PHPGuard vs. the alternatives
Most teams monitoring a PHP app on their own server end up combining an uptime pinger, a security plugin and a few cron scripts. Here is what each one covers, and where PHPGuard fits.
| PHPGuard | Wordfence | UptimeRobot | DIY cron scripts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Built for | PHP / Laravel apps on your own VPS | WordPress sites | Any website or port | Whatever you write |
| Runs inside your server | Yes (lightweight agent) | Yes (WordPress plugin) | No (external checks only) | Yes |
| Uptime & response time | Yes | No | Yes (its main job) | If you build it |
| SSL expiry, security headers, exposed .env / .git | Yes | No | SSL expiry only | If you build it |
| APP_DEBUG, .env permissions, PHP end-of-life | Yes | No | No | If you build it |
| Queue worker heartbeat & backup freshness | Yes | No | No | If you build it |
| Composer dependency CVE audit | Yes, daily | No | No | If you build it |
| Webshell / malware scanning | Yes | Yes (WordPress files) | No | If you build it |
| Alerts when the monitor itself goes silent | Yes | No | n/a | Rarely |
| Public status page | Yes, with embeddable badge | No | Yes | No |
| Setup | One agent + token | Install plugin | Add a URL | Write and maintain scripts |
Based on each product's publicly documented core features. Competing products change; check their sites for the current picture.
Where the others are the better choice
- • Wordfence — if you run WordPress: it has a WordPress firewall and login protection that PHPGuard does not.
- • UptimeRobot — if you only need to know a URL, port or keyword is up, including non-PHP services.
- • DIY scripts — if you want full control and have the time to maintain them.
Where PHPGuard fits
You run Laravel or other PHP apps on your own VPS and want one place that checks both from the outside
(SSL, headers, exposed files, uptime) and from the inside (APP_DEBUG, dependencies, webshells, queues, backups),
with email alerts and a flat price: €19/month for unlimited servers, after a 14-day free trial with no card.
No signup required.