Can I use localhost URL as notify_url in paypal IPN?

Question

Can I give my localhost url in paypal IPN to send the message back to notify and process it?

OR...

Do I need live server URL to process (I guess this is right) because paypal knows live url when sending the message, but it never knows localhost url to send message.

Can anyone please tell me, do I need live server url or can I use localhost because I am not sure.

If I need live URL, how can I debug and develop my functionality (to send mail etc) in visual studio?

Does anyone have a small example or some useful links??

Answer 1

You may try it locally. Use https://ngrok.com/ to access localhost from internet.

ngrok is a command line tool and ngrok 80 command will assign a domain name in the following format : http://s1ab334.ngrok.com and the https:// version is also the same.

Now, you can use the url in ipn simulator.

Answer 2

No, notify_url must be directly accessible via the internet, because PayPal will POST the data to it.
In addition, it must run on port 80 or 443. Other ports are not allowed.