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Backup · head to head

Amanda Enterprise vs Unitrends Backup

Amanda Enterprise logo

Amanda Enterprise

Backup

Open-source backup trusted by enterprises

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Unitrends Backup logo

Unitrends Backup

Backup

All-in-one backup and recovery appliance

From
$55/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Amanda Enterprise has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Amanda Enterprise minimum 10 workloads required for most use cases; Unitrends Backup pricing is not transparent and requires contacting the company directly for a custom quote
  • They diverge on capability: Amanda Enterprise covers Cross-platform backup, Unitrends Backup covers Predictive analytics.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Amanda Enterprise and Unitrends Backup actually diverge.

Attributes where Amanda Enterprise and Unitrends Backup differ
AttributeAmanda EnterpriseUnitrends Backup
Starting priceFree$55/month
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWindows, Linux, WebOn-premises, Cloud, Hybrid
Founded20051989

Identical on both: pricing model (subscription), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Backup).

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
  • Disk staging
  • Encryption
  • Web-based management
  • Bare metal recovery
  • AWS S3
  • Google Cloud
  • Windows Server

Only in Unitrends Backup

  • Predictive analytics
  • Automated recovery testing
  • Instant recovery
  • Ransomware detection
  • Adaptive deduplication
  • VMware
  • Hyper-V
  • Microsoft 365

Both cover

  • Cloud integration
  • Azure
  • Windows support
  • Linux support
  • Web support

What people use each for

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

Amanda Enterprise

  • Data protection
  • Disaster recovery
  • Business continuity
  • Ransomware protection
  • Compliance

Unitrends Backup

  • Data protection
  • Disaster recovery
  • Business continuity
  • Ransomware protection
  • Compliance

Both are used for data protection, disaster recovery, business continuity, ransomware protection, compliance, on those jobs the choice comes down to price and fit rather than capability.

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

Unitrends Backup

  • Pricing is not transparent and requires contacting the company directly for a custom quote
  • Minimum pricing starts at approximately $995, limiting accessibility for very small deployments
  • Unified pricing approach means less flexibility for scaling individual components

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

Unitrends Backup

$55/month
  • Recovery Series$55/month
    • Predictive analytics
    • Instant recovery
    • Ransomware detection

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 disk staging.
Amanda Enterprise review

Choose Unitrends Backup if

  • You need predictive analytics.
  • You work on On-premises, Cloud, Hybrid.
  • You also want automated recovery testing.
Unitrends Backup review

Questions people ask

Is Amanda Enterprise or Unitrends Backup better?
Neither clearly leads. Amanda Enterprise starts at Free and Unitrends Backup at $55/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Amanda Enterprise or Unitrends Backup?
Amanda Enterprise has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Amanda Enterprise and $55/month for Unitrends Backup.
Does Amanda Enterprise or Unitrends Backup run on more platforms?
Amanda Enterprise runs on Windows, Linux, Web. Unitrends Backup runs on On-premises, Cloud, Hybrid.
Can I use Amanda Enterprise for free?
Yes. Amanda Enterprise has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Unitrends Backup starts at $55/month.
What is Amanda Enterprise best used for?
Amanda Enterprise is most often used for data protection, disaster recovery, business continuity, ransomware protection.
What can Amanda Enterprise do that Unitrends Backup cannot?
Amanda Enterprise covers Cross-platform backup, Disk staging, Encryption, Web-based management. Unitrends Backup covers Predictive analytics, Automated recovery testing, Instant recovery, Ransomware detection. Both handle Cloud integration, Azure, Windows support, Linux support.

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
Unitrends Backup: What does Unitrends Backup include in its pricing?

Unitrends offers all-in-one backup and disaster recovery with a single flat rate including installation, storage, VIP support, and recoveries, plus two DR tests per year and a 5-year warranty.

Source
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
Unitrends Backup: What are Unitrends' key disaster recovery features?

Unitrends provides instant recovery, automated recovery assurance, automatic testing capabilities to measure recovery time and points, ransomware protection with behavioral analysis, and bare metal recovery to dissimilar hardware.

Source
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
Unitrends Backup: How long has Unitrends been in the backup market?

Unitrends was founded in 1989 and has over three decades of experience in backup and disaster recovery solutions, pioneering the first hardware-based backup appliance in 2002.

Source
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