Need heartbeats without hosting Uptime Kuma?
No Docker box to keep updated.
Uptime Kuma is a widely used self-hosted uptime tool. It also accepts push monitors, which are heartbeats. If you already run Kuma and want everything in one UI, that can be enough. If you only need job heartbeats and do not want to run another box, Ping Clock is the narrower product.
What you run
Uptime Kuma: you host it, update it, back it up, expose it, and keep TLS on it. Ping Clock: we host it. You add a curl line.
Heartbeat features
Kuma push monitors work. Schedules are mostly "expected every N seconds". Ping Clock is built around cron expressions, named time zones, grace, start/success/fail URLs, email-in pings, and run duration on Pro.
When Kuma is the better fit
You already self-host it for HTTP, keyword and Docker checks, and a push monitor is one more tile. Your team is fine being on-call for the monitor itself.
When Ping Clock is the better fit
You want cron-shaped schedules, you do not want to operate Kuma, or you need Slack and email without putting a status dashboard on a VPS you forgot to patch.
FAQ
Can I run both?
Yes. Many teams keep Kuma for HTTP and use Ping Clock for cron and backups.
Is Ping Clock open source?
No. It is a hosted product with a free tier of 20 checks.