Life Alert Alternatives

Life Alert is arguably the most famous medical alert system on the market—and also the most expensive. Bay Alarm Medical is our favorite alternative to Life Alert, because you get the same medical alert devices and quality service without exorbitant fees, long-term contracts, or confusing sales tactics. But if you’re looking for something specific, try one of our other recommended brands.

Buying all of Life Alert’s devices costs $198 up front and nearly $90 per month. If you buy the same types of devices from Bay Alarm Medical, you’ll pay $79 up front and nearly $50 per month.

That’s a savings of $119 up front and $40 per month by choosing Bay Alarm Medical instead of Life Alert.

Learn more in our full Bay Alarm Medical review or take a closer look at Bay Alarm Medical vs. Life Alert.

With Life Alert’s GPS pendant, only the monitoring center knows where you are when you ask for help. In contrast, Medical Guardian gives caregivers the ability to see where you are through a mobile app. But Medical Guardian understands that your privacy is still important—caregivers don't get real-time location updates unless you press the help button.

Medical Guardian's prices technically start at $29.95/mo., but that's an in-home price. Medical Guardian's GPS trackers start at $39.95 a month. This medical alert company doesn't offer a free lease option right now for on-the-go systems, so expect to pay about $125 to $200 for equipment.

That's still more affordable than Life Alert's various activation fees and equipment fees, especially when you consider that Life Alert's mobile device must be bundled with the in-home base station. You'd easily pay about $200 in activation fees and about $70 in monthly fees for a GPS device from Life Alert.

Learn more in our full Medical Alert review or take a closer look at Medical Guardian vs. Life Alert.

The MobileHelp Classic is an in-home medical alert system that connects to a cellular network, so you don’t need a landline to use it. Just like Life Alert’s basic in-home system, it includes a base station and a pendant.

MobileHelp charges around $50 for activating the system, but monitoring costs around $20 a month. Life Alert’s pendant-only system costs $96 upfront and nearly $50 a month, so you save $30 each month by choosing MobileHelp.

Plus, MobileHelp sends you a free lockbox with your purchase, giving you even more bang for your buck.

If you want to add a waterproof wall button to keep in the shower, your monthly MobileHelp bill increases by about $3 per month (total of $23/month). Life Alert charges an astonishing $20 extra for a shower button, bringing the total up to almost $70/month.

MobileHelp has plenty of additional devices and services that you can add to your system, so the total price can get expensive. But no matter how much you pay with MobileHelp, its overall value is much better than Life Alert’s.

Learn more in our full MobileHelp review, or check out other affordable medical alerts.

LifeFone's monthly monitoring starts at $30 per month, and if you don't choose any extra accessories, you'll pay $0 for LifeFone equipment. But LifeFone offers several upgrades that can land you between $65 and $83 per month.

Without upgrades, you'll save around $20 per month with LifeFone versus Life Alert. You save on equipment costs, too. Life Alert's lowest equipment price is $95—you can get LifeFone equipment for nothing. The only up-front fee you need to pay is shipping, starting around $17 for standard ground shipping.

Plus, included with every LifeFone system you get a free lifetime warranty, free low-battery button replacements, and free spouse coverage. And, LifeFone has been in business for 47 years—3 years longer than Life Alert.³ 

Learn more in our full LifeFone review.

Like Life Alert, Medical Alert charges some up-front fees but loans out its devices for free. Expect to pay $79 for activation programming and if you opt to pay monthly, you'll also have to cover shipping costs.

The mobile system—that gives you coverage at home and around town—costs $39.95 a month if you can pay for a full year in advance. If you want to pay monthly, that price jumps to $47.95, but you can pay for six months at a time for $44.95 a month. Unfortunately, fall detection is the industry standard extra $10 per month, but it's more than worth it for Medical Alert's three-sensor fall detection.

If you don’t want a mobile system, you can get Medical Alert's landline in-home system for just $19.95 per month (paid annually) or $27.95 if you pay monthly. Depending on the type of system and how you pay, you can save between $30 and $10 per month with Medical Alert, compared to Life Alert. But if you add fall detection, your base price goes up $10 per month—that extra cost gets you fall protection that Life Alert doesn't even offer. 

Medical Alert offers a top-tier fall detection device with some of the best sensors and a track record of accuracy. But there are more affordable options available from other brands, including some non-wearable solutions.

Learn more in our full Medical Alert review.

We struggle to recommend Life Alert because it’s so much more expensive than higher-quality alternatives. Regardless of why you’re drawn to Life Alert, there’s a more affordable option:

• Bay Alarm Medical for a three-in-one bundle
• Medical Guardian for GPS tracking
• MobileHelp for the best deal
• LifeFone for industry stability
• Medical Alert for fall detection

We began our search for the best Life Alert alternatives by identifying Life Alert’s main features and strengths: a solid reputation, fast response to calls, a waterproof wall button with two-way talk, and a long battery life. 

We then identified other brands that provide the same (or very similar) products and services at a more affordable price or with extra features like automatic fall detection or a caregiver app. We evaluated the quality of those brands by testing products hands-on, reading customer testimonials, and leaning on our overall editorial experience in the medical alert field. To learn more about what we consider when recommending medical alerts, read the methodology section of our Best Medical Alerts page.

• Types of Medical Alert Systems and How They Work
• How to Talk to Your Parents about a Medical Alert System
• How to Choose a Medical Alert System
• Are Medical Alert Systems Covered by Medicare?
• How Smart Home Tech Can Help Older Adults

1. Better Business Bureau, “Bay Alarm Medical.” Accessed July 31, 2023.
2. Better Business Bureau, “Life Alert Emergency Reseponse, Inc.” Accessed July 31,2023.
3. Better Business Bureau, “Lifeline.” Accessed July 31, 2023.