How to Migrate from Postman to Hoppscotch in 2026

Why Switch from Postman?

Postman was the dominant API testing tool for years, but the 2023 changes broke a lot of workflows: the local storage feature was deprecated (all data now requires a Postman account), and the free tier limits collaboration to 3 users. The Professional plan costs $14/user/month — $168/user/year. For a 10-person engineering team, that's $1,680/year for an API client.

Hoppscotch is the open source alternative. It runs in the browser (no Electron app), supports every protocol Postman supports plus several it doesn't (WebSocket, SSE, MQTT, gRPC), and self-hosted versions allow unlimited users with no per-seat licensing.

This guide covers exporting from Postman, deploying self-hosted Hoppscotch, importing your collections, setting up team workspaces, and adjusting to the key differences between the two tools.

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Step 1: Export Everything from Postman

Before switching, export all data from Postman. You'll need:

• Collections (API request groups)
• Environments (variable sets for different stages)
• Global variables

Export a collection:

1. In Postman, right-click on a collection → Export
2. Select Collection v2.1 format (Hoppscotch imports v2.1)
3. Save the JSON file

Export all collections at once (API):

# Get all collections via Postman API
POSTMAN_API_KEY="your-postman-api-key"  # From Postman Settings → API Keys

# List all collections
curl -H "X-API-Key: $POSTMAN_API_KEY" \
  "https://api.getpostman.com/collections" \
  > collections-list.json

# Export each collection by ID
jq -r '.collections[].uid' collections-list.json | while read uid; do
  curl -H "X-API-Key: $POSTMAN_API_KEY" \
    "https://api.getpostman.com/collections/$uid" \
    > "collection-$uid.json"
done

Export environments:

1. Click the Environments tab in the left sidebar
2. For each environment: click ⋯ → Export
3. Save each environment JSON file

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Step 2: Set Up Hoppscotch

Option A: Use hoppscotch.io (instant, no setup)

Go to hoppscotch.io — sign in with GitHub, Google, or email. Free tier allows unlimited requests with no collaboration limits for small teams.

Option B: Self-host (recommended for teams)

Self-hosted Hoppscotch requires a PostgreSQL database and an SMTP server for authentication emails:

# docker-compose.yml for self-hosted Hoppscotch
version: "3"

services:
  hoppscotch-backend:
    image: hoppscotch/hoppscotch-backend:latest
    restart: unless-stopped
    environment:
      - DATABASE_URL=postgresql://hoppscotch:password@postgres:5432/hoppscotch
      - JWT_SECRET=your-jwt-secret-min-32-chars
      - TOKEN_SALT_COMPLEXITY=10
      - MAGIC_LINK_TOKEN_VALIDITY=3
      - REFRESH_TOKEN_VALIDITY=604800000
      - ACCESS_TOKEN_VALIDITY=86400000
      # SMTP for magic link login emails
      - MAILER_SMTP_URL=smtps://user:pass@smtp.yourdomain.com:465
      - MAILER_ADDRESS_FROM=Hoppscotch <noreply@yourdomain.com>
      # CORS
      - WHITELISTED_ORIGINS=https://api.yourdomain.com,https://app.yourdomain.com
      - VITE_ALLOWED_AUTH_PROVIDERS=EMAIL,GITHUB,GOOGLE
      # OAuth (optional)
      # - GOOGLE_CLIENT_ID=your-google-client-id
      # - GOOGLE_CLIENT_SECRET=your-google-client-secret
      # - GITHUB_CLIENT_ID=your-github-client-id
      # - GITHUB_CLIENT_SECRET=your-github-client-secret
    depends_on:
      - postgres

  hoppscotch-app:
    image: hoppscotch/hoppscotch-app:latest
    restart: unless-stopped
    ports:
      - "3000:8080"
    environment:
      - VITE_BASE_URL=https://app.yourdomain.com
      - VITE_SHORTCODE_BASE_URL=https://app.yourdomain.com
      - VITE_BACKEND_GQL_URL=https://api.yourdomain.com/graphql
      - VITE_BACKEND_WS_URL=wss://api.yourdomain.com/graphql
      - VITE_BACKEND_API_URL=https://api.yourdomain.com/v1

  hoppscotch-admin:
    image: hoppscotch/hoppscotch-admin:latest
    restart: unless-stopped
    ports:
      - "3100:8080"
    environment:
      - VITE_BASE_URL=https://app.yourdomain.com
      - VITE_BACKEND_GQL_URL=https://api.yourdomain.com/graphql
      - VITE_BACKEND_API_URL=https://api.yourdomain.com/v1

  postgres:
    image: postgres:15-alpine
    restart: unless-stopped
    environment:
      POSTGRES_DB: hoppscotch
      POSTGRES_USER: hoppscotch
      POSTGRES_PASSWORD: password
    volumes:
      - hoppscotch_db:/var/lib/postgresql/data

volumes:
  hoppscotch_db:

# Caddy reverse proxy
app.yourdomain.com {
    reverse_proxy localhost:3000
}

api.yourdomain.com {
    reverse_proxy hoppscotch-backend:3170
}

docker compose up -d
# Run database migrations
docker compose exec hoppscotch-backend pnpx prisma migrate deploy

---

Step 3: Import Collections

1. Open Hoppscotch → Collections panel (left sidebar)
2. Click Import/Export → Import from Postman
3. Upload the collection JSON file (v2.1 format)
4. Collections import with request folders, headers, body, and parameters

Importing multiple collections:

Repeat for each collection file. Hoppscotch imports them as separate top-level collections, mirroring the Postman structure.

What imports successfully:

• Request name, URL, method
• Headers (static values)
• URL parameters (query strings)
• Request body (JSON, form data, raw text)
• Folder hierarchy within the collection
• Collection-level variables (as environment variables)

What doesn't import:

• Pre-request scripts (JavaScript)
• Test scripts (assertions)
• Dynamic variable generation ({{$randomInt}})
• Mock servers

---

Step 4: Set Up Environments

Postman environments become Hoppscotch environments. The key syntax difference: Postman uses {{variableName}} and Hoppscotch uses <<variableName>>.

Create environments in Hoppscotch:

1. Click Environments in the bottom panel
2. + New Environment
3. Add variables with the same names as your Postman environment

# Postman environment variables
baseUrl = https://api.example.com
apiKey = sk_test_xxx
userId = 12345

# Same variables in Hoppscotch
baseUrl = https://api.example.com
apiKey = sk_test_xxx
userId = 12345

Update request URLs after import:

Postman syntax: {{baseUrl}}/users/{{userId}} Hoppscotch syntax: <<baseUrl>>/users/<<userId>>

After importing a collection, you'll need to find/replace all {{ with << and }} with >> in your request URLs and headers. There's no automated migration for this — it requires a manual pass through each request.

Tip: Use the browser's find-in-page (Ctrl+F) in Hoppscotch to spot any remaining {{ patterns in your requests.

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Step 5: Explore Protocol Support

One of Hoppscotch's genuine advantages over Postman is built-in support for protocols beyond REST:

REST API requests: Same as Postman — GET, POST, PUT, PATCH, DELETE with full header and body control.

GraphQL:

1. Click GraphQL in the top navigation
2. Enter your GraphQL endpoint URL
3. Hoppscotch automatically introspects the schema
4. Use the schema explorer to browse types and build queries

# Write your query in the editor:
query GetUser($id: ID!) {
  user(id: $id) {
    name
    email
    createdAt
  }
}

WebSocket:

1. Click Realtime → WebSocket
2. Enter your WebSocket URL: wss://api.example.com/ws
3. Connect, then send and receive messages in the interface
4. Message history shows the full bidirectional conversation

Server-Sent Events (SSE):

1. Click Realtime → SSE
2. Enter the SSE endpoint URL
3. Hoppscotch connects and displays incoming events in real-time
4. Useful for testing streaming API responses

MQTT:

1. Click Realtime → MQTT
2. Enter broker URL: mqtt://broker.example.com:1883
3. Subscribe to topics and publish messages
4. Event log shows subscribed messages

gRPC (protobuf):

1. Click Realtime → gRPC
2. Upload your .proto file
3. Select service and method
4. Fill in request fields and invoke

---

Step 6: Team Workspaces (Self-Hosted)

On self-hosted Hoppscotch, team workspaces allow shared collections with granular permissions:

1. Click Workspaces → New Workspace
2. Name it (e.g., "Backend API", "Mobile API")
3. Invite team members: Workspace Settings → Members → Invite
4. Set roles: Owner (full control), Editor (edit collections), Viewer (read only)

All workspace members see the shared collections in real-time. Changes sync across all connected browsers immediately.

Moving imported collections to a workspace:

1. Right-click collection → Move to Workspace
2. Select the target workspace
3. Collection is now shared with all workspace members

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Key Differences: Postman vs Hoppscotch

Feature	Postman	Hoppscotch
Interface	Desktop app (Electron)	Web (PWA)
Variable syntax	{{variable}}	<<variable>>
Pre-request scripts	✅ JavaScript	Limited (environment variables)
Test assertions	✅ JavaScript	❌
Mock servers	✅	❌
API monitoring	✅	❌
GraphQL	✅	✅ With schema explorer
WebSocket	✅	✅ Built-in
SSE	Plugin	✅ Built-in
MQTT	Plugin	✅ Built-in
gRPC	✅ (beta)	✅ Built-in
CLI runner	Newman	Hoppscotch CLI
Offline use	✅ Desktop	PWA (limited)
Team collab	3 users (free)	Unlimited (self-hosted)

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Step 7: Hoppscotch CLI for CI/CD

Hoppscotch has a CLI runner (hopp) for running collections in CI/CD pipelines — similar to Postman's Newman:

# Install
npm install -g @hoppscotch/cli

# Run a collection
hopp test collection.json \
  --env production.json \
  --reporter default

# The collection.json is a Hoppscotch export format (not Postman v2.1)
# Export from Hoppscotch UI: Collections → Export → Hoppscotch JSON

In GitHub Actions:

# .github/workflows/api-tests.yml
name: API Tests

on:
  pull_request:
    branches: [main]

jobs:
  api-tests:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
      - uses: actions/setup-node@v4
        with:
          node-version: '20'
      - run: npm install -g @hoppscotch/cli
      - run: |
          hopp test api-tests/collection.json \
            --env api-tests/env-staging.json \
            --reporter default

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Cost Comparison

Plan	Postman	Hoppscotch Cloud	Hoppscotch Self-Hosted
Free	3 users	Unlimited	Unlimited
Paid	$14/user/month	$9/user/month	$0 (VPS cost only)
10 users	$1,680/year	$1,080/year	$60–120/year
Collections	Cloud only (free tier)	Cloud + export	Unlimited
Offline	Desktop app	No	No

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Related: Best Open Source Developer Tools 2026 · Hoppscotch vs Bruno: Which API Client? · How to Self-Host IT-Tools

See open source alternatives to Postman on OSSAlt.