File Storage & Backup · head to head
Arq Backup vs Render

Arq Backup
File Storage & Backup
Mac and Windows backup to your own cloud storage
- From
- $50/year
- Rated
- -

Render
Cloud & Infrastructure
A modern cloud platform for the next generation
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Only Render has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
- Each has a real cost: Arq Backup runs on Mac and Windows only; Render the free Hobby workspace is limited to 25 services and 5 GB of bandwidth
- They diverge on capability: Arq Backup covers Client-side encryption, Render covers Web services.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Arq Backup and Render actually diverge.
| Attribute | Arq Backup | Render |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | $50/year | Free |
| Pricing model | subscription | usage-based |
| Free tier | No | Yes |
| Platforms | Windows, Mac | Web, Api |
| Category | File Storage & Backup | Cloud & Infrastructure |
| Founded | 2009 | 2019 |
Identical on both: 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 Arq Backup
- Client-side encryption
- Hourly backups
- Network backup
- Deduplication
- Immutable backups
- Budget controls
- AWS S3
- Google Cloud
Only in Render
- Web services
- Static sites
- Background workers
- Postgres database
- Redis database
- Scheduled jobs
- Environment variables
- Custom domains
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Arq Backup
- Data protectionnot Render
- Disaster recoverynot Render
- Business continuitynot Render
- Ransomware protectionnot Render
- Compliancenot Render
Render
- Deploying web services, static sites and cron jobs from a Git repository without managing serversnot Arq Backup
- Running managed Postgres and Redis alongside application servicesnot Arq Backup
- Preview environments per pull request for small teamsnot Arq Backup
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Arq Backup
- Runs on Mac and Windows only
- Arq 7 is licensed per computer, and continuing to receive updates after the first year costs $25 per year per computer
- Arq Premium covers up to 5 computers, so larger households or teams need more than one subscription
- Arq Premium includes 1TB of storage and charges $0.0059 per GB per month beyond it
Render
- The free Hobby workspace is limited to 25 services and 5 GB of bandwidth
- Every paid plan charges the workspace fee plus compute on top, so $25 per month for Pro is a floor rather than a total
- SAML SSO and SCIM require the Scale plan at $499 per month
- HIPAA-compliant workspaces, inbound IP rules and advanced RBAC roles are Scale plan features
- Organization-level audit logs require Scale; Pro provides only workspace audit logs
- Contractual uptime SLAs, support response SLAs and a technical account manager are Enterprise only, and Enterprise is custom priced with no published rate
- Included bandwidth is 25 GB on Pro and 1 TB on Scale, with usage beyond that billed separately
Pricing, plan by plan
Arq Backup
$50/year- Arq Premium$50/year
- 5 computers
- Arq Cloud storage option
- Email support
Render
Free- FreeFree
- 1 web service
- 1 static site
- Shared CPU
- Starter$7/month
- Unlimited services
- Dedicated CPU
- 2GB RAM
Which should you pick?
Choose Arq Backup if
- You need client-side encryption.
- You work on Windows, Mac.
- You also want hourly backups.
Choose Render if
- You need web services.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, Api.
- You also want static sites.
Questions people ask
- Is Arq Backup or Render better?
- Neither clearly leads. Arq Backup starts at $50/year and Render at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Arq Backup or Render?
- Render has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $50/year for Arq Backup and Free for Render.
- Does Arq Backup or Render run on more platforms?
- Arq Backup runs on Windows, Mac. Render runs on Web, Api.
- Can I use Render for free?
- Yes. Render has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Arq Backup starts at $50/year.
- What is Arq Backup best used for?
- Arq Backup is most often used for data protection, disaster recovery, business continuity, ransomware protection. Of those, data protection and disaster recovery are not what Render is typically brought in for.
- What can Arq Backup do that Render cannot?
- Arq Backup covers Client-side encryption, Hourly backups, Network backup, Deduplication. Render covers Web services, Static sites, Background workers, Postgres database.
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- Render vs Box
- Render vs IDrive
- Render vs Microsoft OneDrive
- Render vs Nextcloud
- Render vs pCloud
- Render vs Sync.com
- Render vs Tresorit
- Render vs TrueNAS
- Render vs Veritas NetBackup
- Render vs Grafana Cloud
- Render vs Neon
- Render vs DigitalOcean
- Render vs AWS (Amazon Web Services)
- Render vs Lambda (AWS Serverless)
- Render vs Deno Deploy
- Render vs Heroku
- Render vs Hetzner Cloud
- Render vs Linode
- Render vs Packer
- Render vs Pulumi
- Render vs Upstash
- Render vs Vagrant
- Render vs Vultr
- Render vs Akamai
- Render vs Alibaba Cloud
- Render vs Chef
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