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Backup · head to head

Macrium Reflect vs Restic

Macrium Reflect logo

Macrium Reflect

Backup

Award-winning disk imaging and cloning

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Restic logo

Restic

Backup

Fast, secure, and efficient backup program

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Macrium Reflect business editions (Workstation, Site Backup) publish named tiers but no self-serve figure on their own product pages; only a free trial of the management console is offered directly; Restic cold storage is not natively supported; restoring from S3 Glacier and S3 Glacier Deep Archive is only available as an experimental feature behind a feature flag
  • They diverge on capability: Macrium Reflect covers Disk imaging, Restic covers Content-defined chunking.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Macrium Reflect and Restic actually diverge.

Attributes where Macrium Reflect and Restic differ
AttributeMacrium ReflectRestic
Pricing modelfreemiumfree
PlatformsWindowsWindows, Mac, Linux
Founded20062014

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), 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 Macrium Reflect

  • Disk imaging
  • Rapid delta cloning
  • Rescue Media
  • Incremental backup
  • Scheduling
  • Email notifications
  • Windows PE
  • Hyper-V

Only in Restic

  • Content-defined chunking
  • Cryptographic verification
  • Deduplication
  • Encryption
  • Multiple backends
  • Snapshot management
  • AWS S3
  • Azure

Both cover

  • Windows support

What people use each for

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

Macrium Reflect

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

Restic

  • Encrypted deduplicated backups to S3, B2, SFTP and local disk from the command linenot Macrium Reflect
  • Scripted server backups with snapshot retention policiesnot Macrium Reflect

Where each one falls short

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

Macrium Reflect

  • Business editions (Workstation, Site Backup) publish named tiers but no self-serve figure on their own product pages; only a free trial of the management console is offered directly

Restic

  • Cold storage is not natively supported; restoring from S3 Glacier and S3 Glacier Deep Archive is only available as an experimental feature behind a feature flag
  • A Windows file whose name contains a character Windows treats as invalid cannot be read by restic and has to be renamed
  • Antivirus real-time protection degrades performance on Windows unless the restic binary is added to an exclusions list
  • On large repositories the built-in five minute stuck-request timeout fires during file listing and has to be raised manually with --stuck-request-timeout

Pricing, plan by plan

Macrium Reflect

Free
  • Home$70/year
    • Disk imaging
    • Rescue Media
    • Rapid delta

Restic

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Content-defined chunking
    • Encryption
    • Multiple backends

Which should you pick?

Choose Macrium Reflect if

  • You need disk imaging.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Windows.
  • You also want rapid delta cloning.
Macrium Reflect review

Choose Restic if

  • You need content-defined chunking.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Windows, Mac, Linux.
  • You also want cryptographic verification.
Restic review

Questions people ask

Is Macrium Reflect or Restic better?
Neither clearly leads. Macrium Reflect starts at Free and Restic at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Macrium Reflect or Restic?
Macrium Reflect starts at Free and Restic at Free.
Does Macrium Reflect or Restic run on more platforms?
Macrium Reflect runs on Windows. Restic runs on Windows, Mac, Linux.
Can I use Macrium Reflect for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Macrium Reflect best used for?
Macrium Reflect is most often used for data protection, disaster recovery, business continuity, ransomware protection. Of those, data protection and disaster recovery are not what Restic is typically brought in for.
What can Macrium Reflect do that Restic cannot?
Macrium Reflect covers Disk imaging, Rapid delta cloning, Rescue Media, Incremental backup. Restic covers Content-defined chunking, Cryptographic verification, Deduplication, Encryption. Both handle Windows support.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Restic: How much does restic cost?

Restic is entirely free to use and completely open source. There are no subscription tiers, paid plans, or licensing costs.

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