Your Guide to Finding Professional Home Security Monitoring for Under $20 a Month

With a home security system comes a big question: Do you want to monitor yourself or spend more money hiring a professional monitoring service? A monitoring center can quickly contact the police or fire department if you can’t reach your phone right away, saving you valuable minutes. Some can also use two-way audio and alarms to scare off intruders.

The problem is that these services come at a price and traditionally it is tall one. Long-standing brands like ADT and Frontpoint charge upwards of $50 per month for this type of monitoring. No matter how many times Netflix raises its fees, this security subscription still seems painful for the average homeowner.

But wait: you won’t do that need spend about $50 on professional monitoring, no matter how much the big systems sell their plans for. You can pay much, much less for the right set of cameras or a DIY home security system, without being tied down by a contract. We’ve tested other home security services where you can get monitoring for under $30 or even under $20, getting access to important emergency services for the amount you pay for Netflix. Let’s look at your options.

3 levels of professional home monitoring services

To simplify things, let’s break down professional home monitoring into three different options, from cheapest to most expensive.

24/7 emergency assistance: This is an option that connects your app or device, such as a smart speaker, directly to local emergency services 24/7. However, you have to manually call them. This means you’ll be notified of a possible break-in or other problem, and it will also give you emergency contact options so you don’t have to worry about the details. In some cases, you’ll be connected to an agent who can contact the appropriate authorities on your behalf, depending on your needs. These are usually the most affordable plans.

Professional monitoring from the monitoring center: These are traditional monitoring plans that send an alert to the monitoring service when alarms go off or sensors are triggered. A security guard at the monitoring center reviews the cameras, if necessary, and decides whether to call the authorities or not. These plans often require the purchase of an entire home security system or at least a home hub and one or two sensors.

24/7 live fire monitoring: These are rarer services that promise live guards, meaning guards receive notifications of movement (as opposed to just alarms) or similar signs and spend time monitoring the threat via live camera feeds. These services are usually reserved for pricey subscriptions like Deep Sentinel security cameras, which cost $100 per month to monitor.

4 Best Budget Plans for Professional Home Monitoring

Looking for purchasing options? Let’s take a look at our favorite cheap home security monitoring plans so you can see what’s available at lower prices.

Ring Protect Pro – $20/month

Ring’s Protect Pro tier costs just $20 per month and adds Alarm Professional’s 24/7 monitoring. The Pro plan also adds other features more common in full-home security, including cellular data backup and expanded local storage options (which require a Ring Alarm hub and microSD card). You can also use Eero Secure software to help set up Wi-Fi and internet security.

We often recommend Ring plans to anyone looking to use cloud video storage on their Ring cameras, since even the basic Protect plan adds cloud storage, person and package recognition (another particularly useful feature), and event history, among other options. Keep in mind that you can use the Ring Protect plan for just one Ring camera, but the professional monitoring feature is for your entire Ring Alarm system and may not work without at least a hub and sensor.

Alexa Emergency Assist – $8/month

Alexa Emergency Assistwhich replaced Alexa Guard Plus, is an interesting combination of 24/7 emergency services and professional monitoring — at a very affordable price. For $8 a month ($6 with Amazon Prime, $59 for a year), you can ask any Alexa device or Alexa app for help and be connected to a live person who can ask what’s going on and then call the appropriate emergency services. Your designated emergency contacts are also notified.

This inexpensive option works especially well if you have Amazon-branded security camera by Blink Or Ringwhich can be easily paired with Alexa devices like the Echo Show, which can display live views from the camera. This setup is very affordable and versatile, and is a good choice for a budget security system or a separate system for watching over elderly relatives, etc.

Arlo Secure Plus – $18/month

Arlo offers two tiers of professional service. The first is an $18 plan that offers 24/7 emergency response, along with features like cloud video recording, alarm sound detection, and object detection. However, for full professional monitoring, you can upgrade to the Safe & Secure Pro plan for $25, which adds both monitoring and the “Safe App” suite of features.

Safe App adds features like family alerts and family safety monitoring, one-tap contact with the police or other emergency services, the ability to record audio and video in the event of an emergency, and even accident detection while you’re in your car (assuming you let the app monitor basic phone settings). It’s a pretty complete home security package for $25, perfect for those whose families don’t mind paying a little more while still saving a lot. Keep in mind that you’ll need the full Arlo home system for the monitoring features to work.

SimpliSafe Standard Monitoring – $20/month

The standard SimpliSafe monitoring plan starts at about $20 a month (about 66 cents a day) and adds 24/7 Emergency Dispatch, which is basically another version of emergency contacts. You also get instant emergency messages, the ability to arm your SimpliSafe system, and other perks.

If you want to increase your plan to around $30 per month, you can upgrade to Fast Protect, a plan that includes 24/7 home monitoring. SimpliSafe calls this Live Guard protection, which means their monitoring staff has the ability to interact with people through the cameras and ask what they’re doing or ask for safe words in case of false alarms. You also get unlimited video recording from up to 10 cameras and a lifetime warranty on the system.

Where should security cameras be placed as part of a home monitoring service?

A good monitoring plan uses cameras (and related sensors) placed in strategic locations, but if you’re installing a DIY system, you may wonder where exactly those locations are. Focus on key access points in your home, such as doors and entryways and first-story windows that can be easily accessed. If you’re placing sensors, make sure the security camera views include the sensors and what’s going on around them. Outdoors, security cameras work best near porches and driveways or above backyard doors.

If you need security urgently on a budget, we can also show you how to turn an old smartphone into a security camera, although you won’t get any professional monitoring options. And as for professionals looking through your cameras, you may want to read up on how legal it is to record video or audio in your home.