PingRobot / Compare / Uptime.com
PingRobot vs Uptime.com
Uptime.com is a broad synthetic monitoring platform with transaction checks, real user monitoring and SMS alerts on every plan. PingRobot is a simpler uptime monitor with a free plan, and its paid plans give you far more monitors: 50 for $9 where Uptime.com's $9 plan has 10 basic checks, and 250 thirty-second monitors for $29.
Uptime.com plans and prices were checked on 20 October 2026 with the calculator on uptime.com/pricing (monthly billing unless noted). Prices are in US dollars before tax. Plans change, so check their page before you decide.
Price for the same number of monitors
| PingRobot | Uptime.com | |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | Yes: 10 monitors, 5-minute checks | No; 30-day money-back guarantee |
| $9 a month | 50 monitors, 1-minute checks (Pro) | 10 basic checks, 1 advanced check, 25 SMS alerts |
| About 50 monitors | $9/month (Pro) | $38/month: 50 basic, 5 advanced, 75 SMS |
| 200–250 monitors | $29/month: 250 monitors, 30-second checks (Business) | $150/month: 200 basic, 15 advanced, 200 SMS |
| Yearly billing | $90/year (Pro), $290/year (Business) | Over 20% off; $84/year for the entry plan |
| Check interval | 5 min (Free), 1 min (Pro), 30 s (Business) | 1 minute |
| Users | 10 team members on Business | Unlimited users |
Uptime.com lists SSL, domain (Whois) and DNS as their own basic check types, and API, heartbeat and transaction monitoring as advanced checks. On PingRobot, any HTTPS monitor can also send SSL and domain expiry reminders, and API and heartbeat monitors count like any other monitor.
Features
| PingRobot | Uptime.com | |
|---|---|---|
| HTTP(S), keyword and TCP port checks | Yes | Yes |
| API checks | Custom requests with JSON rules, on every plan | Yes (advanced check) |
| Heartbeat / cron monitoring | Yes | Yes (advanced check) |
| SSL and domain expiry | Yes, a setting on any HTTPS monitor | Yes (basic checks) |
| DNS record monitoring | Yes | Yes |
| Ping, UDP, SSH, SMTP, IMAP, POP, FTP(S), NTP | No | Yes |
| Transaction (browser) checks and page speed | No | Yes |
| Real user monitoring | No | Yes (separate product) |
| Locations | Failures re-checked from a second region | 100+ probe servers, private locations |
| Alert channels | Email and signed webhooks on every plan; Slack, Discord and ntfy push on Pro | Email, SMS, phone and 20+ integrations |
| Status pages | 1 on Free, 5 on Pro, 100 on Business; own domain, subscribers and password protection on Pro | Public and private pages, subscribers, password protection |
| SLA reporting | SLA target, badge and monthly SLA email | Customizable reporting |
| History | 30 days (Free), 1 year (Pro), 2 years (Business) | 24 months |
| API and AI assistants | REST API, OpenAPI 3.1 and a remote MCP server, on every plan | API access |
Where PingRobot is ahead
- A free plan with SSL and domain reminders, heartbeats, signed webhooks and a status page.
- Far lower cost per monitor: 50 monitors for $9 against $38 for 50 basic checks, and 250 monitors at 30 seconds for $29 against $150 for 200 basic checks.
- Heartbeats and API checks count as normal monitors, with no separate allowance.
- Automation: manage everything from the REST API, or ask Claude, Cursor or VS Code about your monitors through the MCP server.
Where Uptime.com is ahead
- Breadth: transaction checks, page speed, real user monitoring and many protocol checks, including ping, UDP, SSH and mail servers.
- SMS and phone alerts on every plan, escalations and more than 20 integrations.
- Global coverage: more than 100 probe servers, IPv4 and IPv6, and private locations behind your firewall.
- Unlimited users and 24 months of check history.
Which one should you choose?
Choose Uptime.com if you need transaction checks, real user monitoring, SMS or phone alerts, or probes inside your own network.
Choose PingRobot if you want website, API, DNS and cron monitoring with status pages, starting free and staying cheap as you add monitors.
Start monitoring free — 10 monitors, no credit card.
Frequently asked questions
How do PingRobot and Uptime.com prices compare?
Uptime.com starts at $9 a month ($84 a year) for 10 basic checks, 1 advanced check and 25 SMS alerts; 50 basic checks with 5 advanced checks is $38 a month and 200 basic checks with 15 advanced checks is $150. PingRobot Pro is $9 a month for 50 monitors checked every minute, and Business is $29 a month for 250 monitors checked every 30 seconds.
Does Uptime.com have a free plan?
No. Its pricing page lists paid plans with a 30-day money-back guarantee for new users. PingRobot has a Free plan with 10 monitors checked every 5 minutes, with no time limit and no credit card.
What does Uptime.com have that PingRobot doesn't?
SMS and phone alerts, transaction (browser) checks, page speed and real user monitoring, ping, UDP, SSH, mail-server and FTP checks, more than 100 probe servers with private locations, unlimited users, 20+ integrations and 24 months of check history.
Are heartbeat and API checks extra on Uptime.com?
Uptime.com lists API, heartbeat and transaction monitoring as advanced checks, which come in a smaller allowance than basic checks (1 on the $9 plan). On PingRobot, heartbeat and API monitors count as ordinary monitors on every plan.