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Backup · head to head

CloudAlly vs Proofpoint

CloudAlly logo

CloudAlly

Backup

Enterprise SaaS backup made simple

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Visit CloudAllyFull review
Proofpoint logo

Proofpoint

Cybersecurity

Email security and data protection suite from a private company owned by Thoma Bravo, licensed per user with modules sold separately.

From
$6/month
Free plan
No
Visit ProofpointFull review

The short version

  • CloudAlly has a free plan, then $3/mo; Proofpoint starts at $6/mo.
  • Only CloudAlly lists automated daily backup; only Proofpoint lists inline secure email gateway.
  • Where CloudAlly falls short: pricing not transparently displayed; requires customer inquiry.
  • Prices and features on this page were last checked on 13 November 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which CloudAlly and Proofpoint actually diverge.

Attributes where CloudAlly and Proofpoint differ
AttributeCloudAllyProofpoint
Starting priceFree$6/month
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWebEmail, Web
CategoryBackupCybersecurity
Founded20112002

Identical on both: pricing model (Subscription).

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 CloudAlly

  • Automated daily backup
  • Point-in-time recovery
  • Cross-account restore
  • Archive export
  • Activity logs
  • Multi-admin support
  • Microsoft 365
  • Google Workspace

Only in Proofpoint

  • Inline secure email gateway
  • Attachment sandboxing
  • URL rewriting and click-time analysis
  • Threat Response Auto-Pull
  • Email Fraud Defense
  • Security awareness training
  • Insider Threat Management
  • Enterprise DLP

What people use each for

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

CloudAlly

  • Data protectionnot Proofpoint
  • Disaster recoverynot Proofpoint
  • Business continuitynot Proofpoint
  • Ransomware protectionnot Proofpoint
  • Compliancenot Proofpoint

Proofpoint

  • A regulated organisation that needs a filtering layer, DMARC enforcement and archiving with an auditable trail across all threenot CloudAlly
  • An organisation that suffered a business email compromise and must show its board a control that stops delivery rather than remediating afterwardsnot CloudAlly
  • Concentrating stronger controls and training on the specific individuals who actually receive targeted attacks rather than applying uniform policynot CloudAlly
  • Retracting a phishing message from thousands of mailboxes after the verdict changes, including copies that were forwarded internallynot CloudAlly

Where each one falls short

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

CloudAlly

  • Pricing not transparently displayed; requires customer inquiry
  • Limited visibility into data center locations for compliance-sensitive organizations
  • Transition to OpenText Cybersecurity branding may cause confusion

Proofpoint

  • Licensing is per user per year with each capability as a separate stock item, so the platform shown in a proof of concept is normally several products, and adding awareness training, data loss prevention or insider threat monitoring later is a fresh negotiation rather than enabling a feature
  • It sits inline with MX records pointed at it, so any service degradation is a mail outage for the entire organisation, and both migrating on and migrating off are cutovers with queueing, rollback planning and a real risk of message loss
  • Most customers on Microsoft 365 E5 or Google Workspace Enterprise are already paying for native filtering, so Proofpoint is a second licence layered over a capability the organisation owns, and that comparison is raised by finance at every single renewal
  • The administration console carries a decade of acquisitions: the classic gateway policy routes and filters do not share a model with the newer module interfaces, rule evaluation is order-sensitive in ways that surprise untrained administrators, and mistakes there silently change what is delivered
  • Quarantine management is a standing helpdesk workload because legitimate bulk mail, invoices and supplier notifications are held, and unless end-user digests are configured and users are taught to use them, the security team becomes the mail release desk

Pricing, plan by plan

CloudAlly

Free
  • CloudAlly Backup$3/mo
    • Daily backup
    • Point-in-time restore
    • Unlimited storage

Proofpoint

$6/month
  • Email Protection$6/mo
    • Per user
    • Advanced threat detection
    • Data loss prevention
  • Compliance$8/mo
    • All Email Protection
    • Archive & search
    • eDiscovery
  • Advanced Threat$10/mo
    • All Compliance features
    • Targeted attack detection
    • Behavior analytics

Which should you pick?

Choose CloudAlly if

  • You need automated daily backup.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You also want point-in-time recovery.
CloudAlly review

Choose Proofpoint if

  • You need inline secure email gateway.
  • You work on Email, Web.
  • You also want attachment sandboxing.
Proofpoint review

Questions people ask

Is CloudAlly or Proofpoint better?
Neither clearly leads. CloudAlly starts at Free and Proofpoint at $6/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, CloudAlly or Proofpoint?
CloudAlly has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for CloudAlly and $6/month for Proofpoint.
Does CloudAlly or Proofpoint run on more platforms?
CloudAlly runs on Web. Proofpoint runs on Email, Web.
Can I use CloudAlly for free?
Yes. CloudAlly has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Proofpoint starts at $6/month.
What is CloudAlly best used for?
CloudAlly is most often used for data protection, disaster recovery, business continuity, ransomware protection. Of those, data protection and disaster recovery are not what Proofpoint is typically brought in for.
What can CloudAlly do that Proofpoint cannot?
CloudAlly covers Automated daily backup, Point-in-time recovery, Cross-account restore, Archive export. Proofpoint covers Inline secure email gateway, Attachment sandboxing, URL rewriting and click-time analysis, Threat Response Auto-Pull.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

CloudAlly: What cloud applications can CloudAlly backup?

CloudAlly backs up Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, SharePoint/OneDrive, Salesforce, Box, and Dropbox with daily automated backups and unlimited retention.

Source
Proofpoint: Does it replace Microsoft Defender for Office 365?

Functionally it overlaps heavily, and running both means paying twice for filtering. Most Proofpoint customers on Microsoft 365 keep Defender licensed because it is bundled in E5 and use Proofpoint as the inline gateway. Expect to justify that duplication annually.

CloudAlly: How is CloudAlly data encrypted and stored?

CloudAlly stores backups on AWS servers with 128-bit SSL encryption and AES 256-bit encryption, maintaining compliance certifications including ISO 27001, HIPAA, and GDPR.

Source
Proofpoint: Who owns Proofpoint?

Thoma Bravo, a private equity firm, which took the company private in 2021. It has continued to acquire since, including Tessian, Normalyze and Hornetsecurity, which is why the portfolio spans so many adjacent categories.

CloudAlly: What recovery options does CloudAlly provide?

CloudAlly offers granular point-in-time recovery with unlimited retention, allowing three-click recovery of deleted files, and point-in-time restore capabilities for ransomware protection.

Source
Proofpoint: Do I have to change my MX records?

For the gateway, yes. That is what makes it inline and able to block before delivery. Some newer capabilities integrate through the mailbox API instead, but the core protection model is MX-level.

Proofpoint: Is security awareness training included?

No, it is a separate subscription. It integrates well with the threat data, so training can target the users actually being attacked, but it is a distinct line item on the quote.

Proofpoint: What does Threat Response Auto-Pull actually do?

It removes messages from mailboxes after delivery when the verdict changes, including copies that users forwarded internally. It is the answer to the case where a link was clean at delivery and weaponised an hour later.

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