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Backup · head to head

Amanda Enterprise vs Buildah

Amanda Enterprise logo

Amanda Enterprise

Backup

Open-source backup trusted by enterprises

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Buildah logo

Buildah

Cloud

Build OCI container images without a daemon or a Dockerfile

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Amanda Enterprise minimum 10 workloads required for most use cases; Buildah linux only, with no native macOS or Windows support
  • They diverge on capability: Amanda Enterprise covers Cross-platform backup, Buildah covers Daemonless builds.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Amanda Enterprise and Buildah actually diverge.

Attributes where Amanda Enterprise and Buildah differ
AttributeAmanda EnterpriseBuildah
Pricing modelsubscriptionOpen source, no licence fee
PlatformsWindows, Linux, WebLinux
CategoryBackupCloud
Founded2005Unknown

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Amanda Enterprise

  • Cross-platform backup
  • Cloud integration
  • Disk staging
  • Encryption
  • Web-based management
  • Bare metal recovery
  • AWS S3
  • Azure

Only in Buildah

  • Daemonless builds
  • Rootless
  • Dockerfile compatible
  • Scriptable builds

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Amanda Enterprise

  • Data protectionnot Buildah
  • Disaster recoverynot Buildah
  • Business continuitynot Buildah
  • Ransomware protectionnot Buildah
  • Compliancenot Buildah

Buildah

  • Building images in CI without a privileged Docker daemonnot Amanda Enterprise
  • Producing minimal images with tighter layer control than a Dockerfile givesnot Amanda Enterprise
  • Scripted image assembly where a Dockerfile is the wrong abstractionnot Amanda Enterprise

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Amanda Enterprise

  • Minimum 10 workloads required for most use cases
  • Per-device pricing may increase costs for large deployments with many servers
  • Enterprise plan requires contacting sales for custom quotes
  • NAS/File share backups charged separately at $4.99-$5.99/TB/month after first 10 TB free

Buildah

  • Linux only, with no native macOS or Windows support
  • Scriptable builds are powerful but less portable and less familiar than a Dockerfile
  • Narrow by design: it builds images and does not run them, so it needs Podman or another runtime alongside

Pricing, plan by plan

Amanda Enterprise

Free
  • Business$5.99/monthly
    • Linux/Windows backup
    • Database backup
    • M365 backup
  • Business Plus$6.99/monthly
    • Everything in Business plus: 24/7 premium support
    • 10 hours pro services
    • 8 hours training
  • Enterprise$undefined/quote
    • Everything in Business Plus plus: Integrated data resiliency
    • Expert consultation & design
    • Bulk automation scripts

Buildah

Free
  • BuildahFree
    • Full functionality
    • No usage limits
    • Community support

Which should you pick?

Choose Amanda Enterprise if

  • You need cross-platform backup.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Windows, Linux, Web.
  • You also want cloud integration.
Amanda Enterprise review

Choose Buildah if

  • You need daemonless builds.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux.
  • You also want rootless.
Buildah review

Questions people ask

Is Amanda Enterprise or Buildah better?
Neither clearly leads. Amanda Enterprise starts at Free and Buildah at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Amanda Enterprise or Buildah?
Amanda Enterprise starts at Free and Buildah at Free.
Does Amanda Enterprise or Buildah run on more platforms?
Amanda Enterprise runs on Windows, Linux, Web. Buildah runs on Linux.
Can I use Amanda Enterprise for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Amanda Enterprise best used for?
Amanda Enterprise is most often used for data protection, disaster recovery, business continuity, ransomware protection. Of those, data protection and disaster recovery are not what Buildah is typically brought in for.
What can Amanda Enterprise do that Buildah cannot?
Amanda Enterprise covers Cross-platform backup, Cloud integration, Disk staging, Encryption. Buildah covers Daemonless builds, Rootless, Dockerfile compatible, Scriptable builds.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Amanda Enterprise: How much does Zmanda Pro backup software cost?

Zmanda pricing starts at $5.99/month per device for the Business plan and $6.99/month per device for Business Plus with 24/7 support. Enterprise plans are custom-priced. Pricing estimator available at zmanda.com/pricing to calculate costs based on workload count and storage. Source: https://web.archive.org/web/20241128003646/https://www.zmanda.com/pricing/

Source
Buildah: Is Buildah free?

Yes, open source with no licence fee.

Amanda Enterprise: Is Zmanda's licensing model flexible?

Yes, Zmanda's licensing is flexible, you can change your server or client license midway if your backup environment changes and only pay the difference. Additional professional services cost $200/hour for consulting.

Source
Buildah: Do I still need a Dockerfile?

No. Buildah reads Dockerfiles if you have them, but images can be built entirely from shell commands instead.

Amanda Enterprise: What payment options does Zmanda accept?

Zmanda offers multiple payment options including electronic fund transfers (EFTs), wire transfers, and credit card payments with flexible 1-year, 3-year, and 5-year license periods available.

Source
Buildah: How is Buildah different from Podman?

Buildah builds images; Podman runs them. Podman actually embeds Buildah for its build command, and the two are designed to be used together.

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