LastPing vs Sentry Crons — free cron and CI/CD monitoring, no Sentry required
Sentry Crons is a convenient option if you already run Sentry, but it requires a Sentry account, charges ~$0.78/mo per monitor beyond the first, and doesn't monitor CI/CD pipelines. LastPing is a free Sentry Crons alternative — no SDK, no DSN, no Sentry dependency — with unlimited monitors and first-class CI/CD pipeline monitoring built in.
The honest verdict, up front
Sentry Crons makes sense if your team already uses Sentry for error tracking. The SDK integration is tight — a cron failure can surface alongside the error that caused it, in the same interface your team already uses. If you're already paying for Sentry and want cron monitoring in the same place, that bundling has real value.
LastPing is the better pick when you want cron monitoring independent of your error-tracking stack, need CI/CD pipelines covered, or don't want per-monitor fees. LastPing requires no Sentry account, no SDK, and no DSN — your job curls a plain HTTPS URL. CI/CD pipelines (GitHub Actions, GitLab CI, Jenkins) are first-class monitors: one signed webhook, zero YAML changes, catches runs that fail, hang, or never start, with failure detail on the incident. All free, no monitor cap.
The free-tier math
The comparison most people are here for.
Sentry Crons — as of 2026
- 1 cron monitor on the free plan
- ~$0.78/mo per additional monitor (on top of Sentry subscription)
- Requires a Sentry account, SDK, and DSN in your code
- No native CI/CD pipeline monitoring
LastPing — free, full stop
- No monitor cap — unlimited monitors free
- No SDK, no DSN, no Sentry dependency
- CI/CD monitoring: one signed webhook, zero YAML changes
- No paid tier — no card, no trial clock
Feature by feature
Only rows we can stand behind. Where Sentry Crons wins, the table says so.
| Capability | LastPing | Sentry Crons |
|---|---|---|
| Free tier monitor cap | ✓ No cap — unlimited monitors free | ◐ 1 free monitor; ~$0.78/mo per additional |
| Cron / heartbeat monitoring | ✓ Curl a ping URL; cron or simple-interval schedules, grace windows, time zones | ✓ SDK-based check-ins, rich Sentry issue linking |
| Requires existing platform buy-in | ✓ Independent — no account or SDK dependencies | ✗ Requires a Sentry account, SDK installed, and DSN configured |
| CI/CD pipeline monitoring | ✓ Included free — one signed webhook (GitHub Actions, GitLab CI, Jenkins), zero YAML | ✗ Cron/scheduled-task focus; no pipeline webhook signals |
| CI/CD failure-reason detail | ✓ Deep link to the run + optional failing-step log excerpt on the incident, free | ✗ Not applicable — no CI/CD monitoring |
| Agent-first MCP server | ✓ AI agents can create, query, and silence monitors via MCP | ✗ |
| Error tracking integration | ✗ Out of scope — LastPing is monitoring, not error tracking | ✓ Cron failures link directly to Sentry issues |
| HTTP / uptime probing | ✓ Status code, latency, keyword checks | ✗ Cron/job-focused — no HTTP uptime probing |
| Alert channels | ◐ Email, Telegram, Slack, Discord, signed webhook — no SMS/phone | ✓ Sentry notification rules — email, Slack, PagerDuty, and more |
| Teams & multi-user | ✗ Single-user today (top roadmap item) | ✓ Full team support via your Sentry organisation |
| Public status pages | ✓ Public status pages + embeddable badges, free | ✗ |
Sentry's plans and features are theirs to define and change — check sentry.io for current pricing. This table reflects our understanding at the time of writing.
Migrating removes the SDK dependency
Sentry Crons uses its SDK check-in API. LastPing uses a plain curl — no SDK, no DSN, nothing to import.
with sentry_sdk.monitor(monitor_slug="backup"):
run_backup()
# after — LastPing (any language, any runtime)
run_backup()
curl -fsS https://ping.lastping.dev/<id>
Create a monitor in LastPing, set the same schedule and grace period,
and replace the Sentry SDK check-in with a curl at the end of your job.
Signal failure by appending
/fail
to the URL before the job exits with a non-zero code. No DSN, no SDK
import, no Sentry account needed.
Questions people ask
Front-loaded answers — the most important fact first.
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Can I monitor cron jobs without a Sentry account?
Yes. LastPing is an independent cron monitoring tool — no Sentry account, SDK, or DSN required. Your job curls a plain HTTPS ping URL when it finishes. LastPing also monitors CI/CD pipelines (GitHub Actions, GitLab CI, Jenkins) via one signed webhook, catches runs that hang or never start, and is completely free with no monitor cap.
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How much does Sentry Crons cost compared to LastPing?
Sentry Crons includes 1 cron monitor on the free plan, then approximately $0.78/mo per additional monitor (as of 2026), on top of your existing Sentry subscription. LastPing has no per-monitor fee and no paid tier — unlimited monitors are free.
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Does Sentry Crons support CI/CD pipeline monitoring?
No. Sentry Crons monitors cron jobs and scheduled tasks via its SDK check-in API. It does not natively ingest CI/CD pipeline signals (GitHub Actions workflow_run, GitLab pipeline events, Jenkins webhooks). LastPing monitors CI/CD pipelines as first-class monitors: one signed webhook catches runs that fail, hang, or never start with failure detail attached to the incident. GitHub Actions guide →
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When is Sentry Crons the better choice?
If your team already uses Sentry for error tracking and you want cron monitoring in the same platform with the same SDK you already have, Sentry Crons is a convenient option. It integrates cleanly with Sentry issues and release tracking. LastPing is better when you want cron monitoring independent of your error tracking, CI/CD pipeline coverage, and no per-monitor pricing.
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Can I migrate from Sentry Crons to LastPing?
Yes. Instead of calling the Sentry SDK check-in API, your job curls a LastPing ping URL when it finishes. No SDK dependency, no DSN, no Sentry account required. Create a monitor in LastPing, copy the ping URL, and replace your Sentry check-in call.
Cron and CI/CD monitoring. No Sentry required.
One curl for cron jobs, one signed webhook for CI pipelines. No SDK, no DSN, no per-monitor fees, no paid tier.