Beszel vs Uptime Kuma
Beszel monitors server health - CPU, memory, disk, Docker containers. Uptime Kuma monitors service availability - is your website up? Different tools for different problems. Most self-hosters run both.
Beszel vs Uptime Kuma: The Verdict
Beszel and Uptime Kuma are complementary tools, not competitors. Beszel monitors server resources (CPU, memory, disk, Docker containers) from inside the server. Uptime Kuma monitors service availability (HTTP, TCP, DNS) from outside. Use Beszel to know when a server is overloaded. Use Uptime Kuma to know when a service is down. The best setup runs both.
Last updated: 2026-04-07Quick Comparison
| Feature | Uptime Kuma | Beszel |
|---|---|---|
| Primary Purpose | Endpoint uptime monitoring | Server resource monitoring |
| Starting Price | $3/mo (self-hosted on InstaPods) | $3/mo (self-hosted on InstaPods) |
| What It Monitors | HTTP, TCP, DNS, Ping, Docker, gRPC, MQTT | CPU, memory, disk, network, Docker containers |
| Monitoring Approach | External checks (is it responding?) | Internal metrics (how is it performing?) |
| Status Pages | Yes (built-in, customizable) | No |
| Docker Monitoring | Container up/down status | Per-container CPU, memory, network |
| Alerting | 90+ notification channels | Threshold alerts (email, webhook) |
| RAM Usage | ~30-50MB | <10MB per agent |
| Setup Time | 5-10 minutes | 5 minutes |
| Source Code | MIT license | MIT license |
Where Uptime Kuma Gets Expensive
Trade-offs to weigh before committing.
No Server Resource Metrics
Uptime Kuma checks if services respond, but doesn't track CPU, memory, or disk usage. Your server could be at 95% CPU and Uptime Kuma wouldn't alert you until the service actually crashes.
External-Only Perspective
Uptime Kuma monitors from outside. It can tell you a service is down, but not why. Beszel's resource metrics show you whether it's CPU saturation, memory exhaustion, or disk full.
No Historical Resource Data
No CPU/memory/disk trends over time. You can't look back to see when your server started running hot or predict when you'll run out of disk space.
Single Location Monitoring
Self-hosted Uptime Kuma monitors from one location. If your monitoring server and your app server share a network, a network issue could take both offline.
Why Self-Host with Beszel?
What you get when you pick this stack.
Server Resource Visibility
See CPU, memory, disk, and network usage for every server. Know when resources are running low before services crash.
Docker Container Metrics
Per-container CPU, memory, and network tracking. Find which container is consuming resources without SSH-ing into the server.
Historical Trend Data
Track resource usage over days, weeks, and months. Plan capacity and spot gradual resource leaks.
Ultra-Lightweight
<10MB RAM per agent vs Uptime Kuma's 30-50MB. Both are lightweight, but Beszel is even lighter.
Real Cost Comparison
Monitoring 5 servers and 20 endpoints.
- Uptime Kuma on InstaPods: $3/mo
- Monitors all 20 endpoints
- Cannot monitor server resources
- Missing: CPU, memory, disk alerts
- Beszel on InstaPods: $3/mo (hub)
- Agents on all 5 servers: free
- Full resource monitoring
- Add Uptime Kuma for $3/mo: both for $6/mo
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need both Beszel and Uptime Kuma?
Ideally, yes. Beszel tells you when server resources are strained (CPU at 90%, disk full). Uptime Kuma tells you when services are unreachable. Together they cost $6/mo on InstaPods and give you complete monitoring.
Can Uptime Kuma monitor server CPU and memory?
No. Uptime Kuma monitors endpoint availability (is this URL responding?) but doesn't track server resources. For CPU, memory, and disk monitoring, you need Beszel, Netdata, or Prometheus.
Which should I set up first?
Start with Beszel if you want to know how your servers are performing. Start with Uptime Kuma if you want to know when your websites or APIs go down. For most self-hosters, Beszel is the more immediately useful tool.
Is there one tool that does both?
Netdata comes closest, offering both resource metrics and some availability checking. However, it uses 200-500MB RAM vs Beszel + Uptime Kuma's combined 40-60MB. For lightweight setups, running both dedicated tools is more efficient.
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