What is an SSL checker?
An SSL checker connects to a site the way a browser does and reads its certificate: who issued it, which names it covers and when it expires. The certificate is what puts the padlock in the address bar and keeps the connection private.
When a certificate expires or doesn't match the site's name, browsers show a full page warning and most visitors leave.
What does it check?
The certificate's dates and days left, the names it covers, whether the full chain of certificates is sent, which TLS versions the server accepts, and whether plain HTTP sends visitors to HTTPS.
It also looks up when the domain itself expires, because a lapsed domain takes the site and its email down even with a valid certificate.
Common certificate problems
A missing intermediate certificate works in some browsers and fails in others. A certificate for example.com that doesn't cover www.example.com breaks one of the two addresses. Automatic renewal that silently stopped is the most common cause of an expired certificate.
Never miss an expiry
This check shows the state today. Uptime Monitor reads the certificate and the domain on every check and warns you weeks before either expires.