Webhook delivery timing: real time vs after the event

Last updated: August 21, 2026

Overview

Not every webhook arrives the moment something happens. Some activities are delivered within seconds. Others can only be sent after the event ends, because the data they describe — such as time spent or no-show — does not exist until the event is over.

This article explains when each activity reaches your endpoint, so you can tell the difference between a webhook that is late and one that is simply not due yet.

For webhook setup, payload format, signature validation, limits and retries, see the Webhooks guide.

Delivered in real time

These are sent as soon as the action happens, typically within seconds.

Action	Sent when
Registered	Someone completes registration through a flow, the API, bulk upload, or a manual add
Registration for on-demand	Someone registers to watch a webinar on demand after it has ended
Registration attempted	A registration is blocked by a restriction, such as a restricted or uninvited email
Registration pending approval, Registration rejected, Approved not registered, Assigned not registered	The registration status changes
Invited, Invite declined	An invitation is sent or declined
Registration data modified	Registrant or attendee field values are edited
Ticket modified, Add-on modified, Ticket transferred	A ticket or add-on changes
Attendee deleted	A registration is removed
Poll answered, Question asked, Question upvoted, Survey answered, CTA clicked	An attendee engages during the event
Lead added, Lead capture fields data modified	A lead is captured or edited at a booth, in Universal Lead Capture, or in the lead capture app
Event created, Event updated, Event added to a series, Event added to a hub	An event is created, updated, or added to a series or hub
On-demand setting updated	On-demand or recording settings are changed
Attended — in-person only	A badge is scanned at onsite check-in

Delivered during the event, with a short delay

These depend on attendance data that Zuddl aggregates in fixed windows, so they are not instant even while the event is running.

Action	Typical delay	Why
Attended — virtual	Up to about 5 minutes	Attendance is calculated from aggregated presence data, not from a single join click
Entered	Up to about 5 minutes	Same aggregation. Covers attendees present outside the live window
Joined session, Joined booth, Joined breakout room, Joined discussion room	Up to about 5 minutes	First-time joins are detected on the same aggregation pass
CPE credit added	Up to about 5 minutes	Credits are recalculated on each aggregation pass and sent only when new credit is granted
Attended on-demand	About 30 seconds to 2 minutes	On-demand views are processed in batches
Lead enrichment	Seconds to minutes	Sent when the enrichment provider returns data

Do not use Attended as a live, in-the-moment trigger for virtual events. If you need an immediate signal that someone is in the event, subscribe to a real-time engagement action instead.

Delivered after the event ends

These are only calculated once the event is over. Zuddl sends them approximately one hour after the event end time, so that attendance data is complete before the numbers are sent.

Action	Sent when
No show	A registrant never attended
Time spent in event	Total minutes the attendee spent in the event
Time spent in stage	Minutes per stage
Time spent in session	Minutes per session
Time spent in booth	Minutes per booth
Time spent in discussion room	Minutes per discussion room

If someone did not attend, only No show is sent for them. No time-spent actions follow.
Time-spent actions are not sent for in-person events.
For webinars, only Time spent in event and Time spent in stage are sent.
Third-party events do not receive this post-event batch.

The one-hour delay is measured from the event end time in your event settings. If you change the end time, the delivery time shifts with it.

Delivered as a scheduled batch

Action	Typical delay	Why
Registration abandoned	About 45 to 90 minutes	A registration is only treated as abandoned once the checkout window has expired, and the check runs every 30 minutes
Watched VOD	Up to about 12 hours	Recording view data is collected in a batch that runs twice a day

Checking whether a webhook is late or missing

Find the action in the tables above and confirm its expected window. A Time spent action two minutes after the event ends is not late.
From the Zuddl dashboard, go to Connections → Webhooks and open the webhook.
Confirm the webhook is Active, that the specific action is selected under Update actions, and that the event is included under Select events.
For a newly created event, check whether Automatically include future events was on for that event type. If it was off, the event is not included and no payloads are sent for it.
If the action and event are both in scope and the expected window has passed, contact Zuddl support with the event name, the action, and the time the original activity took place.

Frequently asked questions

Why did I not get a Time spent payload right after the session ended?
Time-spent actions are sent once for the whole event, about an hour after the event ends. They are not sent per session as each session finishes.
Why is Attended instant for in-person but delayed for virtual?
In-person attendance comes from a badge scan, which is a single definite action. Virtual attendance is calculated from aggregated presence data, which is processed in short windows.
When is a registration counted as abandoned?
After the checkout window expires without the registration being completed. The check runs every 30 minutes, so expect roughly 45 to 90 minutes.
Why is Watched VOD slower than everything else?
Recording view data is collected in a scheduled batch that runs twice a day. Plan for same-day, not same-minute.
Do CRM integrations follow the same timing?
Yes. The same activities feed both webhooks and CRM integrations, so the timing described here applies to both.