5+ Ngrok Alternatives [2025]

Ngrok is a popular tunneling solution that’s used by thousands of developers. Although Ngrok has been a popular choice for some time, many developers are now seeking alternatives due to concerns about pricing, feature limitations, or specific project requirements.

Also, the fact that their free plan is limiting and makes you move to a subscription plan for unrestricted bandwidth is something that many developers don’t like. This is why we’ll discuss some Ngrok alternatives that don't come with these issues.

Ngrok overview

Ngrok has become the go-to tool for many developers as a networking ingress platform. It's an excellent way to share a website or app hosted on your local device with someone outside your local network. While Ngrok provides excellent tunneling capabilities, it comes with certain limitations.

The free tier restricts connection numbers, and business features can be costly for small teams or individual developers. Some users also report occasional stability issues and regional restrictions that impact their workflow.

Pros of Ngrok

• Works with Linux, Mac, Windows, and Docker.
• Automated HTTPS/TLS certificates
• Allows the use of custom domains (needs a paid plan).
• Easy way to test webhooks.

Cons of Ngrok

• Data transfer out (aka bandwidth) has a 1 GB per month bandwidth cap for the free plan (and 5 GB on the personal plan).
• Restricts number of active domains.
• Only 1 free custom domain on all paid plans. $14 per domain/month for additional domains.
• Commercial use not allowed in Free and Personal ($10/month) plans.

Ngrok Alternative

There are hundreds of Ngrok alternatives — some are free, some paid, some proprietary, and some open source. We’ll explore the best options that could serve as a Ngrok alternative for you.

LocalCan — the easiest solution

LocalCan is a Mac-only app that allows you to create shareable public URLs on *.localcan.dev or your custom domains, for your local applications. It also allows publishing .local domains on the local network. It works seamlessly with all browsers and devices, without any CORS or HTTPS errors. LocalCan also simplifies webhook testing significantly.

Additionally, LocalCan does not have subscription-based pricing. You make a one-time payment and enjoy lifetime access.

Features:

• Minimal setup/configuration
• One-time payment
• Handles HTTPS/TLS issuance
• Supports custom domains
• In-built traffic inspector & ability to replay network requests
• Allows restricted access using Basic Auth

Pricing:

LocalCan has a simple pricing. A single license (1 device) costs $67/one-time. If you need more devices, you can pay either $97/one-time for 2 devices or switch to a team plan which allows unlimited devices.

Cloudflare Tunnel

Cloudlare’s CDN and Workers are one of the most well-known products among developers, but very few know about their Tunnel offering. It’s a secured way of accessing your localhost through Cloudflare’s global network.

Though it’s a powerful tool, configuring it up can be a pain. Also, you need to move your domain’s DNS to Cloudflare incase you require a custom domain.

Features:

• Secure and detailed access control
• No bandwidth limit
• Supports multiple protocols (HTTP, HTTPS, SSH, TCP, and UDP)
• Supports custom domains

Zrok

Zrok is an open-source alternative to Ngrok built on top of OpenZiti↗. It offers a tunneling solution that’s built on modern zero-trust networking principles. As an open-source project, Zrok has become a popular choice among security-conscious developers as its source code is publicly available.

Features:

• Open-source
• Supports public & private shares
• Ability to share backend
• Auto HTTPS/TLS
• Supports custom domains

LocalTunnel

For developers seeking a straightforward, no-frills solution, Localtunnel presents an attractive option. It’s an open-source alternative to Ngrok that has gained popularity among developers who prioritize simplicity and cost-effectiveness.

LocalTunnel should be your go-to tool if you are in search for something open-source. However, there are better tools like LocalCan which has a better user experience.

Features:

• Open-source
• HTTPS supported

Pagekite

Pagekite offers a different approach to tunneling, with its focus on long-term connections and reliability. It's particularly well-suited for IoT projects and remote development scenarios. Designed to be user-friendly, PageKite can be easily integrated into existing workflows, allowing developers to focus on their projects without time-consuming setup procedures.

Features:

• Open-source
• Auto HTTPS
• Supports custom domains

Tailscale

Tailscale offers a unique approach to connectivity with its mesh VPN solution. Unlike traditional VPNs, it connects devices directly and encrypts the data, instead of routing everything through a central server.

P.S. Tailscale isn’t just a tunneling solution, consider it to be an alternative to Cloudflare’s Zero Trust platform.

This is especially useful for teams that need secure access to multiple resources like servers, databases, and internal apps. By using Tailscale, teams get better security and efficiency in their daily work, protecting sensitive information and allowing easy access to important resources.

Features:

• Secure and detailed access control
• Supports custom domains

What’s the best Ngrok alternative?

I might be biased and say LocalCan is the best, but the truth is that each option serves a slightly different use case, and your choice should be based on your needs.

LocalCan is excellent if you require a simple, zero-setup Ngrok alternative and wish to avoid subscription costs. Keep in mind that a Mac is necessary to use LocalCan.

If you're working with multiple stakeholders and require detailed access control, and you're already using Cloudflare, then their Tunnel service is likely the best choice. Similarly, if you need an open-source tool, Zrok is the right option.

Conclusion

When selecting a Ngrok alternative, consider your needs, budget, and personal preferences. It's also good to try different options to see which one you like the best. A tool that doesn't seem appealing initially may surprise you with its functionality.

If you choose to try LocalCan, don't hesitate to contact us for support or to provide feedback—your input is valuable to us.