Mobile app developers face a unique challenge: your API server runs on your laptop, but the app runs on a phone or emulator on a different network. Tunels makes it trivial to connect them.

The Problem

When building a React Native, Flutter, or native iOS/Android app, you typically develop your backend API locally. But connecting a physical device to localhost is tricky:

  • The device and computer must be on the same network
  • You need to find your computer's local IP address
  • Firewalls and network policies may block connections
  • iOS requires HTTPS for network requests (App Transport Security)
  • The IP changes when you switch networks

The Tunels Solution

Start a tunnel to your local API server:

tunels http 8080 --subdomain myapi

Now your API is available at https://myapi.tunels.io — a stable, HTTPS URL that works from any device, anywhere.

React Native Configuration

In your React Native app, update your API base URL:

// config.js
const API_URL = __DEV__
  ? 'https://myapi.tunels.io'
  : 'https://api.myapp.com';

export default { API_URL };

That's it. Your app now talks to your local server through a secure tunnel. Hot reload your React Native code, make changes to your API, and see results instantly on your phone.

Flutter Configuration

Similarly in Flutter, set the base URL in your API client:

final String baseUrl = kDebugMode
    ? 'https://myapi.tunels.io'
    : 'https://api.myapp.com';

Testing Push Notifications

Push notification services (Firebase, APNs) often need to call your server. With Tunels, you can test the full notification flow locally: your server receives a webhook, processes it, and sends a push notification — all while running on localhost.

Sharing with QA Testers

With a stable subdomain, you can share your tunnel URL with QA testers. They can test against your local build without waiting for a deployment. When you update the code, they see the changes immediately.

Conclusion

Mobile development doesn't have to mean constant deployments. With Tunels, your local API server is always reachable from any device. Start with tunels http 8080 and get back to building features instead of fighting infrastructure.