diff --git a/panoptes_cli/commands/configure.py b/panoptes_cli/commands/configure.py
index 51046d8..e2fd6df 100644
--- a/panoptes_cli/commands/configure.py
+++ b/panoptes_cli/commands/configure.py
@@ -33,7 +33,10 @@ def configure(ctx, edit_all):
             show_default=not is_password,
         )
 
-    if not ctx.parent.config['endpoint'].startswith('https://'):
+    # If not connecting to local host (e.g. panoptes running locally)
+    # and endpoint is not https, refuse connection!
+    if ('localhost' not in ctx.parent.config['endpoint']
+        and not ctx.parent.config['endpoint'].startswith('https://')):
         click.echo(
             'Error: Invalid endpoint supplied. Endpoint must be an HTTPS URL.'
         )