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Backup & Disaster Recovery · head to head

Borg Backup vs Unitrends Backup

Borg Backup logo

Borg Backup

Backup & Disaster Recovery

Deduplicating archiver with compression and encryption

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Unitrends Backup logo

Unitrends Backup

Backup & Disaster Recovery

All-in-one backup and recovery appliance

From
$55/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; Unitrends Backup pricing is not transparent and requires contacting the company directly for a custom quote
  • They diverge on capability: Borg Backup covers Content-defined chunking, Unitrends Backup covers Predictive analytics.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Borg Backup and Unitrends Backup actually diverge.

Attributes where Borg Backup and Unitrends Backup differ
AttributeBorg BackupUnitrends Backup
Starting priceFree$55/month
Pricing modelfreesubscription
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsLinux, MacOn-premises, Cloud, Hybrid
Founded20151989

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 Unitrends Backup

  • Predictive analytics
  • Automated recovery testing
  • Instant recovery
  • Ransomware detection
  • Adaptive deduplication
  • Cloud integration
  • VMware
  • Hyper-V

Both cover

  • Linux 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 Unitrends Backup
  • Encrypted backup to a server you do not fully trust, since the server never sees plaintextnot Unitrends Backup
  • Browsing previous versions by mounting an archive over FUSEnot Unitrends Backup
  • Scripted server backups with no agent or daemon to runnot Unitrends Backup

Unitrends 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

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

Borg Backup

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Deduplication
    • Compression
    • Encryption

Unitrends Backup

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

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 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 Borg Backup or Unitrends Backup better?
Neither clearly leads. Borg Backup 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, Borg Backup or Unitrends Backup?
Borg Backup has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Borg Backup and $55/month for Unitrends Backup.
Does Borg Backup or Unitrends Backup run on more platforms?
Borg Backup runs on Linux, Mac. Unitrends Backup runs on On-premises, Cloud, Hybrid.
Can I use Borg Backup for free?
Yes. Borg Backup has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Unitrends Backup starts at $55/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 Unitrends Backup is typically brought in for.
What can Borg Backup do that Unitrends Backup cannot?
Borg Backup covers Content-defined chunking, Deduplication, Compression, Authenticated encryption. Unitrends Backup covers Predictive analytics, Automated recovery testing, Instant recovery, Ransomware detection. Both handle Linux support.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

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
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
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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Related pages

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