How to Use Hexowatch to Check Website Uptime and Visual Changes

Use two separate Hexowatch monitors: an availability monitor to alert when a URL becomes unavailable or returns, and a visual monitor to detect changes in how a page or selected area looks. A visual change alert does not establish that a site is down, and a URL availability check does not prove that checkout, login, scripts, or every visitor journey works.

Choose the monitor for the signal you need

Question	Monitor	What it tells you
Did this page’s appearance change?	Visual	Whether the rendered page or selected screen region looks different.
Did this URL go down and come back?	Availability	Whether the monitored URL is reported unavailable or available again.
Did visible wording change?	Content	Content changes when visual or source-code differences are not the signal you need.
Did a particular value, such as price or stock text, change?	HTML-element	Changes in a selected page element.

For a useful baseline, create distinct monitors for availability and visual changes on important pages. They answer different operational questions and may need different alert handling.

Set up a visual change monitor

In Hexowatch, select the visual monitoring tool.
Enter the page URL and preview the page.
Choose whether to monitor the whole page or a specific selection.
Set the check frequency and choose your notification channel or channels. The walkthrough also describes optional custom start and end dates.
Start monitoring and review the first alerts. If routine changes create noise, narrow the monitored area to a stable, important section and adjust the monitor.

A selected region can be more practical than a full-page capture for pages with rotating promotions, timestamps, recommendations, or other frequently changing content. This is a configuration choice, not a guarantee that all dynamic content will be filtered automatically. Hexowatch’s walkthrough describes choosing the whole page or a specific selection after previewing the loaded page.

Set up an uptime or availability monitor

Create an availability monitor for the URL whose availability matters.
Choose the interval and notification settings offered for your account and plan.
Start the monitor and make sure the alert destination is one your team checks.
When an alert arrives, verify the page from your own network and inspect related services and user journeys before treating the incident as resolved.

Hexowatch describes this monitor as checking a URL for downtime and alerting when a page is unavailable and when it comes back. Treat that as a page-availability signal. The reviewed product information does not establish a service-level agreement, a measured uptime percentage, or comprehensive browser testing of all page functions.

Configure cadence, scope, and alerts

Scope: Use a full-page visual monitor for broad layout changes; select a region when unrelated parts of the page change frequently.
Frequency: Pick a cadence that matches how quickly you need to learn about changes and outages, while checking your plan’s available intervals and check allowance.
Notifications: Select a channel that reaches the person responsible for investigating the alert. API documentation also describes configurable intervals and optional notification integrations; do not assume every integration or interval is available on every plan.
Dates: For visual monitoring, the documented walkthrough mentions optional custom start and end dates if you only need monitoring for a defined period.
Noise control: Review initial visual alerts and refine the monitored scope when normal page updates are obscuring meaningful changes.

At the time of the research, Hexowatch’s pricing page listed Pro at 4,500 checks per month with a 15-minute maximum frequency, Business at 10,000 checks with a 5-minute maximum frequency, and Business+ at 25,000 checks per month. These are vendor-stated plan details that can change. Check the live Hexowatch pricing page for current quotas, intervals, and plan availability before choosing a plan.

Interpret alerts and investigate safely

Availability alert: Open the URL independently and check from another connection or monitoring point if possible. A single page check does not establish the state of every region, authenticated flow, or backend dependency.
Visual alert: Compare the captured page or region with the prior state. Determine whether the change was an intended release, routine content update, third-party widget, or unexpected layout change.
Confirm user impact: For critical paths, separately verify the actions users depend on, such as signing in, submitting a form, or completing checkout.
Reduce repeated noise: If a visual monitor repeatedly flags benign updates, monitor a steadier region or use a content or element monitor if that better matches the question.

Use ScreenshotNeo when you need a screenshot capture

Hexowatch is the monitoring tool in this guide. If you need to capture a page on demand for debugging, documentation, or an agent workflow, ScreenshotNeo is a website screenshot API and MCP server. A screenshot capture is not a replacement for ongoing uptime monitoring.

Or skip the browser setup

Make one request to capture a page as an image. See the ScreenshotNeo API documentation for request options.

curl -G "https://api.screenshotneo.com/v1/shot" -d access_key=YOUR_API_KEY --data-urlencode url=https://stripe.com -o shot.webp

import requests
r = requests.get("https://api.screenshotneo.com/v1/shot", params={"access_key": "YOUR_API_KEY", "url": "https://stripe.com"}, timeout=90)
open("shot.webp", "wb").write(r.content)

const q = new URLSearchParams({ access_key: 'YOUR_API_KEY', url: 'https://stripe.com' });
const res = await fetch(`https://api.screenshotneo.com/v1/shot?${q}`);

Cookie banners are accepted and removed before capture, along with 60+ known consent platforms, newsletter popups, and chat widgets; each step can be turned off.
Bot checks, blank pages, timeouts, failed loads, and cache hits cost nothing; response headers identify the page verdict and billing status.
An MCP server gives AI agents tools to take screenshots, get page information, and capture PDFs.
The free plan includes 1,000 screenshots per month with no card; paid plans start at $5 for 3,000 screenshots.

Troubleshooting

Symptom	Likely cause	What to do
Too many visual alerts	The full page includes content that changes routinely.	Review the diffs and monitor a stable, relevant area. Consider whether content or element monitoring better matches the change you care about.
No visual alert for a change you expected	The chosen region may not include the changed area, or the change may not be visible in the rendered page at check time.	Preview the URL again, confirm the selected scope, and choose a broader region if appropriate.
Availability alert but the page opens for you	The signal may differ by time or access path; your successful visit does not establish universal availability.	Recheck the URL, test from another connection, and inspect logs or dependencies. Treat the monitor as an alert to investigate.
Checks or frequency unavailable	Plan limits and available intervals can differ.	Review current plan terms and adjust cadence or plan as needed.
Alerts are not reaching the right person	The configured channel, integration, or recipient may not match the team’s response process.	Review notification settings and verify that the destination is supported for your plan.

Performance, reliability, and cost considerations

Cadence versus detection delay: More frequent checks can shorten the time before you learn about an issue, but consume checks faster. Match the interval to the impact of delayed detection and available quota.
Visual stability: A smaller stable region can make alerts easier to interpret when the rest of the page changes frequently. It also narrows what the monitor observes.
Availability coverage: A URL check is a useful early warning, not proof that every feature or visitor location is healthy. Pair alerts with checks of critical user journeys when those matter.
Budget: Compare monthly check allowance and maximum frequency with the number of URLs and monitors you need. Recheck the vendor’s current pricing because plan details are volatile.
Evidence limits: The reviewed sources do not establish Hexowatch uptime accuracy, response-time guarantees, or an independent performance benchmark.

Frequently asked questions

Can I monitor only part of a webpage?

Yes. The visual-monitor workflow lets you choose the whole page or a specific selection after previewing the URL.

Does a visual monitor tell me whether my site is down?

No. Use an availability monitor for URL downtime and restoration alerts. Visual monitoring answers whether the rendered appearance changed.

No. It indicates the monitored URL was reported unavailable. Check important workflows separately.

Can I monitor a page that requires JavaScript or a password?

The reviewed FAQ lists these as topics but did not expose answers. Confirm support with Hexowatch before relying on either setup.

How long are captures or monitoring records retained?

The reviewed FAQ listed retention as a question but did not provide an answer. Check current product documentation or ask Hexowatch for the applicable retention details.