What is the difference between Uptime Robot and Checkly?

Uptime Robot is best for Anyone wanting simple, free uptime monitoring, while Checkly is best for DevOps teams wanting monitoring as code. Uptime Robot starts at Free and Checkly starts at Free.

Is Uptime Robot or Checkly cheaper?

Uptime Robot starts at Free with a free tier. Checkly starts at Free with a free tier.

Is there a free alternative to Checkly?

Both Uptime Robot and Checkly offer free tiers.

Uptime Robot vs Checkly

Uptime Robot is simple uptime monitoring service that checks your websites every 5 minutes and alerts you when they go down, while Checkly is API and browser monitoring with Playwright tests, deployed via code. Uptime Robot is built for anyone wanting simple, free uptime monitoring, whereas Checkly targets devops teams wanting monitoring as code.

At a glance

	Uptime Robot	Checkly
Best for	Anyone wanting simple, free uptime monitoring	DevOps teams wanting monitoring as code
Starting price	Free	Free
Free tier	✓	✓
Open source	—	—
Free tier available	✓	✓
Open source	—	—
API	✓	—
API Checks	—	✓
Alerts	✓	✓
HTTP Monitoring	✓	—
Monitoring as Code	—	✓
Playwright	—	✓
Status Pages	✓	—

Uptime Robot

Strengths

Includes HTTP Monitoring as a core feature, purpose-built for monitoring workflows
Includes Status Pages as a core feature, purpose-built for monitoring workflows
Free for 50 monitors — generous enough for most small teams to get real work done
Established product with 16+ years on the market and a mature ecosystem

Weaknesses

Free plan exists but key features are locked behind the paid upgrade
Developer-oriented tooling may not suit non-technical team members
Ecosystem of third-party integrations is smaller than the market leaders in monitoring
Mobile experience lags behind the desktop version in features and polish

Try Uptime Robot → Full review

Checkly

Strengths

Includes Monitoring as Code as a core feature, purpose-built for monitoring workflows
Includes Playwright as a core feature, purpose-built for monitoring workflows
Free for 5 checks — generous enough for most small teams to get real work done
Includes api checks alongside the core feature set — fewer separate tools needed

Weaknesses

Free plan exists but key features are locked behind the paid upgrade
Developer-oriented tooling may not suit non-technical team members
Ecosystem of third-party integrations is smaller than the market leaders in monitoring
Limited team/admin features if your organization eventually scales up

Try Checkly → Full review

The bottom line

Pricing: Both tools offer free tiers, so you can test each before committing. Uptime Robot's free plan: Free for 50 monitors. Checkly's free plan: Free for 5 checks.

Feature gaps: Uptime Robot offers API, HTTP Monitoring and Status Pages that Checkly lacks. Checkly brings API Checks, Monitoring as Code and Playwright that Uptime Robot does not have. Both share Alerts.

Team fit: Uptime Robot is geared toward any size teams, while Checkly is aimed at small teams teams. Pick the one that matches where your team is today and where it is headed — migrating tools later is always painful.

Where each tool shines: Uptime Robot's biggest strengths are: includes http monitoring as a core feature, purpose-built for monitoring workflows. includes status pages as a core feature, purpose-built for monitoring workflows. Checkly's biggest strengths are: includes monitoring as code as a core feature, purpose-built for monitoring workflows. includes playwright as a core feature, purpose-built for monitoring workflows.

Watch out for: With Uptime Robot, users commonly note that free plan exists but key features are locked behind the paid upgrade. With Checkly, the main complaint is that free plan exists but key features are locked behind the paid upgrade.

Choose Uptime Robot if...

You need a tool built for anyone wanting simple, free uptime monitoring
You specifically need API and HTTP Monitoring
You care about includes status pages as a core feature, purpose-built for monitoring workflows
Your team size fits the any size profile Uptime Robot is designed for
The free tier works for you: free for 50 monitors

Choose Checkly if...

You need a tool built for devops teams wanting monitoring as code
You specifically need API Checks and Monitoring as Code
You care about includes playwright as a core feature, purpose-built for monitoring workflows
Your team size fits the small teams profile Checkly is designed for
The free tier works for you: free for 5 checks