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Backup · head to head

Clumio vs Portworx Backup

Clumio logo

Clumio

Backup

Serverless AWS backup with published per-gigabyte rates and explicit restore charges

From
$0.01/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Portworx Backup logo

Portworx Backup

Backup

Kubernetes application backup with a free tier up to one terabyte

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Portworx Backup has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Clumio restore is charged at $0.040 per GiB plus data transfer out, so recovering a hundred terabytes in an incident costs thousands of dollars on top of the storage fee, a bill nobody budgets for.; Portworx Backup the paid tier carries a 1,000 node hour monthly minimum, so a cluster that only needs occasional protection still pays a floor.
  • They diverge on capability: Clumio covers Air-gapped backups, Portworx Backup covers Application-level backup.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Clumio and Portworx Backup actually diverge.

Attributes where Clumio and Portworx Backup differ
AttributeClumioPortworx Backup
Starting price$0.01/monthFree
Pricing modelPer GiB-month protectedPer node hour
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWeb, APIWeb, Linux

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Backup).

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 Clumio

  • Air-gapped backups
  • Fifteen-minute recovery points
  • S3 SecureVault
  • Backtrack
  • Terraform provider
  • Compliance attestations

Only in Portworx Backup

  • Application-level backup
  • Any CSI provider
  • Cross-cluster restore
  • Namespace and label selection
  • Scheduled policies
  • Role-based access
  • Free tier

What people use each for

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

Clumio

  • An AWS-native company needing backups outside its own account so a compromised root credential cannot delete themnot Portworx Backup
  • A team that has to model recovery cost before an incident rather than discover it during onenot Portworx Backup
  • An organisation protecting billions of S3 objects where per-object charges dominate per-gigabyte chargesnot Portworx Backup
  • A regulated business needing SOC 2, HIPAA and PCI-DSS attested backup without running backup serversnot Portworx Backup

Portworx Backup

  • A platform team running Velero that needs an accountable vendor for restore failuresnot Clumio
  • Protecting Kubernetes applications across EKS, GKE and on premises clusters under one policy setnot Clumio
  • Restoring a namespace into a different cloud provider as a disaster recovery testnot Clumio
  • A small team that wants real Kubernetes backup within the free one terabyte tier before committing budgetnot Clumio

Where each one falls short

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

Clumio

  • Restore is charged at $0.040 per GiB plus data transfer out, so recovering a hundred terabytes in an incident costs thousands of dollars on top of the storage fee, a bill nobody budgets for.
  • Per-object charges of $1.50 per million managed objects per month mean estates with billions of small objects pay far more than a per-gigabyte estimate suggests.
  • The archive tier is cheaper to store but restores begin only after 24 to 48 hours, which is incompatible with most recovery time objectives, and early deletion inside six months incurs a fee.
  • It is an AWS product; Azure workloads are on the roadmap rather than shipping, so multi-cloud organisations still need a second backup platform.
  • The Commvault acquisition means Clumio now overlaps with Commvault own cloud protection, and buyers should ask directly how the two portfolios converge before signing multi-year terms.

Portworx Backup

  • The paid tier carries a 1,000 node hour monthly minimum, so a cluster that only needs occasional protection still pays a floor.
  • It is licensed separately from Portworx Enterprise, so organisations that assumed storage and backup came together find a second subscription in the quote.
  • The free tier caps at one terabyte of protected data, which is quickly exceeded by any database of consequence and forces a jump straight to the minimum commitment.
  • Backup targets are object stores you provide, so restore egress charges from your cloud provider are outside the vendor price and appear during a recovery rather than in procurement.
  • Application-consistent backup of databases still depends on correct pre and post hooks, so the product does not remove the requirement to understand and rehearse your own restore ordering.

Pricing, plan by plan

Clumio

$0.01/month
  • S3 SecureVault Standard$0.025/month
    • $0.025 per GiB-month plus $1.50 per million managed objects per month
    • Restores $0.040 per GiB instant access and $0.09 per GiB retrieved
    • $0.025 per 1,000 API requests, data transfer out charged separately
  • S3 SecureVault Archive$0.01/month
    • $0.010 per GiB-month plus $1.50 per million managed objects per month
    • Restores begin after 24 to 48 hours
    • $0.040 per GiB restored plus data transfer out
  • Backtrack$undefined/month
    • $1.50 per million managed objects-month, included free with SecureVault
    • $0.50 per million objects processed on restore
    • Metadata change tracking rather than full backup

Portworx Backup

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Up to one terabyte of protected data
    • No feature restrictions
    • Fully managed service
  • Portworx Backup$0.2/node hour
    • Minimum 1,000 node hours per month
    • Unlimited protected capacity
    • Any Container Storage Interface provider

Which should you pick?

Choose Clumio if

  • You need air-gapped backups.
  • You work on Web, API.
  • You also want fifteen-minute recovery points.
Clumio review

Choose Portworx Backup if

  • You need application-level backup.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Linux.
  • You also want any csi provider.
Portworx Backup review

Questions people ask

Is Clumio or Portworx Backup better?
Neither clearly leads. Clumio starts at $0.01/month and Portworx Backup at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Clumio or Portworx Backup?
Portworx Backup has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $0.01/month for Clumio and Free for Portworx Backup.
Does Clumio or Portworx Backup run on more platforms?
Clumio runs on Web, API. Portworx Backup runs on Web, Linux.
Can I use Portworx Backup for free?
Yes. Portworx Backup has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Clumio starts at $0.01/month.
What is Clumio best used for?
Clumio is most often used for an aws-native company needing backups outside its own account so a compromised root credential cannot delete them, a team that has to model recovery cost before an incident rather than discover it during one, an organisation protecting billions of s3 objects where per-object charges dominate per-gigabyte charges, a regulated business needing soc 2, hipaa and pci-dss attested backup without running backup servers. Of those, an aws-native company needing backups outside its own account so a compromised root credential cannot delete them and a team that has to model recovery cost before an incident rather than discover it during one are not what Portworx Backup is typically brought in for.
What can Clumio do that Portworx Backup cannot?
Clumio covers Air-gapped backups, Fifteen-minute recovery points, S3 SecureVault, Backtrack. Portworx Backup covers Application-level backup, Any CSI provider, Cross-cluster restore, Namespace and label selection.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Clumio: What does a restore cost?

$0.040 per GiB for instant access, $0.09 per GiB retrieved from archive, $0.025 per 1,000 API requests, plus AWS data transfer out. Model this before an incident.

Portworx Backup: Is the free tier real?

Yes, up to one terabyte of protected data with no feature restrictions as a managed service. It is a usable production tier for small footprints, not a trial.

Clumio: Does it support Azure?

Not yet. Azure workloads are listed as on the roadmap. Today it is AWS, with some Google Cloud Storage coverage.

Portworx Backup: Does it only protect Portworx volumes?

No. It works across Container Storage Interface providers, including cloud provider storage and other vendors' drivers.

Clumio: Is it still Clumio after the Commvault acquisition?

Yes, sold as Clumio by Commvault with its own pricing page and product line, but ask about portfolio convergence on a multi-year deal.

Portworx Backup: Is it included with Portworx Enterprise?

No. It is a separate licence at 0.20 USD per node hour with its own minimum.

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