ntfy
Open-source push notification service via simple HTTP PUT/POST requests
About ntfy
ntfy (pronounced 'notify') is an open-source HTTP-based pub-sub notification service that lets you send push notifications to your phone or desktop using simple PUT/POST requests. It works across Android, iOS, web, macOS, Windows, and Linux with native apps on all platforms. With ntfy, sending a notification is as simple as a curl command — no signup required for the free tier. It supports message priorities, custom headers, emojis, file attachments, phone calls, email forwarding, and reserved topics. The server can be fully self-hosted via Docker, or you can use the hosted ntfy.sh service with generous free limits and affordable paid plans.
Pros & Cons
Pros
- Dead simple API — one curl command to send a notification
- No signup required for basic free tier usage
- Fully self-hostable with no limits on your own server
- Native apps on every major platform (Android, iOS, web, desktop)
- Open-source (Apache 2.0 / GPLv2 dual license)
- Excellent documentation and responsive community support
Cons
- Free hosted tier has limited message volume
- iOS app requires Apple Push Notification service (limits self-hosting slightly)
- No built-in message encryption (must implement client-side)
- Topic names are public by default on the hosted server
- UI is functional but minimal compared to commercial notification platforms
Key Features
Simple HTTP API
Send notifications with a single curl command via PUT or POST — no SDK or complex setup required
Cross-Platform Apps
Native apps for Android, iOS, web, macOS, Windows, and Linux with push notification support
Message Priorities
Set urgency levels from min to max priority to distinguish critical alerts from routine notifications
File Attachments
Attach files to notifications with sizes up to 1 GB on Business plan
Phone Calls & Email
Trigger actual phone calls and email notifications in addition to push notifications
Reserved Topics
Claim dedicated topic channels that only you can publish to, preventing conflicts
Self-Hosting
Deploy your own ntfy server via Docker with unlimited messages, no rate limits, and full control
UnifiedPush Support
Acts as a UnifiedPush distributor for privacy-focused Android notification delivery without Google services
Pricing
- No signup required
- Basic message limits
- Push notifications to all platforms
- Self-hosting available (unlimited)
- 2,500 daily messages
- 3 reserved topics
- 3 phone calls
- 50 daily emails
- 25 MB per attachment
- 20,000 daily messages
- 10 reserved topics
- 20 phone calls
- 250 daily emails
- 250 MB per attachment
- Email support
- 50,000 daily messages
- 50 reserved topics
- 50 phone calls
- 500 daily emails
- 1 GB per attachment
- Email and chat support
Featured In
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ntfy is the best notification tool for developers who need a simple, scriptable, zero-friction push mechanism for internal tooling and DevOps alerts. It’s not a replacement for a full notification infrastructure platform.
Self-Hosted Tools That Actually Run on a $5 VPS (2026)
The lightest tool on this list at 5MB idle — essential infrastructure for any self-hosted setup that needs push notifications without third-party services.