How to Expose Your Local WordPress Site to the Internet (Complete Tunneling Guide)

Ever needed to share your local WordPress development site with a client, test webhooks, or make email images load properly? Tunneling services let you expose your local site to the internet with a public URL. Here’s how to do it for any local setup.

Why You Need This

• Email testing: Images and links in emails sent from local sites won’t work without a public URL
• Webhook testing: Payment gateways, APIs, and third-party services need to reach your site
• Client previews: Share work-in-progress without deploying
• Mobile testing: Test your site on real devices
• Third-party integrations: OAuth callbacks, n8n, make, Zapier, etc.

Understanding Your Local Setup

Before tunneling, identify your setup:

Standard Local Domains (Valet/Herd/Local)

• http://mysite.test or https://mysite.test (port 80/443)
• http://mysite.local or https://mysite.local (port 80/443)

Custom Ports

• http://localhost:7070
• http://localhost:8080

Docker/Custom Setups

• May use non-standard ports or domains

Method 1: ngrok (Most Popular & Reliable)

Installation

Mac (Homebrew):

bash

brew install ngrok

Windows/Linux: Download from ngrok.com and add to PATH

Setup (one-time):

bash

ngrok config add-authtoken YOUR_AUTH_TOKEN

For HTTP Sites (port 80)

Simple localhost:

bash

ngrok http 80

Laravel Valet/Herd sites (mysite.test):

bash

ngrok http 80 --host-header=mysite.test

Custom port:

bash

ngrok http 7070

For HTTPS Sites (port 443)

Laravel Valet/Herd with SSL (mysite.test):

bash

ngrok http https://mysite.test

Or if that doesn’t work:

bash

ngrok http 443 --host-header=mysite.test

With self-signed certificates:

bash

ngrok http https://mysite.test --host-header=mysite.test

Reading ngrok Output

When you run ngrok, you’ll see:

Forwarding   https://abc123.ngrok-free.app -> http://localhost:80

Use the https://abc123.ngrok-free.app URL as your public site URL.

Method 2: Expose (Simpler Alternative)

Installation

bash

npm install -g @beyondcode/expose

Or download from beyondco.de/expose

Usage

For Valet/Herd sites:

bash

expose share http://mysite.test:80 --subdomain=mysite

For HTTPS sites:

bash

expose share https://mysite.test:443

Custom ports:

bash

expose share http://localhost:7070

Expose handles virtual hosts better than ngrok and has a cleaner interface.

Method 3: LocalWP Live Link (For Local by Flywheel Users)

If you’re using Local by Flywheel:

1. Open your site in Local
2. Click the “Live Link” button in the top right
3. Enable the live link
4. Copy the generated URL

This is the easiest method if you’re already using Local!

Method 4: Cloudflare Tunnel (Free & Permanent)

For more permanent solutions:

Installation

bash

brew install cloudflare/cloudflare/cloudflared

Setup

bash

cloudflared tunnel login
cloudflared tunnel create mysite

Run Tunnel

For Valet/Herd:

bash

cloudflared tunnel --url https://mysite.test

For custom ports:

bash

cloudflared tunnel --url http://localhost:7070

Updating WordPress Site URLs

Once your tunnel is running, WordPress needs to know about the new URL.

Method 1: wp-config.php (Temporary – Recommended)

Add to your wp-config.php (before “That’s all, stop editing!”):

php

define('WP_HOME', 'https://abc123.ngrok-free.app');
define('WP_SITEURL', 'https://abc123.ngrok-free.app');

Pros: Easy to revert, doesn’t touch database
Cons: Need to update every time tunnel URL changes

Method 2: WP-CLI (If you need database update)

bash

wp search-replace 'https://mysite.test' 'https://abc123.ngrok-free.app'

Remember to revert when done:

bash

wp search-replace 'https://abc123.ngrok-free.app' 'https://mysite.test'

Method 3: Plugin (Easiest for Non-technical Users)

Install Relative URL plugin to make all URLs relative, or use WP Migrate DB for easy URL switching.

Common Setup Examples

Laravel Valet (Mac)

bash

# HTTP site
ngrok http 80 --host-header=mysite.test

# HTTPS site (secured with valet secure)
ngrok http https://mysite.test

Laravel Herd (Mac/Windows)

bash

# HTTP site
ngrok http 80 --host-header=mysite.test

# HTTPS site
ngrok http https://mysite.test

XAMPP/MAMP

bash

# Default XAMPP/MAMP
ngrok http 80

# Custom port
ngrok http 8888

Docker (DDEV, Lando, etc.)

bash

# Check your docker port first
docker ps

# Then tunnel that port
ngrok http 8080 --host-header=mysite.test

Local by Flywheel

Just use the built-in Live Link feature! Or:

bash

ngrok http 80 --host-header=mysite.local

Troubleshooting

“Getting localhost homepage instead of my site”

You forgot the host header:

bash

ngrok http 80 --host-header=mysite.test

“SSL certificate errors”

Your local site uses HTTPS:

bash

ngrok http https://mysite.test

“Site loads but images/CSS broken”

Update WordPress URLs using one of the methods above.

“ngrok session expired”

Free ngrok URLs expire when you close the tunnel. Either:

• Restart ngrok (get new URL, update WordPress)
• Upgrade to ngrok paid plan for persistent URLs
• Use Cloudflare Tunnel for free permanent URLs

“Multiple sites on same port”

Always use --host-header:

bash

ngrok http 80 --host-header=specific-site.test

Security Considerations

⚠️ Important: These tunnels expose your local site to the internet!

• Never expose production databases
• Never leave tunnels running unattended
• Don’t share tunnel URLs publicly if they contain sensitive data
• Use ngrok’s authentication features for added security:

bash

  ngrok http 80 --basic-auth="username:password"

Quick Reference Cheat Sheet

bash

# HTTP on port 80
ngrok http 80

# HTTP with virtual host
ngrok http 80 --host-header=mysite.test

# HTTPS site
ngrok http https://mysite.test

# Custom port
ngrok http 7070

# With basic auth
ngrok http 80 --basic-auth="user:pass"

# Expose alternative
expose share https://mysite.test:443

Conclusion

Tunneling your local WordPress site is essential for modern development workflows. Whether you’re using Laravel Valet, Herd, Local by Flywheel, or a custom setup, ngrok and Expose make it simple to get a public URL in seconds.

My recommendation: Start with ngrok for its reliability and great documentation. If you need something permanent, try Cloudflare Tunnel. And if you’re using Local by Flywheel, just use the built-in Live Link!

What’s your preferred local development setup? Let me know in the comments!