The archive · Developer & Business Tools · Product decision · 2022
Restfox bets a browser-portable open-source API client beats bloated Postman; Show HN 758
A free open-source Postman alternative that runs in the browser and offline; its 2022-10-21 Show HN drew 758 points and 182 comments.
Restfox (flawiddsouza/Restfox)
What the business is
Restfox is a free, open-source API client for testing REST and GraphQL endpoints, positioned as an alternative to Postman and Insomnia: it runs in the browser, offline, or as desktop builds, with workspaces, plugins, response history, and collection import from Postman and Insomnia.
How it started
The creator, kermire, built Restfox because he loved Insomnia but wanted a version he could run in the browser. His first Show HN post 'didn't garner much interest', so he kept shipping — workspaces, tabs, nested folders, context menus, response history, plugins, GraphQL support, desktop builds for all platforms, and Postman/Insomnia import — and posted again on 2022-10-21 with a quick list of features.
What happened
The second post reached the HN front page at 758 points with 182 comments, and the thread became a running feature request list: replace right-click-only creation with visible buttons, add a responsive mobile layout, import and export curl commands, add web socket support, and explain the Cookie-header limits of the browser fetch API. Commenters also mapped a crowded field — Hoppscotch, Bruno, Insomnia, Hurl and many others — while kermire answered directly and promised fixes, noting that data is stored locally via IndexedDB.
No ending yet — it is still running.
Background
Restfox began as a personal itch: its creator, kermire, loved Insomnia but wanted a portable version he could run in the browser. His first Show HN post drew little interest, so he kept building — workspaces, tabs, nested folders, response history, plugins, GraphQL support, desktop builds, and import from Postman and Insomnia — before posting again with a simple feature list.
The bet is that the market for API clients has shifted: developers tired of Postman's bloat and slow startups want a lightweight, open-source tool that runs fully in the browser and works offline when necessary, with Chrome and Firefox extensions only there to bypass CORS restrictions. Storing data locally via IndexedDB and importing Postman and Insomnia collections keeps the switching cost near zero.
The 2022-10-21 Show HN drew 758 points and 182 comments; during the thread a commenter logged Restfox at 405 GitHub stars, and the discussion turned into a public feature backlog — mobile layout, curl import/export, web sockets, visible create buttons — that the creator answered directly. The thread also showed a crowded competitive field of Hoppscotch, Bruno, Insomnia and text-file clients, with browser portability plus offline use as Restfox's wedge.
The source material documents no company, funding or revenue: Restfox is presented as an open-source tool its creator keeps improving from direct user feedback, and it records no shutdown.
What has to be true
- A concrete founding pain: the creator loved Insomnia but wanted a portable version in the browser — a specific product requirement, not a vague 'better than Postman'.
- A dated demand signal: the thread is full of developers describing Postman's bloat, slow startup, cloud sync and pricing frustrations, so the pitch landed in a live, angry market.
- Persistence produced the launch: after a low-interest first Show HN, the creator shipped a long feature list and reposted — the second post drew 758 points and 182 comments.
- The wedge is testable in the name: browser-run, offline-capable, no install, CORS-helper extensions, and Postman/Insomnia import that removes the switching cost.
What can be applied
Repost after shipping: the first Show HN was quiet, so the creator added features for weeks and relaunched with a sharper pitch — the second post is what reached 758 points.
Aftermath
At the 2026-09-05 fetch the flawiddsouza/Restfox repository was still live and still describing Restfox as an 'Offline-First Minimalistic HTTP & Socket Testing Client for the Web & Desktop', with install paths through Homebrew, Snap, Scoop and Docker. The material itself documents no company, funding, revenue or shutdown — Restfox is presented as a creator-built open-source tool, and the low-interest first Show HN (item 32671805) plus the 2022-10-21 post both remain readable in the record.
Sources
- Show HN: Restfox – Open source lightweight alternative to Postman
- flawiddsouza/Restfox — Offline-First Minimalistic HTTP & Socket Testing Client for the Web & Desktop
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