> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.overwatchapp.dev/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.
# Alert channels: get notified when your monitors change
> Alert channels define where Overwatch sends notifications. Connect Slack, Discord, Teams, email, or a webhook and bind channels to any monitor you run.
Alert channels are the destinations Overwatch notifies whenever a monitor changes state. A channel fires once per status transition — for example, when a monitor goes from `up` to `down`, or when a TLS certificate moves to `expiring_soon` — so you get a signal at the moment something changes, not on every check run. You create channels independently of monitors, then attach one or more channels to each monitor you want covered.
## Supported channel types
| Type | Description |
| ----------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Slack** | Post to a Slack channel via an incoming webhook URL. |
| **Discord** | Post to a Discord channel via a Discord webhook URL. |
| **Teams** | Post to a Microsoft Teams channel via a connector webhook URL. |
| **Email** | Deliver an alert email to any address. |
| **Webhook** | Send an HTTP POST to any endpoint you control. Supports an optional HMAC secret for request verification. |
PagerDuty and SMS are not yet supported. They are listed as coming soon on the integrations page.
## Set up guides
Configure webhook-based channels for Slack, Discord, and Microsoft Teams.
Send alerts to an email address or any HTTP endpoint you control.
## Plan limits
The number of alert channels you can create depends on your plan.
| Plan | Alert channels |
| ---------- | -------------- |
| Starter | 1 |
| Pro | 5 |
| Enterprise | Unlimited |
If you reach your plan's limit, the API returns a `422` response with `"upgrade": true`. Upgrade your plan under **Settings → Plan** to add more channels.
## Creating an alert channel
Send a `POST` request to `/api/v1/alerts` with a `name`, `type`, and `config` object.
```bash theme={null}
curl -X POST https://overwatchapp.dev/api/v1/alerts \
-H "Authorization: Bearer ow_live_sk_" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{
"name": "Engineering Slack",
"type": "SLACK",
"config": {
"webhookUrl": "https://hooks.slack.com/services/T00000000/B00000000/XXXXXXXX"
}
}'
```
A successful response returns `201` with the created channel object:
```json theme={null}
{
"data": {
"id": "3b6e1f2a-...",
"name": "Engineering Slack",
"type": "SLACK",
"config": { "webhookUrl": "https://hooks.slack.com/services/..." },
"enabled": true,
"createdAt": "2026-04-15T10:00:00.000Z",
"updatedAt": "2026-04-15T10:00:00.000Z"
}
}
```
### Request body fields
A human-readable label for the channel, shown in the dashboard and API responses.
One of `SLACK`, `DISCORD`, `TEAMS`, `EMAIL`, or `WEBHOOK`.
Channel-specific configuration. The required keys vary by type — see the [Slack, Discord & Teams guide](/alerts/slack-discord-teams) and the [Email & webhook guide](/alerts/email-webhook) for the exact shape.
Whether the channel is active. Set to `false` to create a channel without it firing.
## Binding a channel to a monitor
Pass an `alertChannelIds` array when creating or updating a monitor. Every ID in the array must belong to a channel in your organization.
```bash theme={null}
curl -X POST https://overwatchapp.dev/api/v1/monitors \
-H "Authorization: Bearer ow_live_sk_" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{
"name": "api.example.com health",
"type": "HTTP",
"config": { "url": "https://api.example.com/health" },
"alertChannelIds": ["3b6e1f2a-...", "7d9c3e4b-..."]
}'
```
To update the channels attached to an existing monitor, use `PATCH /api/v1/monitors/:id` with the same `alertChannelIds` field. The update replaces the full list of bindings.
You can bind multiple channels to a single monitor — for example, Slack for immediate team visibility and a webhook to trigger a PagerDuty-style workflow.
## Setting organization-level default channels
If you want every new monitor to automatically include a set of alert channels, configure them under **Settings → Organization → Default Channels**. Any channel IDs you add there are applied to new monitors created through the dashboard or via API, unless you explicitly pass a different `alertChannelIds` value.
## Listing alert channels
`GET /api/v1/alerts` returns all channels for your organization, including their monitor bindings.
```bash theme={null}
curl https://overwatchapp.dev/api/v1/alerts \
-H "Authorization: Bearer ow_live_sk_"
```
```json theme={null}
{
"data": [
{
"id": "3b6e1f2a-...",
"name": "Engineering Slack",
"type": "SLACK",
"config": { "webhookUrl": "https://hooks.slack.com/..." },
"enabled": true,
"createdAt": "2026-04-15T10:00:00.000Z",
"updatedAt": "2026-04-15T10:00:00.000Z",
"bindings": [{ "monitorId": "9a1b2c3d-..." }]
}
]
}
```
To retrieve a single channel, use `GET /api/v1/alerts/:id`.
## Deleting an alert channel
```bash theme={null}
curl -X DELETE https://overwatchapp.dev/api/v1/alerts/ \
-H "Authorization: Bearer ow_live_sk_"
```
Deleting a channel removes all its monitor bindings automatically. Monitors that relied solely on the deleted channel will have no alert destination until you attach a new one.
Deletion is permanent. There is no soft-delete or recovery. Make sure no critical monitors depend exclusively on the channel before you delete it.