Webhooks are HTTP requests that a server sends to your URL when something happens. This page explains how they work, when to use them, and common patterns.
About hookstream
hookstream is the modern event gateway for developers who need webhooks that just work. It receives, transforms, and delivers webhooks reliably with real-time monitoring, automatic retries, circuit breakers, and instant database sync.
Key features
- Webhook ingestion with HMAC signature verification for 15+ providers (Stripe, GitHub, Shopify, etc.)
- Content-based routing and filtering with 9 operators
- JSONata transforms for payload reshaping
- Reliable delivery with exponential/linear/fixed retries and circuit breakers
- 8 destination types: HTTP, AWS SQS, S3, EventBridge, GCP Pub/Sub, Kafka, RabbitMQ, WebSocket
- Real-time event streaming via WebSocket
- Instant Database — sync webhooks to queryable collections
- Topics and pub/sub fan-out
- Event replay and archival
- Free webhook testing with no signup required
API
Base URL: https://hookstream.io/v1
Authentication: API key via X-API-Key header (hs_live_* or hs_test_*) or session cookie.
Full API reference: Authentication |
Sources |
Destinations |
Connections |
Events |
Metrics
AI Agent Integration
hookstream is designed for AI agent use with three auth levels:
- Zero-auth (Agent API): POST https://hookstream.io/v1/agent/sessions — creates ephemeral webhook endpoints, no credentials needed. Sessions last 14 days, 2,000 requests.
- API Key: Full CRUD access via X-API-Key header. Get a key from the dashboard or run:
npm install -g @hookstream/cli && hookstream login (opens browser, saves key to ~/.config/hookstream/config.json)
- Environment variable: Set HOOKSTREAM_API_KEY for agent scripts. All CLI commands support --json flag for machine-readable output.
Agent API Endpoints (no auth)
- POST https://hookstream.io/v1/agent/sessions — Create ephemeral webhook endpoint
- GET https://hookstream.io/v1/agent/sessions/:id — Get session + events
- PATCH https://hookstream.io/v1/agent/sessions/:id/response — Configure custom response
- PATCH https://hookstream.io/v1/agent/sessions/:id/forwarding — Forward webhooks to local server
- GET https://hookstream.io/v1/agent/sessions/:id/export — Export as NDJSON/CSV
Plans
- Free: $0/mo — 50K events, 10 sources, 5 destinations, 7-day retention
- Pro: $19/mo — 1M events, unlimited sources/destinations, 30-day retention
- Enterprise: $99/mo — 10M events, unlimited, 90-day retention