SSL certificate expiry monitoring

SSL certificate expiry monitoring that checks the clock so a site doesn't stop working

A certificate expiring doesn't send a warning of its own — the first sign is usually a browser trust error a customer sees before you do. SSL certificate expiry monitoring checks each certificate's real expiry directly and warns well before it becomes an outage.

Why a certificate expiring becomes an outage

An SSL certificate has no grace period. A domain that lapses can sometimes be recovered in a redemption window; a certificate that expires simply stops being trusted, the instant the clock passes zero. Browsers show a warning, API clients refuse the connection, and anything automated that talks to the site over HTTPS fails outright. There's no partial degradation to notice first.

The dates are also easy to lose track of because they're short and they move. Most certificates last 90 days to a year, renew through a different flow than the domain they sit on, and can be reissued early for reasons that have nothing to do with the original expiry date. A note made in a calendar when the certificate was first issued is often wrong by the time it matters.

What SSL certificate expiry monitoring should do

The details that separate a real safety net from a date typed in once and forgotten.

Check the real certificate, not a note about it

A TLS handshake against the live certificate finds the actual expiry date, including one that moved because the certificate was reissued.

Check on a schedule, not on request

A one-off check answers today's question. A daily check catches a certificate reissued next month with a different date.

Cover every certificate, not just the main domain

Subdomains, internal tools, and client sites each carry their own certificate and their own expiry date.

Warn well before expiry, not on the day

Renewing takes time — a warning that arrives with only hours to spare doesn't leave room to act.

The alert isn't locked behind a plan

The one check that prevents an outage shouldn't be the feature reserved for whoever pays the most.

Fits next to everything else expiring

A certificate rarely expires in isolation from the domain, licences, and contracts around it — one list beats a separate tool per category.

How RenewKeeper monitors SSL certificates

✓Checks the real certificate

Add a certificate and RenewKeeper opens a native TLS connection to it and stores the actual expiry date, not a manually typed one.

✓Checks daily

SSL items re-check every day, so a certificate renewed or reissued early updates the countdown automatically.

✓Covers every certificate

Add as many certificates as needed across Spaces — one per client, one per environment — each checked independently.

✓Warns ahead of expiry

Alerts and the weekly digest are included on every plan, so the warning arrives with time to actually renew.

✓Never paywalled

Live checks and alerts for SSL certificates run on Free, Pro, and Teams alike.

✓Sits next to everything else

SSL certificate is one of ten built-in categories, alongside domains, licences, and contracts in the same Space.

Who this is for

Developers & sysadmins

Anyone who's been paged for a certificate that expired quietly over a weekend.

Agencies managing client sites

One Space per client keeps each site's certificates separate while still giving the team full visibility.

IT & ops teams

Infrastructure renewals tracked alongside the domains and licences that keep it running, with alerts that can reach Slack.

Common questions

What is SSL certificate expiry monitoring?

It's a check, run on a schedule, of a certificate's actual expiry date, paired with a warning sent before that date arrives, so a certificate lapsing is caught in advance instead of discovered as a live outage.

How does it find the certificate's expiry date?

By opening a real TLS connection to the certificate, the same way a browser does, and reading its actual expiry — not by relying on a date entered manually, which can drift out of sync if the certificate is reissued.

How often is a certificate checked?

Every day, so a certificate renewed early or reissued through a different process is picked up automatically without anyone updating a date by hand.

Does this replace a certificate manager or ACME automation?

No. Tools like automated ACME renewal handle getting a new certificate issued; SSL certificate expiry monitoring is the independent check that confirms it actually happened, which matters most exactly when the automation is the thing that quietly failed.

Is SSL certificate expiry monitoring free?

RenewKeeper's free plan checks certificates automatically and sends alerts on every plan, including Free, for up to 10 items in one Space, with no card required.

Start monitoring SSL certificates for free.

10 items, 1 Space, no card required. Upgrade whenever your list outgrows it.