SimpliSafe vs Ring Alarm: Monitoring Costs, Features and Verdict (2026)

Quick verdict

All prices on this page are from ring.com and simplisafe.com as of September 2026.

Head-to-head comparison

Monitoring plans and cost

This is where most of the difference between the two systems sits.

Ring Alarm plans (Ring Protect)

Ring sells four plans, all as of September 2026:

• Ring Solo ($4.99/mo or $49.99/yr): video recording and smart alerts for one doorbell or camera.
• Ring Multi ($9.99/mo or $99.99/yr): the same for every device at one address, plus extended warranty.
• Ring Pro ($19.99/mo or $199.99/yr): everything in Multi, plus 24/7 Professional Monitoring for Ring Alarm, Video Descriptions, Familiar Faces, Active Warnings, Video Search and SOS Response. Ring's own FAQ recommends Ring Pro for Ring Alarm owners.
• Virtual Security Guard ($99/mo): everything in Pro, plus live video monitoring by trained agents, real-time intruder deterrence and proactive verified dispatch requests.

Add-ons: Smoke & CO monitoring is $5/mo (included in Pro and Virtual Security Guard), and 24/7 continuous recording is $3/mo per camera. Ring notes that it does not own its monitoring center, and that local permit or false alarm fees may apply.

SimpliSafe plans

SimpliSafe prices its plans per day on its site and per month on its support page:

• Self Monitoring with Camera Recordings ($9.99/mo, 33 cents a day): 30 days of recordings for up to 10 cameras. No professional monitoring.
• Standard ($22.99/mo, 76 cents a day): 24/7 police, fire and medical dispatch and built-in network backup, but no camera recordings.
• Core ($32.99/mo, $1.10 a day): Standard plus unlimited camera recording with 30 day storage, priority dispatch requests when your cameras capture a crime in progress, and a lifetime hardware warranty. SimpliSafe calls it its most popular plan.
• Pro ($49.99/mo, $1.66 a day): Core plus Active Guard Outdoor Protection from 8pm to 6am, and the Anti-Theft Guarantee (up to $500 toward your insurance deductible after a break-in while armed).
• Pro Plus ($79.99/mo, $2.66 a day): the same with Active Guard 24/7.

What a year of monitoring costs

Using the prices above (September 2026):

For plain 24/7 monitoring with video recording, Ring costs about half as much per year. SimpliSafe's higher plans buy something Ring charges more for: agents watching your outdoor cameras. Some third-party comparisons still quote older, lower Ring monitoring prices, so check ring.com before you budget.

Sensors and equipment

Ring Alarm kits include a Base Station, Keypad, Contact Sensors, a Motion Detector and a Range Extender. As of September 2026, the 8-piece kit is $249.99 on sale (listed as $304.92) and the 14-piece kit is $329.99. Beyond the kit, ring.com lists:

• a Glass Break Sensor 2-Pack with a 25 ft detection range (shown as out of stock on ring.com on September 29, 2026)
• a Panic Button (2nd Gen)
• a Retrofit Alarm Kit that connects up to 8 zones of existing wired contact sensors to Ring Alarm
• Z-Wave devices such as a First Alert smoke and CO alarm (also out of stock on ring.com that day)

Two Ring Alarm accessories are now marked discontinued on ring.com: the Outdoor Contact Sensor and the Ring Alarm Smoke and CO Listener, which listened for your existing smoke or CO alarms (it does not detect smoke itself). If you want smoke and CO coverage on Ring Alarm, check what ring.com has in stock before you buy.

SimpliSafe sells Entry Sensors, a Motion Sensor (90 degree field of view, 35 ft range, designed to tell people from pets), a Glassbreak Sensor, a Temperature Sensor that triggers below 41°F, a Water Sensor, a Panic Button, a Key Fob, a wireless 105 dB siren, a Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Detector and a Smoke & CO Alarm Listener. Its keypad has a hidden panic button. Prebuilt packages range from the Starter (Base Station, Keypad, 3 Entry Sensors, Motion Sensor and yard sign) to the Outdoor Elite package. To compare both brands' water sensors with standalone options and whole-home shutoff valves, see our best water leak detector guide.

Several comparisons in search results say SimpliSafe has glass break sensors and Ring does not. That is out of date: Ring lists a Glass Break Sensor 2-Pack on ring.com, although it was shown as out of stock on September 29, 2026.

Cameras

Ring makes video doorbells, indoor cameras and outdoor cameras. With a Ring plan, they link to Ring Alarm so a camera starts recording when the alarm goes off. With a Ring plan, video history runs up to 180 days. Ring Alarm Pro can also store video locally on a microSD card through Ring Edge (with a Ring Pro plan). See our Ring vs eufy comparison for more on Ring's cameras.

SimpliSafe lists three cameras for its current system:

• Outdoor Camera Series 2: 1080p, 140 degree field of view, 10x digital zoom, spotlight, 90 dB siren, IP65, video encrypted at rest and in transit.
• Video Doorbell Series 2: 2K, powered by your existing doorbell wiring.
• Wireless Indoor Camera: a mechanical privacy shutter and video encryption. With select plans, agents can see and speak to intruders during an alarm.

SimpliSafe's recordings need a plan (Self Monitoring, Core, Pro or Pro Plus) and are kept for 30 days for up to 10 cameras.

Live agent monitoring: Active Guard vs Virtual Security Guard

Both brands now sell a service where agents watch your cameras and intervene before a break-in.

SimpliSafe Active Guard Outdoor Protection works with up to 3 cameras, in any mix of the Outdoor Camera Series 2 and Video Doorbell Series 2. When the system is armed during plan hours and AI flags a person, an agent can review the live feed, speak through the camera, sound the siren or turn on the spotlight, and request priority police dispatch with video evidence. The Outdoor Camera must stay plugged in for the service to work. As of September 2026, it costs $49.99/mo overnight (Pro) or $79.99/mo around the clock (Pro Plus).

Ring Virtual Security Guard ($99/mo as of September 2026) adds live video monitoring by trained agents, real-time intruder deterrence and proactive verified dispatch requests on top of Ring Pro. Ring says an eligible device is required but does not list those devices on its plans page.

If agent-watched outdoor cameras are the main reason you are buying, SimpliSafe is the lower cost way to get them.

Smart home integration

Ring Alarm works best with Alexa. You can say "Alexa, arm Ring" with a Ring plan, and use an Echo as an extra siren. The Base Station links to select Z-Wave, Zigbee and Wi-Fi devices, and Ring Alarm Pro doubles as an eero Wi-Fi 6 router covering up to 1,500 sq ft. See our Alexa smart home devices guide.

SimpliSafe lets you arm with Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant and works with August smart locks, which can lock or unlock when you arm or disarm. It also sells its own Smart Lock.

Privacy

SimpliSafe says it will not share camera footage with law enforcement unless required by law, such as a warrant or court order. Agents only see video during an active alarm, or when unusual outdoor activity is detected on plans with Active Guard. Automatic face matching is not available in Illinois, Texas or Portland, Oregon.

Ring runs Community Requests in its Neighbors app. Local public safety agencies can ask people in an area to share footage for an investigation. Sharing is voluntary and nothing is shared automatically, but if you do share, your home address and account email go to the investigator with the video, and a shared video cannot be retracted. Ring also responds to legally binding demands such as warrants and publishes transparency reports. Ring offers optional end-to-end video encryption, and some features, including Familiar Faces, are not available in Illinois, Texas or Portland, Oregon.

Who should buy which

• Buy Ring Alarm if you want the lowest cost for 24/7 professional monitoring, already own Ring doorbells or cameras, use Alexa, or want Z-Wave devices and a built-in router. Pay annually for Ring Pro to get the lowest price.
• Buy SimpliSafe if you want agents watching your outdoor cameras without paying $99/mo, want app control with no subscription, prefer Google Assistant, or want a lifetime hardware warranty.
• On a tight budget with no monitoring? SimpliSafe without a plan still gives you app arming and live view. Ring Alarm without a plan is armed from the keypad.
• Comparing more options? See SimpliSafe vs ADT compared, SimpliSafe vs Vivint, SimpliSafe alternatives, Ring doorbell alternatives and our best home security systems guide.

What we don't know

• SimpliSafe package prices. SimpliSafe loads package prices in the browser at checkout and runs frequent promotions, so we could not read a fixed price from its product pages on September 29, 2026.
• Which cameras work with Ring Virtual Security Guard. Ring says an eligible device is required but does not list them on its plans page.
• Ring's backup internet data price. Ring's plans page lists extra data at $1 per GB and its alarm page lists $3 per GB. We could not confirm which is current.
• Ring accessory stock. On September 29, 2026 ring.com showed the Glass Break Sensor 2-Pack and the First Alert Z-Wave smoke and CO alarm as out of stock, and the Outdoor Contact Sensor and Smoke and CO Listener as discontinued. We do not know if or when the out of stock items return.
• Real-world reliability and response times. We found no independent data comparing how often each system fails or how fast each monitoring center responds.

How this page was put together

We did not physically test either system. This comparison is based on:

• Plan pages, product pages and FAQs on ring.com and simplisafe.com, checked September 29, 2026
• SimpliSafe's support article on residential monitoring plans (updated June 29, 2026)
• Ring's help articles on Community Requests and end-to-end encryption

Prices are the prices shown on that date. Ring kit prices were marked down from a higher list price that day, and both brands change prices often.