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File Storage · head to head

Duplicati vs Linkerd

Duplicati logo

Duplicati

File Storage

Free open-source backup with encryption

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Linkerd logo

Linkerd

Cloud

Lightweight service mesh for Kubernetes

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Duplicati no managed service or commercial support; Linkerd deliberately fewer features than Istio, so complex routing and multi-cluster policy can hit its limits
  • They diverge on capability: Duplicati covers AES-256 encryption, Linkerd covers Automatic mutual TLS.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Duplicati and Linkerd actually diverge.

Attributes where Duplicati and Linkerd differ
AttributeDuplicatiLinkerd
Pricing modelUnknownOpen source, no licence fee
PlatformsWindows, macOS, LinuxKubernetes, Linux
CategoryFile StorageCloud
Founded2008Unknown

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated).

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 Duplicati

  • AES-256 encryption
  • Incremental backup
  • Deduplication
  • Multiple cloud backends
  • Compression
  • Web interface
  • AWS S3
  • Azure

Only in Linkerd

  • Automatic mutual TLS
  • Golden metrics
  • Rust micro-proxy
  • Traffic policy

What people use each for

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

Duplicati

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

Linkerd

  • Adding mutual TLS between services to satisfy a compliance requirementnot Duplicati
  • Getting per-service latency and success rates without instrumenting applicationsnot Duplicati
  • Progressive delivery with traffic splitting during rolloutsnot Duplicati

Where each one falls short

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

Duplicati

  • No managed service or commercial support
  • Relies on community support
  • No enterprise features

Linkerd

  • Deliberately fewer features than Istio, so complex routing and multi-cluster policy can hit its limits
  • Kubernetes only, with no story for workloads outside a cluster
  • A sidecar per pod is still real memory and latency overhead, however small, and a mesh is another layer to debug during incidents

Pricing, plan by plan

Duplicati

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the Duplicati review.

Linkerd

Free
  • LinkerdFree
    • Full functionality
    • No usage limits
    • Community support

Which should you pick?

Choose Duplicati if

  • You need aes-256 encryption.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Windows, macOS, Linux.
  • You also want incremental backup.
Duplicati review

Choose Linkerd if

  • You need automatic mutual tls.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Kubernetes, Linux.
  • You also want golden metrics.
Linkerd review

Questions people ask

Is Duplicati or Linkerd better?
Neither clearly leads. Duplicati starts at Free and Linkerd at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Duplicati or Linkerd?
Duplicati starts at Free and Linkerd at Free.
Does Duplicati or Linkerd run on more platforms?
Duplicati runs on Windows, macOS, Linux. Linkerd runs on Kubernetes, Linux.
Can I use Duplicati for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Duplicati best used for?
Duplicati is most often used for data protection, disaster recovery, business continuity, ransomware protection. Of those, data protection and disaster recovery are not what Linkerd is typically brought in for.
What can Duplicati do that Linkerd cannot?
Duplicati covers AES-256 encryption, Incremental backup, Deduplication, Multiple cloud backends. Linkerd covers Automatic mutual TLS, Golden metrics, Rust micro-proxy, Traffic policy.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Duplicati: Is Duplicati free?

Yes. Duplicati is completely free and open-source under the LGPL license. There are no premium tiers, trials, or limitations.

Source
Linkerd: Is Linkerd free?

The open-source project is free. Buoyant, its maintainer, sells enterprise distributions and support separately.

Duplicati: What does Duplicati support?

Duplicati supports zero-trust, fully encrypted backups to local storage, network drives, and cloud services. It includes deduplication and incremental backups.

Source
Linkerd: Linkerd or Istio?

Linkerd trades features for simplicity, with a smaller proxy and far less configuration. Istio is more capable and correspondingly more work to run.

Duplicati: What are the platforms?

Duplicati runs on Windows, macOS, and Linux. It can back up data to local storage, network drives, or cloud providers.

Source
Linkerd: Do I need a service mesh at all?

Only if you need mutual TLS, uniform retries or per-service traffic metrics across many services. For a handful of services it is usually more machinery than the problem justifies.

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