WebSitePulse

Overview

WebSitePulse is a remote monitoring service for teams responsible for websites, servers, networks, applications, and email infrastructure. It suits operators who want varied checks, alert routes, and reporting in one service; its breadth is compelling, but plan intervals and location counts make it important to match a plan to the monitoring workload.

Established in 2000, the company is based in Orlando, Florida. Its web service monitors targets around the clock, with intervals configurable from one minute to one week and geographically distinct monitoring locations available for each target.

Key features

Monitoring and verification

The service spans uptime, webpage, web transaction, email round-trip, server and network, vulnerability, blacklist, and certificate monitoring. That range makes WebSitePulse useful when a team needs to watch infrastructure alongside public-facing sites and workflows, rather than uptime alone. HTTP checks, SSL and latency monitoring, page health checks, maintenance windows, and status pages round out the listed capabilities.

WebSitePulse describes a three-stage alert check: an error is detected, independently confirmed, then evaluated against a notification level before an alert is sent. That extra confirmation is intended to curb notifications for unconfirmed errors, though the available plan examples show that tighter intervals can come with limits on locations.

Alerts, reporting, and security

Alerts can be sent by email, SMS, voice call, instant messenger, pager, SNMP trap, or URL notification. This variety is useful for teams routing incidents into different response channels. Reports include uptime and downtime summaries, response-time breakdowns, and downloadable raw data; WSDL and HTTP APIs provide access to real-time target data, making the service a better fit for teams that want to incorporate monitoring into other systems.

Vulnerability monitoring checks servers and firewalls against more than 60,000 known security issues and exploits and provides recommendations. It adds a security-oriented check to the monitoring mix, but it should not be mistaken for a substitute for a broader security program.

Mobile apps and support

Dedicated Android and iOS apps support GCM and push notifications. The maker also describes free monitoring apps and extensions, including Current Status, Test Tools, and Transaction Recorder. Support is advertised around the clock by phone and email, with remote hands and an option to transfer alerts to the live support team; that escalation path may matter to operators who need help responding, not just another notification.

Pricing

WebSitePulse uses paid pricing, with pricing starting at $3/mo and a 30-day trial. The listed plan examples are billed monthly:

• HTTP performance: $9 a month for a 10-minute interval and one monitoring location. It suits a basic HTTP check where a slower cadence and single vantage point are acceptable.
• Performance transaction: $15 a month for a one-hour interval, one location, and five transactional steps. The step allowance supports a small monitored workflow, but the hourly interval is a poor match for rapid incident detection.
• HTTP advanced: $18 a month for a 3-minute interval and one location. It offers more frequent HTTP checks than HTTP performance while retaining a single monitoring location.
• PING basic: $19 a month for a 1-minute interval and one location. It fits readers prioritizing frequent ping checks over broader HTTP coverage.
• HTTP full-page: $20 a month for a 30-minute interval, one location, and tests of 200 references. The reference allowance favors full-page coverage, while the half-hour interval is comparatively slow.
• HTTPS performance: $20 a month for a 10-minute interval and three locations. It is the stronger fit when geographic coverage matters more than frequent checks.
• Inbrowser Application: $21 a month for a daily interval, one location, and 10 transactional steps. The step count may suit a longer scripted flow, but daily checking limits its value for prompt detection.

These examples illustrate trade-offs rather than a single best tier: faster checks and multiple locations are not combined in every plan, so buyers should prioritize cadence, geography, and check type. A free account may also be offered, but the service agreement permits only one free service account per customer. It permits one free trial account per customer and restricts trial eligibility if a trial was used in the previous 180 days. The service agreement also offers a credit equal to 50% of one month of service for a monitored device if it is not monitored for one hour during a month, subject to account and interval conditions.

Platforms

WebSitePulse supports Android, iOS, web, Windows, API access, and extensions. The mobile apps and free monitoring utilities add ways to check status beyond the web service, while API access is useful for teams integrating real-time target data.

Who it's for

WebSitePulse is best suited to organizations monitoring several kinds of infrastructure, especially those that need configurable check intervals, multiple alert routes, downloadable reports, or API access. Its range of server, website, transaction, email, and security checks can consolidate monitoring needs. It is less compelling for buyers whose main requirement is a generous free tier or who need both very frequent checks and broad geographic coverage at a low price; the listed plan examples trade interval against locations.

Pros and cons

• Pros: Broad checks cover infrastructure, websites, transactions, email, certificates, blacklists, and vulnerabilities, making it useful beyond simple uptime monitoring.
• Pros: Seven alert routes, response-time reporting, downloadable raw data, and WSDL and HTTP APIs support varied incident workflows and analysis.
• Pros: Interval choices range from one minute to one week, and targets can use geographically distinct locations.
• Cons: The listed plan examples limit locations, intervals, or transaction scope; buyers must check whether a particular combination meets their needs.
• Cons: The service agreement's free-account and trial rules limit each customer to one of each, and trial eligibility is restricted after a trial within the previous 180 days.

Alternatives

For a wider category view, browse Website Monitoring Software or Internet Performance Monitoring Software.

• Dotcom-Monitor is worth considering if a free plan with up to 25 targets, checks as frequent as every five minutes, and two monitoring locations better matches your starting needs.
• UptimeRobot may suit hobby or nonprofit projects seeking a free plan with 50 monitors and five-minute checks without a credit card requirement.
• Better Stack is another freemium option for readers who want a free personal-project plan that bundles monitors and heartbeats with a status page, exceptions, session replays, and retained logs and traces.
• Visual Sentinel is an alternative to compare for visual site monitoring, with paid Solo and Starter plans and a free plan.
• HostTracker offers a free tier with two monitors and two contacts checked every 30 minutes, plus a 30-day trial option.
• Uptimia may fit small websites seeking a paid uptime plan with a one-minute interval, ten checks, one advanced check, one server, and a status page.
• Distill Web Monitor is another freemium choice to consider for web-page monitoring across desktop and mobile platforms.
• Hyperping offers a free plan with 20 monitors, five-minute checks, one seat, a server monitoring agent, a basic status page, and HTTP, port, ping, and keyword monitoring.

Verdict

Choose WebSitePulse if you need one service to monitor websites and infrastructure across several check types, with flexible alert delivery, reporting, and API access. Its chief advantage is breadth; its chief caveat is that interval, location, and workflow limits vary across plans, so it is not an automatic fit for every monitoring mix. Compare the plan constraints carefully, and confirm free-account or trial eligibility if you are counting on either.