diff --git a/internal/alerts/alerts.go b/internal/alerts/alerts.go
index a317ad0d2..ae5a39ebe 100644
--- a/internal/alerts/alerts.go
+++ b/internal/alerts/alerts.go
@@ -530,6 +530,8 @@ type Manager struct {
 	// When a host agent is running on a Proxmox node, we prefer the host agent
 	// alerts and suppress the node alerts to avoid duplicate monitoring.
 	hostAgentHostnames map[string]struct{} // Normalized hostnames (lowercase)
+	// License checking for Pro-only alert features
+	hasProFeature func(feature string) bool
 }
 
 type ackRecord struct {
@@ -715,6 +717,14 @@ func NewManager() *Manager {
 	return m
 }
 
+// SetLicenseChecker sets the function used to check Pro license features.
+// This enables gating Pro-only alert features like update alerts.
+func (m *Manager) SetLicenseChecker(checker func(feature string) bool) {
+	m.mu.Lock()
+	defer m.mu.Unlock()
+	m.hasProFeature = checker
+}
+
 // addRecentlyResolvedUnlocked records a resolved alert assuming the caller does not hold m.mu.
 func (m *Manager) addRecentlyResolvedUnlocked(alertID string, resolved *ResolvedAlert) {
 	m.resolvedMutex.Lock()
@@ -4352,8 +4362,20 @@ func (m *Manager) checkDockerContainerImageUpdate(host models.DockerHost, contai
 	// Check if update detection is enabled
 	m.mu.RLock()
 	delayHours := m.config.DockerDefaults.UpdateAlertDelayHours
+	hasProFeature := m.hasProFeature
 	m.mu.RUnlock()
 
+	// Update alerts are a Pro-only feature
+	// Free users still see update badges in the UI, but alerts require Pro
+	if hasProFeature != nil && !hasProFeature("update_alerts") {
+		// Not licensed for update alerts - clear any existing alert and tracking
+		m.clearAlert(alertID)
+		m.mu.Lock()
+		delete(m.dockerUpdateFirstSeen, resourceID)
+		m.mu.Unlock()
+		return
+	}
+
 	// Negative value means disabled
 	if delayHours < 0 {
 		m.clearAlert(alertID)
diff --git a/internal/api/router.go b/internal/api/router.go
index 47053f3fa..91f81a143 100644
--- a/internal/api/router.go
+++ b/internal/api/router.go
@@ -1183,6 +1183,16 @@ func (r *Router) setupRoutes() {
 	r.aiSettingsHandler.SetMetadataProvider(metadataProvider)
 	// Wire license checker for Pro feature gating (AI Patrol, Alert Analysis, Auto-Fix)
 	r.aiSettingsHandler.SetLicenseChecker(r.licenseHandlers.Service())
+	// Wire license checker for alert manager Pro features (Update Alerts)
+	if r.monitor != nil {
+		alertMgr := r.monitor.GetAlertManager()
+		if alertMgr != nil {
+			licSvc := r.licenseHandlers.Service()
+			alertMgr.SetLicenseChecker(func(feature string) bool {
+				return licSvc.HasFeature(feature)
+			})
+		}
+	}
 	r.mux.HandleFunc("/api/settings/ai", RequireAdmin(r.config, RequireScope(config.ScopeSettingsRead, r.aiSettingsHandler.HandleGetAISettings)))
 	r.mux.HandleFunc("/api/settings/ai/update", RequireAdmin(r.config, RequireScope(config.ScopeSettingsWrite, r.aiSettingsHandler.HandleUpdateAISettings)))
 	r.mux.HandleFunc("/api/ai/test", RequireAdmin(r.config, RequireScope(config.ScopeSettingsWrite, r.aiSettingsHandler.HandleTestAIConnection)))
diff --git a/internal/license/features.go b/internal/license/features.go
index 6c7b36e0f..edfc35b9f 100644
--- a/internal/license/features.go
+++ b/internal/license/features.go
@@ -4,12 +4,15 @@ package license
 // Feature constants represent gated features in Pulse Pro.
 // These are embedded in license JWTs and checked at runtime.
 const (
-	// Pro tier features
+	// Pro tier features - AI
 	FeatureAIPatrol     = "ai_patrol"     // Background AI health monitoring
 	FeatureAIAlerts     = "ai_alerts"     // AI analysis when alerts fire
 	FeatureAIAutoFix    = "ai_autofix"    // Automatic remediation
 	FeatureKubernetesAI = "kubernetes_ai" // AI analysis of K8s (NOT basic monitoring)
 
+	// Pro tier features - Monitoring
+	FeatureUpdateAlerts = "update_alerts" // Alerts for pending container/package updates
+
 	// MSP tier features (FUTURE - not in v1 launch)
 	FeatureMultiUser   = "multi_user"   // RBAC - NOT IMPLEMENTED YET
 	FeatureWhiteLabel  = "white_label"  // Custom branding - NOT IMPLEMENTED YET
@@ -39,24 +42,28 @@ var TierFeatures = map[Tier][]string{
 		FeatureAIAlerts,
 		FeatureAIAutoFix,
 		FeatureKubernetesAI,
+		FeatureUpdateAlerts,
 	},
 	TierProAnnual: {
 		FeatureAIPatrol,
 		FeatureAIAlerts,
 		FeatureAIAutoFix,
 		FeatureKubernetesAI,
+		FeatureUpdateAlerts,
 	},
 	TierLifetime: {
 		FeatureAIPatrol,
 		FeatureAIAlerts,
 		FeatureAIAutoFix,
 		FeatureKubernetesAI,
+		FeatureUpdateAlerts,
 	},
 	TierMSP: {
 		FeatureAIPatrol,
 		FeatureAIAlerts,
 		FeatureAIAutoFix,
 		FeatureKubernetesAI,
+		FeatureUpdateAlerts,
 		FeatureUnlimited,
 		// Note: FeatureMultiUser, FeatureWhiteLabel, FeatureMultiTenant
 		// are on the roadmap but NOT included until implemented
@@ -66,6 +73,7 @@ var TierFeatures = map[Tier][]string{
 		FeatureAIAlerts,
 		FeatureAIAutoFix,
 		FeatureKubernetesAI,
+		FeatureUpdateAlerts,
 		FeatureUnlimited,
 		FeatureMultiUser,
 		FeatureWhiteLabel,
@@ -118,6 +126,8 @@ func GetFeatureDisplayName(feature string) string {
 		return "AI Auto-Fix"
 	case FeatureKubernetesAI:
 		return "Kubernetes AI Analysis"
+	case FeatureUpdateAlerts:
+		return "Update Alerts (Container/Package Updates)"
 	case FeatureMultiUser:
 		return "Multi-User / RBAC"
 	case FeatureWhiteLabel: