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Backup · head to head

Paragon Backup & Recovery vs Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes

Paragon Backup & Recovery logo

Paragon Backup & Recovery

Backup

Professional-grade backup for Windows

From
$50/year
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: Paragon Backup & Recovery the free Community Edition is licensed for non-commercial use only; 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: Paragon Backup & Recovery covers Full disk 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 Paragon Backup & Recovery and Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes actually diverge.

Attributes where Paragon Backup & Recovery and Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes differ
AttributeParagon Backup & RecoveryVeeam Kasten for Kubernetes
Starting price$50/yearFree
Pricing modelsubscriptionPer worker node
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWindowsKubernetes, Linux
Founded1994Unknown

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 Paragon Backup & Recovery

  • Full disk backup
  • File-level backup
  • Incremental/differential
  • Recovery media
  • Virtual disk mount
  • UEFI support
  • Windows
  • Network shares

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.

Paragon Backup & Recovery

  • Full disk and partition backup on Windowsnot Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes
  • Bare metal recovery from an imagenot Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes
  • Scheduled incremental backups for a home machinenot Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes
  • Migrating an installation to a new drive on the paid editionsnot 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 Paragon Backup & Recovery
  • Migrating a stateful application from on-premises OpenShift to a managed cloud Kubernetes servicenot Paragon Backup & Recovery
  • Protecting Kubernetes workloads to an immutable object store so ransomware cannot delete the backupsnot Paragon Backup & Recovery
  • A team using operators and custom resources that volume-snapshot tools silently fail to capturenot Paragon Backup & Recovery

Where each one falls short

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

Paragon Backup & Recovery

  • The free Community Edition is licensed for non-commercial use only
  • Windows only, and specifically Windows 10 x64 from 1809, Windows 11 x64 and Windows 11 Arm64
  • Volume and OS copying, partition management and email notifications need the Advanced edition
  • Windows Server support requires the Business edition
  • Paid edition prices are not shown on the product page

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

Paragon Backup & Recovery

$50/year
  • Community Edition$50/year
    • Full disk backup
    • File-level backup
    • Recovery media

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 Paragon Backup & Recovery if

  • You need full disk backup.
  • You work on Windows.
  • You also want file-level backup.
Paragon Backup & Recovery 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 Paragon Backup & Recovery or Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes better?
Neither clearly leads. Paragon Backup & Recovery starts at $50/year 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, Paragon Backup & Recovery or Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes?
Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $50/year for Paragon Backup & Recovery and Free for Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes.
Does Paragon Backup & Recovery or Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes run on more platforms?
Paragon Backup & Recovery runs on Windows. 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. Paragon Backup & Recovery starts at $50/year.
What is Paragon Backup & Recovery best used for?
Paragon Backup & Recovery is most often used for full disk and partition backup on windows, bare metal recovery from an image, scheduled incremental backups for a home machine, migrating an installation to a new drive on the paid editions. Of those, full disk and partition backup on windows and bare metal recovery from an image are not what Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes is typically brought in for.
What can Paragon Backup & Recovery do that Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes cannot?
Paragon Backup & Recovery covers Full disk backup, File-level backup, Incremental/differential, Recovery media. Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes covers Application-aware capture, Policy engine, Immutable targets, Restore transformation.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Paragon Backup & Recovery: Is Paragon Backup & Recovery still available?

No, Paragon Backup & Recovery has been unavailable since October 8, 2025, and is marked as a legacy product. Business customers are directed to explore alternative products for business use.

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.

Paragon Backup & Recovery: How much does Paragon Backup & Recovery cost?

No pricing information is published. The product is restricted to home use only and customers must contact Paragon's sales team directly for any inquiries.

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.

Paragon Backup & Recovery: What should business users do if they used Paragon Backup & Recovery?

Business customers are recommended to explore the company's other products designed for business use and contact the sales team for alternative solutions.

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.

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