --host localhost --port 3000

Slow Performance

Cloudflare routes traffic through their nearest data center. Performance is generally excellent, but if you experience issues:

Check your local network connection
Verify your application performance locally first
Consider using a named tunnel for better routing

Conclusion

Cloudflare Tunnels is a powerful, free alternative to ngrok that's perfect for developers who need quick, secure access to their localhost applications. With just two commands, you can expose any local service to the internet with HTTPS enabled.

The best part? It's completely free with no arbitrary time limits or connection restrictions. Whether you're testing webhooks, sharing demos, or debugging on mobile devices, Cloudflare Tunnels has you covered.

Give it a try next time you need to expose a local service!

M YUSUF