Best free uptime monitoring tools: 6 free plans compared

Best free uptime monitoring tools: the short list

For most small sites the best free uptime monitoring plan is UptimeRobot's: 50 monitors checked every 5 minutes. It is a plan, not a trial, and its pricing card says no credit card is required. HetrixTools is the pick for free SSL and domain expiry checks beside 1-minute uptime checks, and Pulsetic for free status pages with SSL checks.

Six free plans are compared: UptimeRobot, HetrixTools, Pulsetic, Better Stack (formerly Better Uptime), Site24x7 and StatusCake, as read on 7 October 2026. For when you outgrow one, UptimeRobot's Solo plan is $13 a month, billed monthly, as captured on its US pricing page on September 29, 2026.

What each free plan leaves out

• UptimeRobot: no SSL or domain-expiry reminders and no heartbeat (cron job) monitoring; both start on Solo. Free keeps 3 months of data. Free may be used for business, per its Terms.
• HetrixTools: free users log in every 90 days and do not get multiple email recipients.
• StatusCake: HTTP(S) tests only, on a single login for personal use.
• Better Stack: Slack and email alerts only.
• Pulsetic: the 10 monitors, heartbeats and domains share one limit.
• Site24x7: email downtime alerts; its pages do not say whether SSL or domain checks are included.

Free SSL, domain and status page checks

HetrixTools includes SSL validity and expiration, domain expiration and status pages on every plan, free one included; UptimeRobot vs HetrixTools compares it with UptimeRobot. Pulsetic's free plan has SSL checks and 3 status pages, and its pricing table ticks a custom domain for status pages on Free.

UptimeRobot's free status page is 1 page on an UptimeRobot address, and your own domain needs Solo. Better Stack's documentation puts certificate and domain expiration alerts on paid plans.

UptimeRobot, HetrixTools, Pulsetic and Better Stack document email alerts on their free plans, and Site24x7's free plan lists email downtime alerts. StatusCake's visible Free card does not say.

Free heartbeats for cron jobs

A heartbeat monitor expects your scheduled job to call a URL and alerts you when the call does not arrive. Better Stack's Free plan includes 10 monitors and heartbeats, and Pulsetic counts heartbeats within its 10. UptimeRobot's heartbeat monitors need Solo. The cron job monitoring tool guide covers Healthchecks.io, which watches 20 jobs on its free plan, and UptimeRobot's heartbeats.

When a free plan stops being enough

A free plan stops being enough when you need faster checks, more monitors, UptimeRobot's SSL reminders or alerts to more than one person. UptimeRobot Solo is $13 a month, billed monthly, or $12 a month, billed annually ($144 a year), for 10 monitors. HetrixTools Professional is $9.95 a month, billed monthly, and Pulsetic Solo is $9 a month, billed monthly.

Better Stack's paid step is a $34 a month responder license, billed monthly, and StatusCake Superior is $24.49 a month, billed monthly.

UptimeRobot says faster intervals improve time-to-detect but can add noise on a flaky endpoint. UptimeRobot free plan lists what Solo adds, and best uptime monitoring tools covers the paid plans of eight services.