A Google Alerts alternative that answers the question
Google Alerts is free and simple: enter a topic, get an email when new results for it show up in Google Search. Monitor Agent is for when you want the answer instead of the results — a short, sourced summary of what’s new, and silence when nothing is.
Results for a topic aren’t an answer
An alert on a topic sends you what matched it: the outlets that ran the story, the pages that used the words. That’s useful for tracking mentions. It’s tiring when what you wanted to know was simpler — did the rate change, did they announce a date, is there anything new since yesterday — and you still have to open the links to find out.
How it works
Write a question, not a keyword
“Did the Fed signal a rate change this week?” works better than a keyword, because the AI checks what it finds against what you actually asked.
Pick a schedule and channels
Daily, weekly or monthly on Pro, or every 4 hours on Max. Alerts arrive by email, mobile push or Telegram.
Get the answer and the sources
A short summary of what’s new, with links to the originals. Coverage of something it already told you doesn’t come back as a new alert.
Prompts people use
- “Federal Reserve: did the Fed change rates or signal a change this week? Answer in two sentences.”
- “FDA: did it approve or reject any GLP-1 drugs this week? Give drug, company and date.”
- “Acme Robotics: any new press coverage, funding news or lawsuits this week? Skip our own press releases.”
- “New York rent rules: any new bills passed or court rulings this week?”
When each one is the right tool
Google Alerts is the better fit when you want every mention of a name, want it free, or want results as they’re found or in an RSS reader. Monitor Agent is the better fit when you want a question kept answered: it reads the past week of web coverage on your schedule, compares it with what it already told you, and writes back only when something changed. Plenty of people use both — Alerts for raw mentions, Monitor Agent for the few topics where they need the answer.
Frequently asked questions
Is Google Alerts free?
Yes. Google Alerts is free and can send alerts to any email address, even without a Google account. Monitor Agent is a paid product, with a 7-day free trial on Pro and no credit card.
What’s the main difference?
Google Alerts emails you when new results for a topic appear in Google Search. Monitor Agent treats your prompt as a question: it searches the web, reads the results, and sends a short, sourced answer only when there’s something new compared with what it already told you.
Can I get alerts somewhere other than email?
Google Alerts delivers by email or as an RSS feed. Monitor Agent delivers by email, mobile push and Telegram, with no RSS feed.
How often does each one check?
Google Alerts offers “As-it-happens”, “At most once a day” and “At most once a week”. Monitor Agent checks every 4 hours (Max, $19.99/mo, up to 2 monitors), daily, weekly or monthly. If you want results the moment they’re found, Google Alerts’ as-it-happens option is the closer fit.
What does Monitor Agent cost?
Pro is $9.99/mo for 5 monitors with daily checks. Max is $19.99/mo for 10 monitors. One monitor is one question you want kept answered, so most people move over only the handful of alerts they actually read.
Stop watching. Get notified.
Describe what you want to track in plain English, pick a schedule, and let the AI report back only when something actually changed.
Google Alerts details verified September 26, 2026 against Google’s Alerts help page and the settings on google.com/alerts. Products change — check their site for current behaviour.