When webhooks aren’t working as expected, systematic troubleshooting can help you quickly identify and resolve issues. This guide covers common problems, diagnostic techniques, and solutions for webhook integration issues.

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Quick diagnosis checklist

Start with these basic checks to identify the most common issues:

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Common error scenarios

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HTTP status code errors

Different HTTP responses indicate different types of issues:

400 Bad Request

Common causes:
  • Invalid signature verification
  • Malformed JSON in response
  • Missing required headers
  • Request body parsing errors
Resolution: Check signature logic and request handling

401 Unauthorized

Common causes:
  • Missing authentication headers
  • Invalid API keys or tokens
  • Expired authentication credentials
Resolution: Verify authentication configuration

404 Not Found

Common causes:
  • Incorrect webhook URL path
  • Server routing misconfiguration
  • Application not running
Resolution: Verify URL and server configuration

500 Internal Server Error

Common causes:
  • Unhandled exceptions in webhook code
  • Database connection failures
  • External service timeouts
Resolution: Check application logs and error handling

502 Bad Gateway

Common causes:
  • Load balancer cannot reach backend
  • Application server crashed
  • Proxy configuration issues
Resolution: Check infrastructure and application health

503 Service Unavailable

Common causes:
  • Server overloaded or maintenance
  • Rate limiting triggered
  • Circuit breaker activated
Resolution: Check server capacity and rate limits

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Signature verification issues

Signature verification is the most common source of webhook problems:
Step-by-step debugging:
function debugSignatureVerification(payload, signature, secret) {
  console.log('Debugging signature verification:');
  console.log('Received signature:', signature);
  console.log('Webhook secret:', secret ? 'Present' : 'Missing');

  // Parse signature components
  const elements = signature.split(',');
  console.log('Signature elements:', elements);

  if (elements.length !== 2) {
    console.error('Invalid signature format - should have timestamp and hash');
    return false;
  }

  const timestamp = elements[0].split('=')[1];
  const receivedHash = elements[1].split('=')[1];

  console.log('Extracted timestamp:', timestamp);
  console.log('Extracted hash:', receivedHash);

  // Create signed payload
  const signedPayload = `${timestamp}.${JSON.stringify(payload)}`;
  console.log('Signed payload:', signedPayload);

  // Generate expected hash
  const expectedHash = crypto
    .createHmac('sha256', secret)
    .update(signedPayload)
    .digest('hex');

  console.log('Expected hash:', expectedHash);
  console.log('Received hash:', receivedHash);
  console.log('Hashes match:', expectedHash === receivedHash);

  return expectedHash === receivedHash;
}

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What’s next?

After resolving webhook issues:

Monitoring Setup

Set up comprehensive monitoring to prevent future issues

Testing Guide

Implement thorough testing to catch issues early

Migration Guide

Learn about webhook version migrations and updates

Event Reference

Technical reference for webhook event types and payloads
Troubleshooting tip: Keep detailed logs during debugging, but remember to remove sensitive data before sharing logs with support or team members.