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CometChat Webhooks enable real-time, event-driven communication with your server by sending HTTP POST requests whenever specific events occur in your chat application.

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What Are Webhooks?

Webhooks are automated notifications that CometChat sends to your server when events happen—such as messages being sent, users coming online, or group membership changes. Instead of polling for updates, your server receives instant notifications, enabling real-time integrations.

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Common Use Cases

Webhooks enable you to build powerful integrations and automations:
  • Notifications: Send SMS, email, or push notifications when users receive messages
  • Analytics: Track messaging activity and user engagement in your analytics platform
  • Moderation: Trigger content review workflows when messages are flagged
  • Sync: Keep external systems (CRM, support tools, databases) in sync with chat activity
  • Automation: Trigger business workflows based on chat events

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Supported Events

CometChat webhooks cover a comprehensive range of events across different categories:

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Message Events

Notifications for message lifecycle events including sent, edited, deleted, delivered, read, and reactions.

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User Events

Notifications for user actions such as blocking/unblocking users and connection status changes (online/offline).

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Group Events

Notifications for group lifecycle and membership events including creation, updates, member joins/leaves, bans, and scope changes.

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Call and Meeting Events

Notifications for voice/video call events including initiation, start, end, participant joins/leaves, and recording generation.

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Moderation Events

Notifications for content moderation outcomes including auto-approved, auto-blocked, and manually approved messages.

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Webhook Requirements

Your webhook endpoint must:
  • Use HTTPS for secure communication
  • Be publicly accessible from the internet
  • Accept HTTP POST requests with JSON content
  • Respond with HTTP 200 OK to acknowledge receipt

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Security

CometChat supports Basic Authentication to secure your webhook endpoints. When configured, every webhook request includes an Authorization header with your credentials, ensuring only authorized requests are processed.

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Best Practices

  • Handle retries gracefully: Use event IDs to deduplicate retried deliveries
  • Respond quickly: Return 200 OK within 2 seconds; queue longer processing tasks
  • Log everything: Maintain detailed logs for debugging and monitoring
  • Test thoroughly: Simulate various conditions before going to production

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Getting Started

You can configure webhooks through the CometChat Dashboard or programmatically via the Management APIs. For detailed setup instructions and API documentation, refer to the Webhooks REST APIs.