Frontpoint vs Ring Alarm: What You Pay for Monitoring

How much do Frontpoint and Ring Alarm cost?

All prices are as of October 2026, from each company's own pages.

Frontpoint's monitoring page shows day rates labeled "as low as" ($1.65 per day for Ultimate, $1.48 for Interactive), while its offer terms state the regular monthly prices above. It was also running a $24.99 per month Ultimate rate with one free month for new telesales customers who sign a 36-month Ultimate contract, valid through November 5, 2026. The offer page does not say how long the $24.99 rate lasts, so we do not build a three-year total on it.

Ring Alarm hardware works without a plan, but the professional monitoring tier is Ring Pro. Without a plan, Ring says you control Device Modes from the Alarm Keypad, and arming and disarming from the Ring app needs a Ring Protect subscription. For a tier-by-tier breakdown of Ring's plans and add-ons, see Ring monitoring cost. Frontpoint's packages and fees are covered in our Frontpoint cost guide.

What is the yearly and three-year cost of each?

Our arithmetic on the published prices, using each brand's starter equipment and its alarm monitoring tier:

If Frontpoint's $24.99 Ultimate promotion held for the full term with one free month, the Total system would come to about $1,143.65 over 36 months ($269 + 35 x $24.99), still above Ring's monthly path. The offer page does not state that it holds, so ask before signing.

The gap is mostly monitoring. Ring Pro costs less than half of Frontpoint's regular Interactive rate. Frontpoint's lower kit prices narrow the upfront difference but do not close it over a contract term. For how both sit against the wider market, see home security cost per month.

What does Frontpoint offer that Ring does not?

Warranty. Frontpoint publishes a 3-year limited equipment warranty for active customers in good standing. Ring publishes a 1-year manufacturer's warranty, with extended coverage on eligible devices while you subscribe to Ring Multi or Ring Pro (in the US, provided as a service contract administered by Allstate Protection Plans, per Ring's plan footnotes).

Monitoring details. Frontpoint says its agents are North America-based, that it uses the Alarm Validation Scoring Standard (AVS-01) to verify intrusion alarms, and that both monitored plans include fire, carbon monoxide and flood monitoring, hourly system checks, 24-hour battery backup and a crash-and-smash feature. Ring states it does not own its monitoring center; Ring Pro includes smoke and CO monitoring, which is a $5 per month add-on on lower plans.

Video. Ring Pro includes up to 180 days of video event history, smart alerts, video descriptions and Familiar Faces (some features are not available in Illinois, and Familiar Faces is also excluded in Texas and Portland, Oregon). Frontpoint's Ultimate plan adds live and recorded video with video analytics; Interactive excludes video.

Trial. Frontpoint offers a 30-day risk-free trial with a full refund on the complete system; late or incomplete returns can carry a restocking fee of up to $150. Ring starts a 30-day free trial of Ring Protect when you set up a device.

Ring's contract-free model also matters if you rent or may move: there is nothing to buy out. The same tradeoff shows up in our SimpliSafe vs Ring Alarm comparison, and our Frontpoint vs SimpliSafe guide covers Frontpoint against the other big no-contract brand.

Which one should you pick?

Of the two, by published pricing and terms as of October 2026:

• Pick Ring Alarm if price and flexibility matter most. Its professional monitoring tier costs $19.99 per month with no contract, and it bundles long video history if you also own Ring cameras or doorbells.
• Pick Frontpoint if you value a longer equipment warranty and fire, CO and flood monitoring on both of its monitored plans, and you are certain you will keep the system for 36 months. Get the promotional monitoring rate and its duration in writing.

Both are self-install systems. If you would rather compare professionally installed options against these two, the quote funnel requests real monitored-security quotes for your home.