Reviewed September 2026

StatusCake review: a free tier that includes the things others charge for

Most free monitoring plans give you uptime checks and stop there. StatusCake's gives you ten uptime monitors plus one each of page speed, server, domain and SSL — which means you can watch a certificate and a domain renewal without paying anything. That mix, and the sub-accounts on its Business tier, are what make it the tool agencies keep coming back to.

From $5 a month · No check quotas · Set up in under a minute

Is StatusCake worth it?

Yes, particularly for agencies. The Superior tier at $20.41 a month gives 100 monitors at one-minute intervals with 50 SSL and 50 domain monitors alongside, which is a lot of coverage for the money. Business at $66.66 adds sub-accounts, and if you manage sites for clients that single feature often justifies the jump on its own. The main frustration is that the interface has aged.

4.2/ 5
Excellent breadth per pound, dated in places Our assessment, written by the team behind a competing product — read it as an informed opinion, not a neutral audit. Every factual claim is checked against StatusCake's own public pricing and documentation at the time of writing.
Overview

What StatusCake is

StatusCake is a monitoring platform covering uptime, page speed, server health, domain expiry and SSL certificates. Its distinguishing trait is that all five are treated as first-class monitor types with their own allowances, rather than uptime being the product and the rest being extras.

The free plan reflects that: ten uptime monitors at five-minute intervals, plus one each of page speed, server, domain and SSL. Being able to watch a certificate on a free plan is unusual.

For anyone managing sites on behalf of others, the Business tier adds sub-accounts and audit logs, which is the structural feature agencies need and most competitors reserve for enterprise pricing or omit entirely.

Capabilities

What StatusCake does well

Five monitor types, generous allowances, and structure for agencies.

A genuinely mixed free plan

10 uptime monitors at five minutes, plus one each of page speed, server, domain and SSL. Most free tiers give uptime only.

Large SSL and domain allowances

50 of each on Superior and 100 SSL with 120 domain on Business — enough to cover a real portfolio.

Sub-accounts on Business

Separate client accounts under one subscription, which is exactly how an agency needs to organise work.

One-minute checks from $20.41

Faster checks arrive at a lower price point than most competitors ask for them.

Server monitoring

CPU, memory and disk through an agent, so the host itself is covered alongside the site.

Page speed monitoring

Performance tracking included as its own monitor type rather than sold separately.

Cost

What StatusCake costs

A free tier worth using, then two paid tiers that each make sense for a different buyer.

Plan Price/mo Monitors Interval and extras
Free $0 10 uptime 5-minute checks, plus 1 each page speed, server, domain, SSL
Superior $20.41 100 1-minute checks, 50 SSL, 50 domain
Business $66.66 300 30-second checks, 100 SSL, 120 domain, status page, audit logs, sub-accounts
Custom Quote Unlimited Dedicated locations and SLAs

Monitoring vendors change plan limits and prices frequently and without announcement. Every figure here carries a "verify on their site" caveat and you should take it seriously before making a decision on cost.

The balance

Where it is strong, and where it is not

What works

  • Free plan includes SSL, domain, server and page speed monitors, not just uptime.
  • Superior at $20.41 covers 100 monitors at one-minute intervals.
  • Sub-accounts on Business, which is the feature agencies actually need.
  • Server monitoring via agent alongside external checks.
  • Large certificate and domain allowances on paid tiers.

What to watch out for

  • The interface feels dated next to newer competitors.
  • SSL tests run at ten-minute intervals on Business, which is slower than the uptime checks.
  • A big gap between Superior and Business at $20.41 and $66.66 with nothing between.
  • No page content change detection.
  • Status page is reserved for the Business tier.
Fit

Who StatusCake is for

Choose it if

  • Agencies managing monitoring across many client sites.
  • Anyone who wants certificate and domain expiry covered on a free plan.
  • Teams needing 100 monitors at one-minute checks without paying enterprise prices.
  • Businesses wanting server metrics and external checks from one vendor.

Look elsewhere if

  • Teams who care strongly about interface polish.
  • Anyone needing page content change detection.
  • Buyers wanting a status page without reaching the $66.66 tier.
  • Estates that fall awkwardly between the Superior and Business tiers.
Disclosure

Where MonitoringDaddy fits

StatusCake beats us in two concrete places. They have a free plan and we no longer do, and theirs includes an SSL and a domain monitor — so for a single site on no budget, they cover ground we ask $5 for. They also do server monitoring through an agent, which we do not offer at all; we only ever look at things from the outside.

On paid tiers the comparison is closer than it looks. Superior is $20.41 for 100 monitors; our Pro is $34 for 100 and our Growth is $19 for 50. Where we differ is what a monitor can be: ours includes page content change detection and cron heartbeats, neither of which StatusCake offers, so a single allowance covers more kinds of question.

Their sub-accounts are the honest gap for agency work. We have team members, not client sub-accounts, and for someone managing twenty client sites that structural difference matters more than a price comparison.

The honest split: agencies with client separation and server metrics — theirs. Content changes and heartbeats alongside uptime and certificates on one allowance — ours.

See it

What an alert actually looks like

Every recorded change is compared word by word and kept with a before-and-after image. This is the real output, shown with worked example data.

competitor.com/pricing Watching: Pricing table
Pro plan — $49 per month
+ Pro plan — $39 per month
+ Save 20% with annual billing

Price fell from $49 to $39, and an annual discount was added.

2 words added · 1 removed · 4.1% of the watched region

retailer.com/product/… Watching: Availability
Out of stock
+ In stock — ships tomorrow
+ Add to basket

The item is available again and the basket button returned.

6 words added · 3 removed · 12.5% of the watched region

supplier.com/subprocessors Watching: Subprocessor list
~ Data is processed in the EUthe EU and the United States
+ Added: Northwind Analytics Inc. (United States)

A new subprocessor was added in another jurisdiction.

9 words added · 2 removed · 1.8% of the watched region

Worked example — not live data. Start monitoring free
Alerts

Where we can reach you

The free plan sends to one email address. Every paid plan adds the chat and webhook channels below, with 2 to 10 destinations depending on the plan. However many alerts you receive, the price does not change — nothing here is metered or charged per alert.

Email Before and after images inline
Browser push On a phone or desktop lock screen
RSS feed Every recorded change, as a feed
SlackPaid Through an incoming webhook
Microsoft TeamsPaid Through an incoming webhook
DiscordPaid Through an incoming webhook
TelegramPaid Straight to a chat or channel
FlockPaid Through an incoming webhook
WebhooksPaid Post to anything you run yourself

There are no voice calls and no SMS. If a phone call at 3am is a hard requirement, say so before you subscribe — we would rather tell you now than refund you later.

FAQ

StatusCake review: your questions answered

Is StatusCake free?

Yes. The free plan covers 10 uptime monitors at five-minute intervals plus one each of page speed, server, domain and SSL monitor. That mix is unusually generous for a free tier.

How much does StatusCake cost?

Superior is $20.41 a month for 100 monitors at one-minute checks with 50 SSL and 50 domain monitors. Business is $66.66 for 300 monitors at 30-second checks with 100 SSL, 120 domain, a status page, audit logs and sub-accounts. Custom plans are quoted.

Does StatusCake monitor SSL certificates?

Yes, as a dedicated monitor type with its own allowance — one on free, 50 on Superior and 100 on Business. SSL tests run at ten-minute intervals.

What are sub-accounts?

Separate client accounts under one subscription, available on the Business tier. For agencies this is the feature that makes client work manageable, and most competitors do not offer it below enterprise pricing.

Does it monitor servers?

Yes, through an agent that reports CPU, memory and disk. That is different from external checks and covers the host rather than the site.

Can StatusCake detect page content changes?

No. It can check for a keyword, but it does not diff page content and report what changed.

Is the free plan enough for a business?

For one small site, plausibly — ten uptime monitors plus a certificate and a domain covers the basics. For anything with client work or multiple sites you will reach Superior quickly.

How does it compare with MonitoringDaddy?

They have a free plan, server monitoring and agency sub-accounts, and we have none of those. We have page content change detection and cron heartbeats drawing from the same monitor allowance, which they do not offer.

Keep reading

Related reading

Last updated May 2026 · Written by Amit Gupta, founder of MonitoringDaddy

AG
Written by

Amit Gupta

Amit Gupta is the founder of MonitoringDaddy , a website and infrastructure monitoring platform built by TotosLocal One Private Limited. He writes about uptime, change detection, SSL and domain monitoring, and helps teams keep their websites fast, secure and online.

Uptime, certificates, domains, page changes and heartbeats on one allowance.

StatusCake has a free plan and agency sub-accounts. We have content change detection and heartbeats. Different tools.