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LocaltoNet step by step for sharing localhost:3000 with one friend

Posted by TheZoey • July 12, 2026

I've got a basic site running on my PC at http://localhost:3000 and I just want to let one friend open it from outside my home network. I signed up for LocaltoNet, but I'm new to tunneling in general and not sure which option I'm supposed to choose for something this simple.

Mostly looking for the beginner path: what tunnel type to pick, what exact local address/port to enter, and which public URL is the one I actually send to them. If there are any gotchas with localhost vs 127.0.0.1 or firewall stuff on Windows, that'd help too.

Comments (3)

TheEric Jul 12, 2026

Pick an HTTP tunnel, not TCP, since your site is already a normal web app on localhost:3000. In LocaltoNet the local target is just 127.0.0.1:3000 (or localhost:3000, same thing for this), then after it starts the public https URL it gives you is the one your friend opens in their browser.

TheZoey Jul 12, 2026

Thanks, that helps a lot. I had been second guessing whether I was supposed to choose TCP just because it mentioned ports, so the HTTP part clears that up.

One quick thing I'm still unsure about, if LocaltoNet gives me an https address, do I need to change anything in my app for that or do I just leave it running on my computer at port 3000 and send that public link as-is?

hhernandez Jul 12, 2026

Yeah, you usually leave the app alone and keep it on port 3000, the tunnel handles the outside HTTPS part for you. Only annoying exception is if your app hardcodes its own absolute URLs or does strict redirect stuff, then you can get weird mixed-content or callback issues, because apparently web dev can't just be normal for five minutes.

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