Updated September 30, 2026 · SmartHomeCue Editorial Team
Botslab vs SimpliSafe
Botslab vs SimpliSafe: the differences
| Compare | Botslab ReviewSee alternativesSee alternatives |  SimpliSafe |
|---|---|---|
| Products | Camera, Video doorbell | Alarm, Camera, Video doorbell, Smoke alarmCovers more |
| Professional monitoring | No | YesHas it |
| Money-back period | 30 days | 60 daysHigher |
| Cloud plan per month | €0 | £0.42 |
| Free features | No monthly fee with local storage | live feed and motion alerts |
| Top resolution | 4k | 2k |
| Price | €33.99 | Not confirmed |
| Monitoring per month | €0 | Not confirmed |
| Local storage | Yes | Not confirmed |
| End-to-end encryption | Not confirmed | No |
| Recording retention | Not confirmed | 30 days |
Same on both: Minimum contract (0 months), Installation required (No).
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Key differences
- SimpliSafe scores higher overall: 9.3 vs 9.2.
- Products: only SimpliSafe offers Alarm, Smoke alarm.
- Professional monitoring: only SimpliSafe.
- Support channels: only Botslab offers Email, Community.
- Support channels: only SimpliSafe offers Chat.
- Money-back period is higher at SimpliSafe: 60 days vs 30 days.
- Botslab is available in 1 more country.
- Pricing model: only SimpliSafe offers Monitored.
- Power source: only SimpliSafe offers Wired.
Our verdict on each
Botslab
Botslab suits households that want cameras and a video doorbell recording to local storage, with monthly monitoring listed at €0 and an entry price of €33.99. The trade-off is that professional monitoring is not part of the package, so anyone wanting an alarm watched by a call centre should look elsewhere.
SimpliSafe
SimpliSafe suits homeowners who want a self installed alarm with monitoring they can switch on, and who dislike long contracts. It ranks 1 of 60 brands on contract length, with a contract of 0 months and a cloud plan of £0.42 a month.
Score breakdown
| Area | Botslab | SimpliSafe |
|---|---|---|
| Cost | 9.4HigherMonitoring is €0 and the contract term is 0 months, with entry hardware at €33.99. | 9.2Cloud plan is £0.42 a month and the contract runs 0 months, so the recurring cost sits at the entry price. |
| Offer | 9.1No subscription attaches to local recording, and camera and video doorbell sit in one range at a 4k recording level. | 9.1alarm, camera and video doorbell covers alarm, camera, video doorbell and smoke alarm on one account, with professional monitoring yes. |
| Trust | 9.1Run by Smart Network Co. Limited, with support through email, phone and help centre and a 30 days returns window. | 9.9HigherSimpliSafe Ltd is the named seller, support runs on chat, phone and help centre, and the money back window is 60 days. |
Where each is licensed and available
Additional countries for Botslab: 2. Additional countries for SimpliSafe: 1.
Positions in our rankings
| Ranking | Botslab | SimpliSafe |
|---|---|---|
| Home security cameras | 18 of 75 | 17 of 75 |
| Video doorbells | 15 of 54 | 14 of 54 |
Also worth a look
Schlage has money-back period at 90 days, against 30 days for Botslab and 60 days for SimpliSafe.
Schlage reviewEvery fact side by side
| Fact | Botslab | SimpliSafe |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | Diy | Diy, MonitoredCovers more |
| Power source | Battery, Solar | Battery, Wired, SolarCovers more |
| Ecosystems | Alexa, Google | Alexa, Google |
| Legal entity | Smart Network Co. Limited | SimpliSafe Ltd |
| Support channels | Email, Phone, Help centre, Community | Chat, Phone, Help centre |
Where each stands against the rest
| Fact | Botslab | SimpliSafe | Median |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | €33.99lowest quarter | Not confirmed | €69.99 |
| Monitoring per month | €0at the median | Not confirmed | €0 |
| Minimum contract | 0 monthsat the median | 0 monthsat the median | 0 months |
| Money-back period | 30 daysat the median | 60 dayshighest quarter | 30 days |
| Recording retention | Not confirmed | 30 daysat the median | 30 days |
Median across 65 listed brands.
Pros and cons
Botslab
Pros
- Local storage is included and described as carrying no monthly fee, with monitoring listed at €0.
- The contract term is 0 months, so there is no fixed period to cancel and nothing to renew.
- Power options include battery and solar, so outdoor units are not tied to a mains socket.
Cons
- Professional monitoring is not offered, so alerts are watched by you rather than by a monitoring centre.
- The voice assistant pairing runs to alexa and google, a narrower list than a brand wired into a wider set of ecosystems.
- The range is limited to camera and video doorbell, so anything beyond cameras and a video doorbell has to come from another maker.
SimpliSafe
Pros
- No contract to exit: the contract term is 0 months, ranked 1 of 60 brands on that measure.
- The cloud plan costs £0.42 a month, and live feed and motion alerts stay included at no extra charge.
- Professional monitoring is available on the same platform, so no second supplier is needed.
Cons
- Recording retention is 30 days on the monitored plan, which is short for reviewing past events.
- Smoke alarm and video doorbell sit alongside the alarm in alarm, camera and video doorbell, but Aqara and The Home Security Superstore also add smart locks or personal alarms, giving more device options in the same basket.
- Chat, phone and a help centre make up chat, phone and help centre, with no email or community channel listed.
Who each suits
Botslab
Who it suits
- People who want recordings kept on hardware in the home rather than on a paid cloud feed, since monitoring is listed at €0.
- Renters and homeowners who cannot run cabling: installation is not required and power options include battery and solar.
- Households that use alexa and google for voice control and want cameras and a video doorbell in one range.
Who should look elsewhere
- Anyone shopping purely on entry cost: The Home Security Superstore is listed at $13.95 against the €33.99 Botslab indoor camera.
- Buyers who want to spend more per camera: Aqara is listed at £36.98, above the Botslab entry figure.
- People who want a monitoring centre watching alarms, since Botslab does not offer professional monitoring. Annke is the other brand in this comparison to weigh for that need.
SimpliSafe
Who it suits
- Homeowners who want a self installed system and are happy to add monitoring later, since diy and monitored covers both self install and monitored setups.
- Renters and movers who want to leave without an exit fee, given a contract of 0 months.
- Households that want alarm, camera and video doorbell covered together rather than from separate makers, since alarm, camera and video doorbell sit in one account.
Who should look elsewhere
- Shoppers wanting smart locks or personal alarms, since The Home Security Superstore lists alarm, camera and smart lock.
- Buyers who want end to end encrypted video, since end to end video encryption is not offered.
- People after Aqara's smart home range, since Aqara lists camera, smart lock and smoke alarm.
Current offers
SimpliSafe
Current offer
Free trial
First month of professional monitoring free: 1 month free
with system order, monitoring plan required
Source, checked September 30, 2026
Country by country
| Country | Botslab | SimpliSafe |
|---|---|---|
| Canada | Yes | No |
| United Kingdom | No | Yes |
| United States | Yes | No |
Questions about each
Botslab
How much is a Botslab camera to start with?+
An indoor camera lists at €33.99, and that is the only outlay up front. Monthly monitoring is €0 and the cloud plan month is €0, so nothing is added later. The figure is quoted in euros for the European store.
Is there a monthly cloud fee to pay?+
No charge is attached to local recording: the free tier is described as carrying no monthly fee for local storage, and the cloud plan month is €0. Monitoring is also listed at €0, so a local setup runs without a subscription.
SimpliSafe
What does SimpliSafe cost to run each month?+
The cloud plan is £0.42 a month, and that subscription covers the monitoring service rather than the hardware. You buy the alarm or camera kit separately at checkout. For comparison, monitored alarm systems on the site run a median of €9.38 a month, so the plan charge sits below the category average.
Is there a contract or minimum term with SimpliSafe?+
There is no minimum term, since the contract length is 0 months. That puts SimpliSafe first among 60 brands ranked on contract months. You can stop the plan when you want, and the system keeps working locally as a self install alarm without it.