Bay Alarm Medical vs. Medical Guardian

Cost: the same at home, different on the go

Both companies charge $27.95 a month for a landline home system and $34.95 a month for a cellular home system, and both lease the base unit at no charge as long as you return it when you cancel. Fall detection adds about $10 a month at either company; Bay Alarm’s home fall package also carries a $30 fee for the extra fall button.

The gap opens with mobile devices:

• Bay Alarm Medical charges $34.95 a month for the All-In-One 2 or SOS Micro and $39.95 for the SOS Smartwatch, but you buy the device. List prices are $149 for the mobile units and $199 for the watch, and all three were discounted 20% to 40% during a sale at the time we checked.
• Medical Guardian charges $39.95 a month for the Guardian Flex on an annual plan and $44.95 for the MGMove watch. The Flex lists at $149.95 but was shown as free with a promo code.

Over two years, Bay Alarm’s mobile plan at $34.95 a month plus a discounted device costs about the same as or less than Medical Guardian’s $39.95 Flex with a free device. The smartwatch math favors Bay Alarm on monthly price but requires paying for the watch up front. Promotions at both companies change often, so price your exact setup on the day you order.

Contracts, returns and cancelling

This is the clearest difference between the two. Medical Guardian’s 2026 terms set a three-month minimum on all memberships, renew plans automatically, and charge a $350 one-time fee if a leased device is not returned within 30 days of cancelling, plus a restocking fee up to $50. New purchased devices can be returned within 15 days for a refund, less shipping. Disputes go to binding individual arbitration.

Bay Alarm Medical advertises a 15-day risk-free trial and lists no minimum term on its pricing or cancellation pages. Cancelling takes a phone call, except after a death, which can be handled in the app or online dashboard. Home accounts close once the leased unit is returned and inspected, which Bay Alarm says takes two to three weeks on average; it refunds any service charges billed during that window based on the postmark date. Bay Alarm does not provide return boxes or labels, and wearable buttons only need to go back if you cancel inside the trial.

Billing after cancellation is the most common complaint about both companies, so return equipment with tracking and keep the number until you receive written confirmation that the account is closed.

Devices and features

Both lineups cover the same four needs: a landline home base, a cellular home base, a GPS mobile device and a smartwatch.

• Bay Alarm Medical: SOS Home (landline or 4G LTE cellular), SOS All-In-One 2 (mobile device that pairs with a waterproof wearable button for use at home while charging), SOS Micro (a small wearable with two-way talk and location tracking), and SOS Smartwatch. A caregiver tracking app shows real-time location and low battery alerts on mobile devices.
• Medical Guardian: MGHome Landline and MGHome Cellular, with a help button range up to 1,400 feet and a 32-hour backup battery; Guardian Flex, a GPS pendant worn on the wrist, neck or belt with up to five days of battery; and MGMove, a smartwatch with up to 24 hours of battery. A caregiver app and portal show battery, location and device use.

Bay Alarm also sells bundles that pair a mobile device with a home system, which it says saves $119.40 a year. Neither company claims its fall detection catches every fall; treat it as a backup to pressing the button, not a replacement.

Monitoring and reputation

Both run U.S.-based monitoring around the clock and hold the Five Diamond designation from The Monitoring Association (formerly CSAA), which requires operator training and response standards. Bay Alarm says its centers are in Utah and Idaho and are UL-listed. Medical Guardian says it runs two U.S. centers with more than 550 operators.

Complaint records favor Bay Alarm Medical. Both hold an A+ from the BBB and have been accredited since 2009, but the BBB lists 18 complaints against Bay Alarm Medical in the last three years versus 251 against Medical Guardian. On Trustpilot, Bay Alarm scores 4.8 out of 5 across 2,956 reviews (85% five star), and Medical Guardian scores 4.2 across 1,486 reviews (59% five star, 18% one star). Trustpilot notes Bay Alarm has no recent history of asking for reviews, and both companies are large enough that a few hundred complaints can reflect volume as well as service.

Bay Alarm Medical is part of the Bay Alarm family of companies in Concord, California, alongside its GetSafe home security brand. Medical Guardian is based in Philadelphia and has been in business since 2005.