Push notifications with the webhook layer included.
Pushover has been delivering push reliably for over a decade, and its outbound API is as simple as they come. Pocket Alert covers the same ground and adds what sits around it: an inbound webhook endpoint per source, a log of every call that arrives, scheduled delivery, and action buttons on the notification itself.
What Pushover does not cover
Pushover does one job well. These are the jobs it leaves to you.
No inbound webhook URLs
Pushover speaks outbound only. Anything that just emits webhooks needs a script or a third-party bridge in between.
Nothing to debug with
When an alert never arrives, there is nothing to inspect. No record of the call, the payload, or why it failed.
History is per device
Messages live on each device separately and are not viewable on the website, so history depends on the phone in your hand.
No scheduling
A message sends the moment you call the API. Delivering it at 9am tomorrow means running your own cron.
Pocket Alert vs Pushover, feature by feature
Same delivery job, different amount of plumbing left over.
| Feature | Pocket Alert | Pushover |
|---|---|---|
| Where you use it | ||
| iOS app | ||
| Android app | ||
| Web dashboard | Devices, keys, apps, webhooks | Account, apps, groups; plus a desktop client |
| Chrome extension | Send a link or note to your phone | |
| Command-line tool | Official binary for Linux, macOS, Windows | Community scripts only |
| MCP server for AI agents | 10 tools | |
| Sending alerts | ||
| Send via HTTP API | ||
| Inbound webhook URL per source | One URL per service | Outbound API only |
| Payload mapping into the message | %field.path% into title, body and buttons | |
| Scheduled delivery | Up to 30 days, listable and cancellable | |
| Priority levels | Five, silent to critical | Five, -2…2, emergency retries until acknowledged |
| Critical alerts that override Do Not Disturb | On paid plans | iOS Critical Alerts, Android DND override |
| Action buttons on the notification | Up to 3: open, HTTP request, copy | One supplementary URL, no buttons |
| Attachments | Images | Images up to 5 MB |
| Grouping by source | Applications, filtered in the app | Applications and delivery groups |
| Email delivery | E-mail gateway to your devices | |
| SMS or phone-call delivery | ||
| Records and debugging | ||
| Message history | Account-wide, synced to app and web | Per device, not on the website |
| Webhook call log | Headers, payload, rendered message, result | |
| History retention | 7 days free, 365 on the top plan | Whatever the device kept |
| Delivery statistics | Per application and per device | Monthly message counter |
| Account and data | ||
| Content encryption | At rest with a per-account key, secrets redacted | In transit; storage not documented |
| Two-factor authentication | TOTP with recovery codes | |
| Open source or self-hosted | ||
Pushover data from pushover.net and its API documentation, checked August 2026.
What you’ll pay
| Pocket Alert | Pushover | |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | 50 messages a day, no card | 30-day trial, then a purchase per platform |
| Entry paid plan | $6/month — 1,000 messages a day, 5 webhooks | $4.99 once per platform, after a 30-day trial |
| Highest tier | $25/month — unlimited messages, 365-day history | Pushover for Teams, $5 per user / month |
Pocket Alert pricing as of August 2026. Pushover figures from pushover.net/pricing. See full pricing.
Coming from Pushover
Install and get a key
Install the app, sign in, and copy your API key from the dashboard.
Swap the endpoint
Point your existing script at the Pocket Alert endpoint. Same POST, same title and message fields.
Replace the bridges
For services you wired through a third-party bridge, create a webhook instead and map the payload with %field.path%.
Set the levels
Set a default level per webhook so routine events stay quiet and the ones that matter break through.
Questions, answered
Pushover gives you an outbound API: your code makes the request, and everything before that request is your problem. Pocket Alert also gives every webhook its own inbound URL, so a service that only speaks webhooks can be pointed straight at it and the fields mapped with %field.path% placeholders. On top of that it records each incoming call, schedules messages for later, and puts up to three action buttons on the notification.
Pushover stores messages on each device separately, and they are not viewable from the website. Pocket Alert keeps message history on the account, so it is the same list on your phone and in the dashboard, with delivery statistics next to it.
Add send_at with an exact time or delay with a duration to any message. It is stored encrypted until the delivery time, up to 30 days out, and you can list or cancel anything still pending. Pushover has no scheduling — messages send when you make the request.
Pushover is $4.99 once per platform after a 30-day trial, with a 10,000 messages per month allowance; Pushover for Teams is $5 per user per month. Pocket Alert is a subscription: free for 50 messages a day, $6/mo for 1,000 a day, $25/mo for unlimited. For one person sending a handful of alerts, Pushover costs less over time. The subscription buys the webhook layer, the history and the scheduling.
Send your first alert in five minutes.
Point a service at a webhook URL, map the fields, and see every call that arrives.