Glossary
Webhook
Also written: web hook, HTTP callback, webhook integration
Quick answer
What is a webhook?
A webhook is an automated HTTP request that one system sends to another as soon as an event happens, carrying the event data in the request body. It lets tools react in real time rather than repeatedly asking whether anything has changed, which is why most CRM integrations are built on webhooks.
The difference between a webhook and an API call is direction. An API call is you asking. A webhook is the other system telling you, unprompted, the moment something happens.
Why it matters for lead response
Polling has a floor: if you check every five minutes, your average delay is two and a half minutes before any of your own processing starts. A webhook fires in the same second.
Given what published research says about response timing — see speed to lead — that gap is not academic.
What a webhook does not guarantee
Delivery. A webhook is one HTTP request, and requests fail. Any integration that matters needs:
- Retries with backoff, so a momentary 500 does not silently drop a lead
- Idempotency, so a retried delivery does not create a duplicate contact
- A dead-letter path, so a permanently failing event is visible rather than gone
- Signature verification, so the endpoint only accepts requests from the real sender
Most “the integration is unreliable” reports we investigate are one of those four missing rather than the webhook itself misbehaving.
In GoHighLevel
GoHighLevel can both send webhooks from workflows and receive them via inbound webhook triggers, which is what makes it viable as the hub of a wider stack rather than an island. The official HighLevel API documentation covers the available events and authentication.
Related terms
- CRM AutomationCRM automation removes manual work from customer relationship management by automatically creating and updating contact records, moving deals between pipeline stages, triggering follow-up sequences, assigning tasks and notifying team members, based on defined triggers rather than someone remembering to act.
- Workflow AutomationWorkflow automation is software that runs a defined sequence of actions automatically when a trigger event occurs. A form submission, inbound call or pipeline change starts the workflow, which then sends messages, assigns tasks, updates records, books appointments or calls external systems according to conditional logic.
Services that use this
Extend GoHighLevel past what the interface allows
The GoHighLevel API allows programmatic access to contacts, opportunities, calendars, conversations and workflows. It supports operations the interface does not — bulk data manipulation, custom application logic, external systems reading and writing CRM data directly, and receiving webhooks on platform events.
Connect the systems nobody has built a connector for
Custom API integration connects systems that have no ready-made connector, by working directly with their APIs and webhooks. It covers authentication, data mapping, rate limit handling, retries and error recovery — the engineering that off-the-shelf integrations normally hide.
Connect your stack so data lives in one place
GoHighLevel integrates natively with Google and Microsoft calendars, Stripe, Meta and Google Ads, and common messaging platforms. Anything else connects through Make, n8n or Zapier, or through direct API and webhook work where no connector exists for the system involved.
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