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Backup & Disaster Recovery · head to head

Borg Backup vs N-able Backup

Borg Backup logo

Borg Backup

Backup & Disaster Recovery

Deduplicating archiver with compression and encryption

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
N-able Backup logo

N-able Backup

Backup & Disaster Recovery

Cloud-first backup built for MSPs

From
$20/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Borg Backup has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Borg Backup linux, macOS and BSD only; Windows is not a supported platform; N-able Backup limited availability for non-Windows environments compared to competitors
  • They diverge on capability: Borg Backup covers Content-defined chunking, N-able Backup covers Direct-to-cloud backup.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Borg Backup and N-able Backup actually diverge.

Attributes where Borg Backup and N-able Backup differ
AttributeBorg BackupN-able Backup
Starting priceFree$20/month
Pricing modelfreesubscription
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsLinux, MacWindows, Web
Founded20152021

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 Borg Backup

  • Content-defined chunking
  • Deduplication
  • Compression
  • Authenticated encryption
  • Pruning
  • Mount archives
  • SSH
  • BorgBase

Only in N-able Backup

  • Direct-to-cloud backup
  • Standby image
  • Bare metal recovery
  • LocalSpeedVault
  • TrueDelta incremental
  • Documents protection
  • Microsoft 365
  • VMware

Both cover

  • Linux support
  • Mac support

What people use each for

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

Borg Backup

  • Deduplicated backups where daily full snapshots would otherwise be expensivenot N-able Backup
  • Encrypted backup to a server you do not fully trust, since the server never sees plaintextnot N-able Backup
  • Browsing previous versions by mounting an archive over FUSEnot N-able Backup
  • Scripted server backups with no agent or daemon to runnot N-able Backup

N-able Backup

  • Data protectionnot Borg Backup
  • Disaster recoverynot Borg Backup
  • Business continuitynot Borg Backup
  • Ransomware protectionnot Borg Backup
  • Compliancenot Borg Backup

Where each one falls short

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

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

N-able Backup

  • Limited availability for non-Windows environments compared to competitors
  • MSP-focused product may include features unnecessary for smaller organizations

Pricing, plan by plan

Borg Backup

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Deduplication
    • Compression
    • Encryption

N-able Backup

$20/month
  • Backup$20/month
    • Direct-to-cloud
    • Standby image
    • Multi-tenant

Which should you pick?

Choose Borg Backup if

  • You need content-defined chunking.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, Mac.
  • You also want deduplication.
Borg Backup review

Choose N-able Backup if

  • You need direct-to-cloud backup.
  • You work on Windows, Web.
  • You also want standby image.
N-able Backup review

Questions people ask

Is Borg Backup or N-able Backup better?
Neither clearly leads. Borg Backup starts at Free and N-able Backup at $20/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Borg Backup or N-able Backup?
Borg Backup has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Borg Backup and $20/month for N-able Backup.
Does Borg Backup or N-able Backup run on more platforms?
Borg Backup runs on Linux, Mac. N-able Backup runs on Windows, Web.
Can I use Borg Backup for free?
Yes. Borg Backup has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. N-able Backup starts at $20/month.
What is Borg Backup best used for?
Borg Backup is most often used for deduplicated backups where daily full snapshots would otherwise be expensive, encrypted backup to a server you do not fully trust, since the server never sees plaintext, browsing previous versions by mounting an archive over fuse, scripted server backups with no agent or daemon to run. Of those, deduplicated backups where daily full snapshots would otherwise be expensive and encrypted backup to a server you do not fully trust, since the server never sees plaintext are not what N-able Backup is typically brought in for.
What can Borg Backup do that N-able Backup cannot?
Borg Backup covers Content-defined chunking, Deduplication, Compression, Authenticated encryption. N-able Backup covers Direct-to-cloud backup, Standby image, Bare metal recovery, LocalSpeedVault. Both handle Linux support, Mac support.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

N-able Backup: What does Cove Data Protection cover?

Cove Data Protection provides unified backup, security, and disaster recovery for servers, workstations, and Microsoft 365, with cloud-native architecture and automatic updates.

Source
N-able Backup: Is hardware required for N-able Backup?

No, Cove Data Protection is fully SaaS-based with no appliances or hardware required. It offers a cloud management console accessible from anywhere with no upfront hardware investment.

Source
N-able Backup: How often can backups be scheduled with Cove?

Cove's TrueDelta technology enables backups as frequently as every 15 minutes, eliminating redundancies and ensuring minimal data loss windows.

Source
N-able Backup: Does Cove offer ransomware protection?

Yes, Cove includes ransomware resilience through immutable backup copies and isolated backups kept separate by default, providing protection against encryption attacks.

Source
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