illari vs Healthchecks.io

Healthchecks.io is the reference open-source heartbeat monitor: a job pings a URL, you get alerted when a ping is late. illari does the same core job and adds checks on what the run reported, timezone and DST correct scheduling, and pricing that doesn't meter per monitor.

Pricing and limits move around on both sides; check the current pages before deciding.

Where illari is different

• Flat pricing. Healthchecks' paid tiers are bucketed by check count (100, then 1,000). illari is one $20 price with monitors not metered, so the bill doesn't step up as you add jobs.
• Run-content checks. Healthchecks has /start and /fail and stores a small payload. illari alerts on a non-zero exit, a run far off its own duration baseline, and threshold rules on numbers the job sends (rows < 1, cost_usd > 5).
• Daylight saving. Both are timezone-aware. illari computes each expected run from the zone database, so a 0 2 * * * job doesn't misfire on the changeover weekend, and the cron tester shows that math.
• Agent-legible docs. A coding agent can wire illari into a repo from one URL.

Where Healthchecks is the better pick

• You want to self-host. Healthchecks is open source under a BSD license and genuinely runs on your own box. illari is hosted only.
• The free tier already covers you. 20 checks with 3 team members is generous, and if that's enough there's no reason to pay anyone.
• You need a specific channel like SMS, WhatsApp, Signal, or Matrix. Healthchecks' integration catalog is much longer.
• Track record matters to you. Healthchecks has run for years and has a large public user base.

If heartbeats are all you need, Healthchecks is hard to beat, especially self-hosted. Reach for illari when you want run-content alerting, flat pricing as you scale up jobs, or schedules that cross daylight-saving edges.