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Backup · head to head

N-able Backup vs Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes

N-able Backup logo

N-able Backup

Backup

Cloud-first backup built for MSPs

From
$20/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes logo

Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes

Backup

Kubernetes-native backup, disaster recovery and application mobility

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: N-able Backup limited availability for non-Windows environments compared to competitors; Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes licensing is per worker node, so clusters designed with many small nodes for scheduling flexibility pay considerably more than the same capacity in fewer large nodes.
  • They diverge on capability: N-able Backup covers Direct-to-cloud backup, Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes covers Application-aware capture.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which N-able Backup and Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes actually diverge.

Attributes where N-able Backup and Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes differ
AttributeN-able BackupVeeam Kasten for Kubernetes
Starting price$20/monthFree
Pricing modelsubscriptionPer worker node
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWindows, WebKubernetes, Linux
Founded2021Unknown

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 N-able Backup

  • Direct-to-cloud backup
  • Standby image
  • Bare metal recovery
  • LocalSpeedVault
  • TrueDelta incremental
  • Documents protection
  • Microsoft 365
  • VMware

Only in Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes

  • Application-aware capture
  • Policy engine
  • Immutable targets
  • Restore transformation
  • Database hooks
  • Ransomware detection

What people use each for

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

N-able Backup

  • Data protectionnot Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes
  • Disaster recoverynot Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes
  • Business continuitynot Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes
  • Ransomware protectionnot Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes
  • Compliancenot Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes

Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes

  • A platform team that must prove to auditors it can restore a production namespace, not just its disksnot N-able Backup
  • Migrating a stateful application from on-premises OpenShift to a managed cloud Kubernetes servicenot N-able Backup
  • Protecting Kubernetes workloads to an immutable object store so ransomware cannot delete the backupsnot N-able Backup
  • A team using operators and custom resources that volume-snapshot tools silently fail to capturenot N-able Backup

Where each one falls short

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

N-able Backup

  • Limited availability for non-Windows environments compared to competitors
  • MSP-focused product may include features unnecessary for smaller organizations

Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes

  • Licensing is per worker node, so clusters designed with many small nodes for scheduling flexibility pay considerably more than the same capacity in fewer large nodes.
  • The free Starter edition is scale limited and community supported, so it works for evaluation and small clusters but there is no gentle upgrade path when production grows past the limit.
  • Backup performance depends on the underlying CSI driver snapshot capability, so on storage without proper CSI snapshot support it falls back to slower generic copying.
  • Restores into a different cluster need matching custom resource definitions and operator versions present beforehand, so cross-cluster mobility is less automatic than the marketing suggests.
  • Kasten protects Kubernetes only, so organisations with mixed virtual machine and container estates run it alongside a separate backup product and manage two retention policies and two sets of evidence.

Pricing, plan by plan

N-able Backup

$20/month
  • Backup$20/month
    • Direct-to-cloud
    • Standby image
    • Multi-tenant

Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes

Free
  • StarterFree
    • Functionally the same as Enterprise
    • Limited on scale and support
    • Intended for evaluation and small non-production clusters
  • Enterprise$undefined/year
    • Licensed per worker node, quoted annually
    • Available through AWS, Azure and Google Cloud marketplaces
    • Vendor support with SLAs

Which should you pick?

Choose N-able Backup if

  • You need direct-to-cloud backup.
  • You work on Windows, Web.
  • You also want standby image.
N-able Backup review

Choose Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes if

  • You need application-aware capture.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Kubernetes, Linux.
  • You also want policy engine.
Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes review

Questions people ask

Is N-able Backup or Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes better?
Neither clearly leads. N-able Backup starts at $20/month and Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, N-able Backup or Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes?
Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $20/month for N-able Backup and Free for Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes.
Does N-able Backup or Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes run on more platforms?
N-able Backup runs on Windows, Web. Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes runs on Kubernetes, Linux.
Can I use Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes for free?
Yes. Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. N-able Backup starts at $20/month.
What is N-able Backup best used for?
N-able Backup is most often used for data protection, disaster recovery, business continuity, ransomware protection. Of those, data protection and disaster recovery are not what Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes is typically brought in for.
What can N-able Backup do that Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes cannot?
N-able Backup covers Direct-to-cloud backup, Standby image, Bare metal recovery, LocalSpeedVault. Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes covers Application-aware capture, Policy engine, Immutable targets, Restore transformation.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

N-able Backup: What does Cove Data Protection cover?

Cove Data Protection provides unified backup, security, and disaster recovery for servers, workstations, and Microsoft 365, with cloud-native architecture and automatic updates.

Source
Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes: Is Kasten K10 still a product?

It is now sold as Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes. The kasten.io domain redirects to Veeam and the documentation still lives at docs.kasten.io.

N-able Backup: Is hardware required for N-able Backup?

No, Cove Data Protection is fully SaaS-based with no appliances or hardware required. It offers a cloud management console accessible from anywhere with no upfront hardware investment.

Source
Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes: Is there a free edition?

Yes, the Starter edition is free and functionally complete but limited on scale and support, aimed at evaluation and small non-production clusters.

N-able Backup: How often can backups be scheduled with Cove?

Cove's TrueDelta technology enables backups as frequently as every 15 minutes, eliminating redundancies and ensuring minimal data loss windows.

Source
Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes: How is Enterprise licensed?

Per worker node. Count your nodes, not your capacity, before comparing quotes, because node sizing directly changes the price.

N-able Backup: Does Cove offer ransomware protection?

Yes, Cove includes ransomware resilience through immutable backup copies and isolated backups kept separate by default, providing protection against encryption attacks.

Source
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