DomainChest vs Oh Dear: Which Should You Use?
Both DomainChest and Oh Dear will tell you before a domain or SSL certificate expires — but they're built for different people. We make DomainChest, so read this as the interested party's take; we've kept it honest, because sending you to the wrong tool helps no one.
The short version: Oh Dear is an excellent all-in-one site monitor with no free tier; DomainChest is a focused expiry tracker that's free to start. Which is right depends on whether you want a broad monitoring platform or specifically want expiry alerts without the overhead.
At a glance
| DomainChest (ours) | Oh Dear | |
|---|---|---|
| Domain (WHOIS) expiry | ✅ | ✅ |
| SSL certificate expiry | ✅ | ✅ (full-chain, revoked-root checks) |
| Uptime / broken links / performance | — (expiry-focused) | ✅ |
| Free tier | ✅ (3 domains) | ❌ (trial only) |
| Pricing model | Free + paid tiers | Per number of sites, from ~€15/mo |
| Alerts | Email, Slack, webhooks | Email, Slack, integrations |
| Best described as | A dedicated expiry backstop | An all-in-one site monitor |
Prices are approximate and current to 2026 — confirm on each vendor's page.
Where Oh Dear is the better choice
Oh Dear is genuinely strong, and in a few situations it's the right pick over us:
- You want one tool for everything. Uptime, broken-link checking, performance, DNS, scheduled-task monitoring, status pages — plus first-class domain and SSL expiry — all in every plan. If you'd otherwise stitch together three tools, Oh Dear consolidates them.
- You want deep certificate inspection. Its SSL checks go beyond "when does it expire" into full-chain validation and revoked-root detection.
- Budget isn't the constraint. With no free tier, Oh Dear assumes you're ready to pay — and for an agency monitoring client sites, its per-site pricing is reasonable for what's included.
Where DomainChest is the better choice
- You want expiry alerts without adopting a platform. DomainChest does one job — track every domain and certificate you own and warn you early — with nothing to misconfigure. If you don't need uptime graphs and status pages, that's less surface area, not less safety.
- You want to start free. Expiry monitoring works on our free tier (3 domains), not behind a paywall — so you can cover your most important names at no cost and only pay when you outgrow it.
- You just want the backstop. Many people already have uptime handled elsewhere and specifically want an independent layer that catches a missed renewal or a lapsing certificate. That's exactly what DomainChest is for — see how to never let a domain expire.
How to decide
Ask what you're actually shopping for. If it's a broad monitoring platform and you're happy to pay for it, Oh Dear is a great tool and an honest recommendation. If it's specifically "never let a domain or certificate expire," ideally starting free, that's the exact problem DomainChest is built around.
You can try DomainChest's angle in seconds without an account: run any domain through our domain expiry checker or a certificate through the SSL checker. For the wider field, see our roundup of the best domain and SSL expiry monitoring tools.
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