Certbot vs Certify The Web

Certbot is free, open-source software from the Electronic Frontier Foundation for enabling HTTPS on websites that administrators manage themselves. It obtains Let’s Encrypt certificates and can install them on a web server automatically in many cases. The command-line tool names Apache and Nginx integrations, along with webroot and standalone methods. DNS validation avoids requiring an inbound connection from Let’s Encrypt, so it does not depend on an existing HTTP site or an open port 80. Certbot renews certificates when less than one-third of their lifetime remains; for certificates lasting 10 days or less, renewal occurs when half their lifetime remains. It is generally run on a Unix-like server, often remotely over SSH, and is intended for administrators comfortable with command-line work on a dedicated server, VPS or cloud-hosted server. The project points users to its documentation and the Let’s Encrypt community forum for help.

Certify The Web provides products for requesting, deploying, and renewing TLS certificates. Certificate Manager is intended for Windows servers or desktops, Management Agent for headless Linux and macOS systems, and Management Hub for central administration of multiple instances. The tools support ACME authorities including Let's Encrypt, Google Trust Services, ZeroSSL, Actalis, and private or enterprise CAs. Domain checks can use HTTP or DNS, with options ranging from built-in providers and Certify DNS to manual TXT records or custom scripts. Deployment tasks cover IIS, Apache, nginx, Tomcat, Exchange, ADFS, RDP, Azure App Service, Azure Key Vault, HashiCorp Vault, and IIS Centralized Certificate Store. Other deployments can use scripts, webhooks, SSH/SFTP, or UNC shares. Hub offers a web interface, API, role-based access, managed DNS challenges, and certificate monitoring across instances. A free evaluation has no feature limits or time limit. Cloud-managed licensing starts at $4.99 a month per install; other plans have annual or longer billing terms. Licenses do not bypass certificate authority rate limits.