Test GitHub webhooks in real-time — no signup, no tunnels.

Why test GitHub webhooks with HookSense

Quick start — 3 steps

1. 1
   Get your free webhook URL

   Create a free endpoint at hooksense.com. You get a unique URL instantly — no credit card, no config.

2. 2
   Paste it into GitHub

   In the GitHub dashboard, add the URL as your webhook endpoint and pick the events you want (push, pull_request, etc.).

3. 3
   Trigger an event and watch it arrive

   Fire a test event from GitHub — it lands in HookSense within milliseconds. Inspect headers, body, and signature. Replay when ready.

Common GitHub webhook events

Testing tips specific to GitHub

• GitHub sends a ping event when you first set up a webhook — use HookSense to verify it arrives
• Use the X-GitHub-Event header to determine the event type
• GitHub retries failed deliveries — use HookSense replay to test your retry handling
• Filter events in HookSense to focus on specific event types during debugging

Frequently asked

How do I test GitHub webhooks locally?

Add a HookSense URL as the Payload URL in your repo's webhook settings. Events like push, pull_request, and deployment land in HookSense in real time. Forward to localhost with `npx hooksense listen -p 3000` so your handler runs on your machine.

Why isn't my GitHub webhook firing?

Check GitHub → Settings → Webhooks → Recent Deliveries for the exact response. Common causes: the endpoint returned non-2xx, the payload URL isn't publicly reachable, the content type is wrong, or GitHub disabled delivery after too many failures. HookSense gives you a reliable public URL that won't time out or drop.

How do I verify GitHub's X-Hub-Signature-256 header?

GitHub signs the raw body with HMAC-SHA256 using the secret you configured. Recompute the hash in your handler and compare with a timing-safe function. HookSense verifies the signature automatically once you paste the secret into the endpoint settings.

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