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How does change detection work?

Site Spy takes snapshots of your watched pages at the interval you set (from minutes to weekly). When changes are detected, a visual diff highlights exactly what changed — green for additions, red for removals. You can browse the full snapshot timeline to compare any two versions.

Is Site Spy free?

Yes. The free plan lets you track up to 2 websites with hourly checks. All notification channels (email, Telegram, push, webhooks) are included free. For more watches, faster check intervals, and features like screenshots, upgrade to the Starter, Pro, or Business plan.

How can I access Site Spy?

The web dashboard works in any browser, including mobile. The browser extension is available for Chrome and Firefox. When signed in, your watches sync across all devices automatically.

Can I track prices or get back-in-stock alerts?

Yes — Site Spy has a monitoring mode that reads a product’s price and availability from the page’s structured data rather than diffing its text, with options for a target price, a percentage threshold, and in-stock-only alerts. See Price & Restock Monitoring.

Can I track specific parts of a page?

That is the normal way to use Site Spy, and it is how a watch gets created. Paste the address, press Find What to Watch, and the page is shown to you as a picture — click the price, the stock line, the heading, or drag a box around an area. Only changes inside it reach you, and you cannot finish creating the watch without choosing. The same picker opens inside the AI Chat, on the live page from the browser extension, and on a watch you already have. See Choosing What to Watch. If you would rather write the selector yourself, the Monitor Only field in Watch Settings takes CSS and XPath — see CSS & XPath Filters for syntax and examples.

What are Smart Filters?

Smart Filters use AI to reduce noise on new watches. They are off by default — nothing is analyzed until you turn them on in settings. Once on, Site Spy reads each new watch after its first snapshot and applies filters that remove timestamps, cookie banners, visitor counters, and other dynamic content, and it can repair a noisy existing watch later on the same switch. This is free and uses a server-side AI model. It never replaces the element you pointed at. See Smart Filters.

What is the AI Chat?

The AI Chat is a conversational assistant that can create watches, check changes, adjust ignore text, trigger text and the check interval, and manage your monitors through natural language. It cannot decide what a watch follows — it opens the picker on the watch card so you point at that yourself. It’s available to all users with daily message limits based on your plan (5/day for anonymous, up to 500/day for Business). See AI Chat.

What are AI change summaries?

Pro and Business plans can enable AI-powered change summaries by adding your own API key (Anthropic Claude, OpenAI GPT, or Google Gemini) in Dashboard Settings > API & Monitoring. Site Spy uses your key to generate plain-language summaries of detected changes. See AI Features.

Can I share a watch with someone?

Yes. Every watch has a share button that generates a link. When someone opens the link, they see the watch configuration and can add it to their own account with one click. See Share Links for details.

What is the MCP integration?

Site Spy provides an MCP server that integrates with AI assistants like Claude Code, Claude Desktop, Codex, OpenCode, Cursor, and other MCP-compatible tools. Your AI assistant can monitor websites, compare snapshots, fetch pages, and summarize changes through Site Spy. The quickest setup, if you use Claude Code:
See the MCP Integration guide for every other client, the full tool list, and plan limits.

What happens if I lose my API key?

If you’re signed in with an account, you can regenerate your API key from the dashboard or extension settings. Your watches are tied to your account and will be migrated to the new key. Site Spy has no anonymous mode — every watch belongs to an account, so a lost key is never a lost watchlist. Regenerate the key and reconnect the extension.

How do I get faster notifications?

All notification channels (email, Telegram, push, webhooks) are available on every plan including Free. To get notified faster, upgrade to Starter for 10-minute checks, or Pro for a 10-minute default plus up to 10 fast watches at 1-minute intervals. Set up your preferred channels on the Notifications page.

What happens if one of my watches stops working?

Site Spy classifies the failure — bot protection, a missing page, a broken filter, a login wall — and shows it as a health badge on the watch. If the failure persists, the owner gets an email explaining what went wrong and what to do about it: after 5 consecutive failed checks on Free, 3 on paid plans, and 2 for site blocking or a broken filter on paid plans. Failures that cannot recover eventually pause the watch, and that pause is emailed too, so a watch never goes quiet without telling you. Health alerts are available on every plan, including Free. See Watch Health & Failure Alerts.

Why can’t I create a watch?

Watch creation requires a verified email address. If you signed up and haven’t clicked the verification link yet, the request is rejected. Resend the link from Settings, then try again. Two other rules can block a URL: the address must be a public http:// or https:// page — LAN addresses, localhost, and internal hostnames are refused — and signups from throwaway email providers are rejected (privacy relays like Proton, SimpleLogin, and DuckDuckGo are fine).

What happens if I don’t verify my email?

Change notifications go to the unverified address for the first 7 days, then stop. An account that is never verified, owns no watches, and has no subscription is deleted after 14 days.

Can I monitor pages that require login?

Yes, with Browser Steps (Pro/Business). Browser Steps automate interactions like filling in login credentials, clicking cookie consent buttons, or navigating through single-page apps before capturing a snapshot.

Can I customize what buttons appear on my watch list?

Yes. Go to Dashboard Settings > Appearance and toggle optional action buttons (Screenshots, RSS feed, Share link, Open site) on or off. Core actions like Recheck, Preview, and Diff are always visible. See Dashboard Settings.

Does Site Spy work on all websites?

Site Spy works on most publicly accessible websites. It cannot monitor:
  • Browser internal pages (chrome://, about:)
  • Content loaded only via JavaScript interactions (e.g., infinite scroll) — unless you use Browser Steps
Pages behind login walls can be monitored with Browser Steps (Pro/Business).

Can I collaborate with my team?

Yes, the Business plan (€99/mo) includes 5 team seats with shared watches and dashboards. You can invite members with Member or Admin roles. Five seats is the maximum — contact support if you need a larger team. See Team Management.

How do I delete my account?

Go to Dashboard Settings > Account and scroll to Delete Account. This permanently removes your account, all watches, and all data. The action cannot be undone.