Webhook
A webhook is an automated HTTP message a system sends to another system's URL the instant a specific event happens, letting apps stay in sync without either one polling the other.
Last updated July 18, 2026
What a webhook is
A webhook is an automated HTTP request that one system sends to a URL registered by another system the instant a defined event occurs. Instead of an app repeatedly asking "has anything changed?" (polling), the source system pushes a small payload of data — usually JSON — to the destination the moment the event fires. The receiving URL, often called an endpoint or listener, is configured ahead of time to accept and process that payload.
In a CRM, common webhook triggers include a new lead being created, a deal moving to a new stage, a form being submitted, or a contact's email being marked as opened. Each of these events can fire a webhook to an external tool — a Slack channel, a billing system, a data warehouse, an automation platform like Zapier or Make — carrying the relevant record data along with it.
Example
A CRM configured with a webhook on "deal marked Closed Won" might notify a finance system to generate an invoice, post a message in a sales Slack channel, and add the contact to an onboarding email sequence — all within seconds of the stage change, with no manual handoff between tools.
Why webhooks matter for a CRM
Webhooks matter because they remove the delay and manual effort of keeping separate systems in sync. Without them, connecting a CRM to other software requires either constant manual re-entry or a scheduled job that checks for changes every few minutes — both slower and more error-prone than an event firing in real time.
They're also what makes a CRM extensible beyond its built-in features. A CRM can't natively integrate with every accounting tool, texting platform, or internal database a business uses, but a webhook lets it hand off data to whatever system needs it, the moment it's needed, without waiting on a native integration to be built.
Webhooks vs. scheduled syncs
A scheduled sync checks for changes on a fixed interval — every 15 minutes, every hour — and pulls whatever changed since the last check. A webhook has no interval: it fires the instant the triggering event happens. For time-sensitive actions, like alerting a rep the second a high-value lead submits a form, that difference between near-instant and up-to-15-minutes-late can determine whether the lead is worked while it's still warm.