PingZen vs Updown.io: Free Unlimited Monitoring vs Pay-per-Check
Updown.io is a French bootstrapped monitoring service by Adrien Rey-Jarthon. It uses a unique pay-per-check credit model (~€0.60/month for 1 site at 1-minute intervals). Supports HTTP, TCP, ICMP, SSL, domain expiry, and heartbeat checks from 8 global nodes with dual-stack IPv4/IPv6.
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Quick Comparison
Best Value
PingZen
- Price
- Free forever
- Intervals
- 30 seconds
- Protocols
- 22 protocols
- Alerts
- 12+ channels
Updown.io
- Price
- Pay-per-check (~€0.60/month/site)
- Intervals
- 15 seconds (paid)
- Protocols
- 6 (HTTP, TCP, ICMP, SSL, Domain, Heartbeat)
- Alerts
- Email, SMS, Slack, Telegram, webhooks
Feature Comparison
| Feature | PingZen | Updown.io |
|---|---|---|
| HTTP/HTTPS monitoring | ||
| TCP monitoring | ||
| Ping (ICMP) | ||
| SSL certificate monitoring | ||
| Domain expiry monitoring | ||
| Heartbeat/cron monitoring | ||
| IPv6 dual-stack | ||
| DNS monitoring | ||
| WebSocket monitoring | ||
| gRPC monitoring | ||
| SMTP monitoring | ||
| FTP monitoring | ||
| DNSBL monitoring | ||
| Telegram alerts | ||
| Slack integration | ||
| Public status pages | ||
| Incident management | ||
| Bitcoin payments |
Why Choose PingZen
- 22 protocols vs 6 — DNS, WebSocket, gRPC, SMTP, FTP, DNSBL, and more
- Unlimited free monitors vs pay-per-check credits
- Public status pages and incident management
- Predictable pricing (free) vs variable credit costs
- Real-time WebSocket dashboard
- Team workspaces with role-based access
When Updown.io is Better
- Pay only for what you use — most flexible pricing
- Dual-stack IPv6 support built-in
- 15-second check intervals available
- Multi-location confirmation prevents false positives
- REST API for CI/CD integration
- Bitcoin payment accepted
Not sure about PingZen vs Updown.io?
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Migration Tip
Updown.io is ideal for developers wanting pay-per-check flexibility and IPv6. PingZen is better for teams wanting unlimited free monitors, 22 protocols, and status pages without credit management.
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