Backup & Disaster Recovery · head to head
Bacula Enterprise vs Borg Backup
Bacula Enterprise
Backup & Disaster Recovery
Open-source enterprise backup solution
- From
- $500/year
- Rated
- -
Borg Backup
Backup & Disaster Recovery
Deduplicating archiver with compression and encryption
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Only Borg Backup has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
- Each has a real cost: Bacula Enterprise pricing is not published; the vendor asks for a request rather than listing rates; Borg Backup linux, macOS and BSD only; Windows is not a supported platform
- They diverge on capability: Bacula Enterprise covers Modular architecture, Borg Backup covers Content-defined chunking.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Bacula Enterprise and Borg Backup actually diverge.
| Attribute | Bacula Enterprise | Borg Backup |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | $500/year | Free |
| Pricing model | subscription | free |
| Free tier | No | Yes |
| Platforms | Windows, Linux, Web | Linux, Mac |
| Founded | 2009 | 2015 |
Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Backup & Disaster Recovery).
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 Bacula Enterprise
- Modular architecture
- Plugin framework
- Cloud storage
- Encryption
- Automated recovery testing
- VMware
- Hyper-V
- AWS
Only in Borg Backup
- Content-defined chunking
- Compression
- Authenticated encryption
- Pruning
- Mount archives
- SSH
- BorgBase
- rsync.net
Both cover
- Deduplication
- Linux support
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Bacula Enterprise
- Enterprise backup across virtual machines, databases and containersnot Borg Backup
- Multi-cloud and hybrid backup from one systemnot Borg Backup
- Backup where licensing by data volume would be prohibitive, since Bacula does not charge by capacitynot Borg Backup
- Long-retention archival for regulated environmentsnot Borg Backup
Borg Backup
- Deduplicated backups where daily full snapshots would otherwise be expensivenot Bacula Enterprise
- Encrypted backup to a server you do not fully trust, since the server never sees plaintextnot Bacula Enterprise
- Browsing previous versions by mounting an archive over FUSEnot Bacula Enterprise
- Scripted server backups with no agent or daemon to runnot Bacula Enterprise
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Bacula Enterprise
- Pricing is not published; the vendor asks for a request rather than listing rates
- The differences between Enterprise and the open source Community edition are not set out on the product pages, so what the licence buys is unclear until you talk to sales
- Aimed at data centre and enterprise environments rather than small deployments
Borg Backup
- Linux, macOS and BSD only; Windows is not a supported platform
- Command-line only, with no graphical interface in the project itself
- Version 2.0 is still in beta, so production use means staying on the 1.4 line
- Restoring requires the Borg tooling, since archives are a deduplicated chunk store rather than plain files
Pricing, plan by plan
Bacula Enterprise
$500/year- Bacula Enterprise$500/year
- Unlimited data
- Plugin support
- Enterprise support
Borg Backup
Free- FreeFree
- Deduplication
- Compression
- Encryption
Which should you pick?
Choose Bacula Enterprise if
- You need modular architecture.
- You work on Windows, Linux, Web.
- You also want plugin framework.
Choose Borg Backup if
- You need content-defined chunking.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Linux, Mac.
- You also want compression.
Questions people ask
- Is Bacula Enterprise or Borg Backup better?
- Neither clearly leads. Bacula Enterprise starts at $500/year and Borg Backup at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Bacula Enterprise or Borg Backup?
- Borg Backup has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $500/year for Bacula Enterprise and Free for Borg Backup.
- Does Bacula Enterprise or Borg Backup run on more platforms?
- Bacula Enterprise runs on Windows, Linux, Web. Borg Backup runs on Linux, Mac.
- Can I use Borg Backup for free?
- Yes. Borg Backup has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Bacula Enterprise starts at $500/year.
- What is Bacula Enterprise best used for?
- Bacula Enterprise is most often used for enterprise backup across virtual machines, databases and containers, multi-cloud and hybrid backup from one system, backup where licensing by data volume would be prohibitive, since bacula does not charge by capacity, long-retention archival for regulated environments. Of those, enterprise backup across virtual machines, databases and containers and multi-cloud and hybrid backup from one system are not what Borg Backup is typically brought in for.
- What can Bacula Enterprise do that Borg Backup cannot?
- Bacula Enterprise covers Modular architecture, Plugin framework, Cloud storage, Encryption. Borg Backup covers Content-defined chunking, Compression, Authenticated encryption, Pruning. Both handle Deduplication, Linux support.