socket.help vs Smee.io
Smee.io relays webhooks to your local app over Server-Sent Events, without storing them, and anyone with the channel ID can see the payloads. socket.help keeps a private, searchable history you can replay, answer with custom responses and forward to your server.
Why teams pick socket.help.
Pick socket.help when you need to see a webhook after the fact, keep it private, verify its signature or replay it.
- Payloads must stay private
- You need to look at a webhook after it arrived
- You want to verify signatures and replay
- An AI agent should wait for the webhook
Smee.io fits a quick, open-source relay from GitHub to a laptop while it is connected.
- A quick open-source relay to your laptop
Every socket.help plan includes webhook and email inboxes, mock APIs and MCP servers, files, memory, monitors and approvals for AI agents over one MCP connection, plus 170 tools in all. Free to start; Pro is $2 a month.
The differences that matter.
| Area | socket.help | Smee.io |
|---|---|---|
| History | Requests are stored and searchable, so you can inspect and replay them later. | Payloads are not stored on the server; they reach only clients connected at that moment. |
| Privacy | Private by default with separate send and read credentials. | Channels are not authenticated; anyone with the channel ID can see the payloads. |
| Responses | Custom status, headers, body and delay. | No custom responses. |
| Built for agents | wait_for_webhook over a hosted MCP server. | No MCP server. |
Good to know.
socket.help forwards captured requests to a public URL on Pro; to reach localhost, forward to a tunnel or replay from the inbox.
You can start without an account, and a free account keeps resources for up to seven days. See the published allowances for storage, rate limits and retention.
Frequently asked questions
Is Smee.io secure?
Smee.io channels are not authenticated, so anyone with the channel ID can see the payloads, according to its README. socket.help inboxes are private by default.
Does Smee.io store webhooks?
No. Payloads are not stored on the server and reach only clients connected at that moment. socket.help keeps a private history you can search and replay.
What is a Smee.io alternative with history?
socket.help webhook inboxes store every request privately, with custom responses, replay, signature verification and forwarding on Pro.
Check the sources.
Reviewed on against official documentation. Features can change. This page is written by socket.help and is not an endorsement by Smee.io.