CertWatch vs Uptime Robot

The Core Problem: Availability ≠ Validity

Uptime Robot is excellent at what it does: checking if your website returns a 200 OK. With 2.7 million users, it's the default choice for basic availability monitoring.

But here's what Uptime Robot doesn't tell you:

• Is your certificate chain complete? (Missing intermediates break mobile browsers)
• Has your certificate been revoked? (OCSP/CRL status)
• Are you using weak cryptography? (SHA-1, small RSA keys)
• What about your internal APIs, databases, and staging environments?

A site can be "Up" and still have a broken certificate.

Side-by-Side: What Each Tool Actually Monitors

The "Shallow Inspection" Problem

Uptime Robot performs what we call "shallow inspection"—it connects to your server, grabs the certificate expiration date, and moves on. This misses critical failure modes:

Real-World Scenario: The Intermediate Certificate Gap

Your Server Certificate: ✅ Valid until 2026
Intermediate Certificate: ❌ MISSING

Uptime Robot: "SSL OK - Expires in 342 days" ✅
Chrome Desktop: Works fine (cached intermediate)
Safari Mobile: "This Connection Is Not Private" ❌
Your Customers: Calling support, abandoning carts

CertWatch performs full chain validation, walking the entire certificate path from your server to the root CA. We catch the "works on my machine" errors before your customers do.

The Private Network Gap

This is where Uptime Robot fundamentally fails for modern infrastructure.

The Reality: 80% of your certificates aren't on public websites. They're on:

• Internal APIs (api.internal.yourcompany.com)
• Database connections (PostgreSQL, MySQL with TLS)
• Kubernetes ingress controllers
• Staging/development environments
• Message queues (Kafka, RabbitMQ)
• Service mesh mTLS certificates

Uptime Robot's "Solutions" for Private Networks:

CertWatch's Solution: The cw-agent

# Deploy to your private network in minutes
helm install cw-agent certwatch/cw-agent \
  --set agent.apiKey=YOUR_KEY \
  --set config.endpoints[0].address=postgres.internal:5432

# The agent scans locally and pushes data outbound via HTTPS
# Zero inbound firewall ports required

The agent runs inside your network, scans your private endpoints, and pushes data to CertWatch via outbound HTTPS. No VPNs. No port forwarding. No security compromises.

Check Frequency: 24 Hours vs 5 Minutes

Let's do the math:

• Uptime Robot: Checks SSL every 24 hours
• CertWatch: Checks SSL every 5 minutes

If a certificate issue occurs (unexpected revocation, misconfiguration after deployment), here's your detection window:

That's 288× more frequent monitoring. When a bad deployment pushes a broken certificate to production at 2 AM, do you want to find out in 5 minutes or 24 hours?

"But I Already Have Uptime Robot..."

Great! Keep it. Uptime Robot is excellent for availability monitoring. But availability and certificate security are different problems:

Think of it like this: Uptime Robot checks the door. CertWatch checks the lock.

Many teams run both:

• Uptime Robot for HTTP/ping monitoring
• CertWatch for deep certificate security

CertWatch integrates with the same alerting channels (Slack, PagerDuty, Teams), so it fits into your existing workflow.

The Let's Encrypt Problem

If you use Let's Encrypt (90-day certificates), Uptime Robot's fixed alerting windows are problematic:

• 30-day warning: You get alerted when 1/3 of your cert's lifetime remains. For a 90-day cert, that's every single renewal cycle.
• No customization: You can't say "alert me at 14 days for Let's Encrypt, 30 days for commercial certs."

CertWatch lets you configure thresholds per certificate or domain, so you're not drowning in noise from your automated renewal pipeline.

Migration Path: Uptime Robot → CertWatch

Already tracking domains in Uptime Robot? Here's how to add CertWatch:

Step 1: Sign Up (Free During Beta)

https://certwatch.app/signup

Step 2: Add Your Public Domains

Import your domains or let CertWatch discover them. Each domain gets:

• 5-minute check intervals
• Full chain validation
• Revocation monitoring
• Weak crypto detection

Step 3: Deploy the Agent for Private Endpoints

# Docker
docker run -d \
  -e CERTWATCH_API_KEY=your_key \
  -v ./certwatch.yaml:/app/certwatch.yaml \
  ghcr.io/certwatch-app/cw-agent:latest

# Kubernetes
helm repo add certwatch https://charts.certwatch.app
helm install cw-agent certwatch/cw-agent --set agent.apiKey=YOUR_KEY

Step 4: Configure Alerts

Connect to Slack, Teams, PagerDuty, or webhooks—all included on every plan.

Pricing Comparison

CertWatch's beta tier includes features Uptime Robot doesn't offer at any price point.

FAQ

Can I use CertWatch alongside Uptime Robot?

Absolutely. They solve different problems. Uptime Robot monitors availability; CertWatch monitors certificate security. Many teams run both.

Does CertWatch do uptime monitoring?

No, and that's intentional. We focus exclusively on certificate monitoring so we can do it deeply. For uptime, use Uptime Robot, Pingdom, or Better Stack.

What if my certificate expires between Uptime Robot's 24-hour checks?

You'll find out when customers complain or when you check manually. With CertWatch's 5-minute checks, you'll know within minutes.

How does the private agent work?

The cw-agent runs inside your network, scans endpoints locally, and pushes data to CertWatch via outbound HTTPS. No inbound firewall ports required.

The Bottom Line

Uptime Robot tells you when you're down. CertWatch ensures you never go down due to certificate issues.

Ready to Go Deeper?

Start Free Trial →

• Free during beta
• All alert channels included
• Private network agent included
• No credit card required

Last updated: January 2026. We strive to keep this comparison accurate. If you notice any errors, please contact us.