Instatus vs Uptime Kuma: Which Should You Choose in 2026?
Choosing between Instatus and Uptime Kuma comes down to understanding what each tool does best. This comparison breaks down the key differences so you can make an informed decision based on your specific needs, not marketing claims.
By Toolradar Team · Last updated February 28, 2026 · Methodology
Short on time? Here's the quick answer
We've tested both tools. Here's who should pick what:
Instatus
Fast and beautiful status pages
Best for you if:
- • Instatus is a fast, beautiful status page service for communicating incidents
- • It creates public status pages with incident management and subscriber notifications
Uptime Kuma
Self-hosted uptime monitoring
Best for you if:
- • You want the higher-rated option (8.6/10 vs 8.5/10)
- • You need something completely free
- • Uptime Kuma is a self-hosted monitoring tool for websites and services
- • It provides uptime monitoring with a beautiful dashboard
| At a Glance |  Instatus |  Uptime Kuma |
|---|---|---|
Price | Free + Paid | Free |
Best For | Monitoring | Monitoring |
Rating | 85/100 | 86/100 |
| Feature | Instatus | Uptime Kuma |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing Model | Freemium | Free |
| Editorial Score | 85 | 86 |
| Community Rating | No ratings yet | No ratings yet |
| Total Reviews | 0 | 0 |
| Community Upvotes | 0 | 0 |
| Categories | MonitoringIncident Management | MonitoringIncident Management |
How Instatus and Uptime Kuma Compare
Instatus
Fast and beautiful status pages
Free tier available · 85/100 score
Uptime Kuma
Self-hosted uptime monitoring
Free · 86/100 score
Who Should Use What?
On a budget?
Uptime Kuma is free. Instatus is freemium.
Go with: Uptime Kuma
Want the highest-rated option?
Instatus: 85/100. Uptime Kuma: 86/100.
Go with: Uptime Kuma
Value user reviews?
Neither has user reviews yet.
Go with: Uptime Kuma
3 Questions to Help You Decide
What's your budget?
Instatus is freemium. Uptime Kuma is free. Go with Uptime Kuma if free matters most.
What's your use case?
Both are monitoring tools. Compare their specific features to decide.
How important are ratings?
Uptime Kuma scores higher: 86/100 vs 85/100.
Key Takeaways
Uptime Kuma
- Higher score: 86/100 vs 85
- Completely free
- Our pick for this comparison
Instatus
The Bottom Line
Uptime Kuma (86/100) is our pick.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Instatus or Uptime Kuma better?
Uptime Kuma scores 86/100 in our evaluation. Instatus is freemium and Uptime Kuma is free.
What are Instatus and Uptime Kuma used for?
Instatus: Fast and beautiful status pages. Uptime Kuma: Self-hosted uptime monitoring.
What does Instatus cost vs Uptime Kuma?
Instatus is freemium (free tier + paid plans). Uptime Kuma is completely free. Visit their websites for detailed pricing.