Deploy and Host self hosted Hoppscotch WebSocket (Open-Source Realtime API Client) on Railway

This template runs your own Hoppscotch instance, so the Realtime tab can open WebSocket, SSE, Socket.IO and MQTT connections against servers you choose.

About Hosting Hoppscotch WebSocket open-source software on Railway (self hosted Hoppscotch WebSocket and realtime client template)

Self hosting Hoppscotch keeps your realtime client workspace, saved WebSocket, SSE, Socket.IO and MQTT requests, and message logs on infrastructure you control.

Why Deploy Hoppscotch WebSocket, the Postman WebSockets alternative on Railway (Railway Free Trial)

Postman's WebSocket client is closed-source SaaS that keeps your collections in its cloud.

Railway is a singular platform to deploy your infrastructure stack. Railway will host your infrastructure so you don't have to deal with configuration, while allowing you to vertically and horizontally scale it.

By deploying Hoppscotch WebSocket on Railway, you are one step closer to supporting a complete full-stack application with minimal burden. Host your servers, databases, AI agents, and more on Railway.

Railway vs Other Hosting Providers and VPS for Hoppscotch WebSocket self hosting

Hoppscotch needs a Docker host and Postgres, so here is how Railway compares with the usual VPS options.

Provider	What You Get with Railway	What You Get with the Other Provider
DigitalOcean	Hoppscotch and Postgres from one template, HTTPS on a Railway domain	A Droplet you run yourself: Docker, Postgres, TLS and OS updates
AWS	Services linked by variables, no VPC or IAM setup	Full networking control, but you manage VPC, security groups and certificates
Hetzner	Managed deploys and a public domain	Low server cost and root access, but you own Docker, backups and upgrades

Pick Railway when you want the WebSocket client running fast, and a VPS when you already run infrastructure and want the lowest cost.

Common Use Cases for hosted Hoppscotch WebSocket

Testing a WebSocket chat server: Open a wss:// connection from the Realtime tab, send a JSON frame, and watch the Logs pane to confirm the server echoes or broadcasts what you expect.
Watching an SSE event stream: Point the SSE mode at a server-sent events endpoint and check that each event arrives as a one-way push over plain HTTP, which is handy when you're tuning retry and error behavior.
Socket.IO events with custom event names: Add the URL and path, connect, then type a custom event name in the Event field next to your payload so you can debug the exact listeners your frontend depends on.
Subscribing to MQTT topics: Connect to your broker, subscribe to a topic like sensors/room1/temp, and publish test messages to confirm your devices and consumers see the same payloads.
Sharing realtime requests with a team: Save working connections in a shared workspace so teammates can reuse the same URLs, protocols and messages instead of rebuilding them from scratch.

Dependencies for Hoppscotch WebSocket Docker hosted on Railway

This section covers what has to exist before the realtime client can open a socket from your browser.

Deployment Dependencies for Managed Hoppscotch WebSocket Service (API Client)

Railway needs a Postgres 18.6 service and the Hoppscotch service running the hoppscotch/hoppscotch:2026.9.0 AIO image.

Postgres 18.6: private network only, volume at /var/lib/postgresql/data
Hoppscotch container: image hoppscotch/hoppscotch:2026.9.0, public port 80
Database link: DATABASE_URL from Postgres, used by prisma migrate deploy

Implementation Details for Hoppscotch WebSocket (Using Hoppscotch official docker image)

The variables that matter for the realtime client are the WebSocket endpoint and the origin list.

VITE_BACKEND_WS_URL=wss://your-domain/backend/graphql
WHITELISTED_ORIGINS=https://your-domain,app://localhost_3200,app://hoppscotch
TRUST_PROXY=true
PORT=8080

How does Hoppscotch WebSocket compare against other WebSocket testing tools

Hoppscotch's realtime client is one tab in a browser-based API tool, so the choice is whether you want WebSocket next to your REST and GraphQL requests, and where the data lives.

Hoppscotch WebSocket vs Postman WebSockets (Postman Alternative)

Hosting: Hoppscotch Community Edition is MIT licensed and runs on your own Railway project, while Postman stores collections in its cloud.
Protocols: The Realtime tab covers WebSocket, SSE, Socket.IO and MQTT in one place.
Where Postman wins: Its ecosystem and polish are more mature, and many teams already keep collections there.

Hoppscotch WebSocket vs Insomnia (Insomnia Alternative)

Licensing: Insomnia's cloud sync and team features sit behind paid plans, while self-hosted Hoppscotch keeps collaboration on your server.
Realtime coverage: SSE, Socket.IO and MQTT are first-class here, so you don't switch tools for non-WebSocket servers.
Where Insomnia wins: It's a lighter desktop app with a long track record and strong GraphQL and gRPC tooling.

Hoppscotch WebSocket vs wscat (wscat Alternative)

Interface: wscat is a terminal tool, while Hoppscotch gives you a message input, a log pane and saved requests.
Sharing: A Hoppscotch connection can be shared with your team, while a wscat session lives in your shell history.
Where wscat wins: It's fast, scriptable and needs only Node, so it's better for a quick smoke test or a CI one-liner.

Hoppscotch WebSocket vs Apidog (Apidog Alternative)

Scope: Apidog bundles design, docs, mocking and testing, while Hoppscotch focuses on sending and inspecting live requests.
Self hosting: Hoppscotch runs on your own infrastructure with Postgres, which suits teams that keep traffic in-house.
Where Apidog wins: If you start from OpenAPI and want mocks and docs generated alongside tests, Apidog covers more of that lifecycle.

How to use Hoppscotch WebSocket (the OSS API development platform)?

Once the deploy is live and you've finished the admin setup, here's how to run your first realtime request.

Open your Hoppscotch at the public domain and sign in.
Go to the Realtime tab in the left sidebar.
Pick WebSocket as the protocol.
Enter your server endpoint, for example a wss URL. Plain ws:// URLs are not valid here.
Add any subprotocols the server expects. Leave this blank if it doesn't use them.
Click Connect and wait for the connection to establish.
Type a message in the Message field under the Communication tab, click Send, and read the Logs pane for the frame and the server's reply.
For other servers, switch the protocol to SSE, Socket.IO or MQTT and repeat the same flow.

wss://echo.example.com/chat
{"type": "ping", "user": "dev-test"}

How to self host Hoppscotch WebSocket on other VPS Services (Hoppscotch self hosting guide)

Hoppscotch's self-host guide works on any VPS with Docker and Postgres. Here's the path if you're not on Railway.

Clone the Repository

Grab the source for the example env file and Prisma schema.

git clone https://github.com/hoppscotch/hoppscotch.git
cd hoppscotch
cp .env.example .env

Install Dependencies

Docker and a Postgres database are enough for the image route.

docker --version
psql --version

Configure Environment Variables

Set DATABASE_URL to your Postgres instance and generate a 32-character DATA_ENCRYPTION_KEY. Never change that key after first boot.

Start the Hoppscotch WebSocket Application

Run the all-in-one image, then apply migrations inside the container. Put HTTPS in front so OAuth callbacks work.

docker run -p 80:80 --env-file .env hoppscotch/hoppscotch:2026.9.0
docker exec -it your-container-id pnpm exec prisma migrate deploy

Railway handles the HTTPS domain, Postgres and restarts for you.

Official Pricing of Hoppscotch WebSocket (Hoppscotch pricing)

Hoppscotch is MIT licensed, so the self-hosted Community Edition of the realtime client costs nothing to run.

Hoppscotch WebSocket cloud vs self hosted comparison (Pricing, features, costs, and more)

Hoppscotch's hosted cloud and a self-hosted instance both give you the same realtime client, so the real question is who pays for the server and who keeps the data.

Monthly cost of self hosting Hoppscotch WebSocket on Railway

On Railway you're paying for the Hoppscotch container and the private Postgres 18.6 service, which together land at roughly $5-10 per month at light use.

System Requirements for Hosting Hoppscotch WebSocket on a VPS

Hoppscotch is light when idle, with the container using about 0.5 GB of RAM for Caddy, the NestJS backend and the desktop bundle server. Postgres adds little on top.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Can I use ws:// instead of wss:// with the realtime client?

Yes, but use wss:// for anything beyond your own machine. The client needs a valid WebSocket URL, and wss:// is what you want once the server sits behind HTTPS on Railway.

Do I need to list subprotocols before I click Connect?

Only if your server requires them.

Which Socket.IO version does the client support?

Match the server's Socket.IO version, since clients and servers must agree on protocol. Enter the URL and path, connect, and watch the log for broadcast events.

What event types does SSE give me in the log?

SSE streams carry named events plus a default message event, and each one appears in the log as the server sends it.

Which MQTT broker should I test against?

Any standard MQTT broker works, so use the one your team already runs.

Can I set custom headers on a browser WebSocket?

Browsers restrict custom headers on WebSocket handshakes, so put auth in the URL or a subprotocol if your server allows it.