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Backup · head to head

Restic vs rustic

Restic logo

Restic

Backup

Fast, secure, and efficient backup program

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
rustic logo

rustic

Backup

Rust reimplementation of restic that reads and writes the same repository format

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: 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; rustic the project is small with a short list of active maintainers, so bus factor is a genuine consideration for software whose job is to still work in five years.
  • They diverge on capability: Restic covers Content-defined chunking, rustic covers restic format compatibility.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Restic and rustic actually diverge.

Attributes where Restic and rustic differ
AttributeResticrustic
Pricing modelfreeOpen source, no licence fee
PlatformsWindows, Mac, LinuxLinux, macOS, Windows
Founded2014Unknown

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 Restic

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

Only in rustic

  • restic format compatibility
  • Configuration profiles
  • Deduplicated encrypted backups
  • Cold and append only storage support
  • Multiple back ends
  • Library crates

What people use each for

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

Restic

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

rustic

  • An existing restic user who wants configuration files rather than long command lines in cronnot Restic
  • Backing up a memory constrained machine where the reference implementation is uncomfortably heavynot Restic
  • Writing to append only or cold object storage where the default tooling assumes rewritable bucketsnot Restic
  • Keeping a second implementation available so a long lived archive does not depend on one codebasenot Restic

Where each one falls short

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

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

rustic

  • The project is small with a short list of active maintainers, so bus factor is a genuine consideration for software whose job is to still work in five years.
  • It inherits the restic repository format, so design limits in that format, including the cost of pruning large repositories, are inherited rather than fixed.
  • Command names, flags and behaviour do not map one to one onto restic, so scripts and runbooks need rewriting rather than a binary swap.
  • Far fewer people have performed a real restore from it under pressure, and backup software is one of the few categories where being second most used is itself a risk.
  • Alternating between rustic and restic against one repository works but doubles the surface for a version incompatibility to corrupt state, so most operators should pick one and stay with it.

Pricing, plan by plan

Restic

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

rustic

Free
  • rusticFree
    • Full functionality, no data limit
    • All supported storage back ends
    • Community support via GitHub

Which should you pick?

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

Choose rustic if

  • You need restic format compatibility.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, macOS, Windows.
  • You also want configuration profiles.
rustic review

Questions people ask

Is Restic or rustic better?
Neither clearly leads. Restic starts at Free and rustic at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Restic or rustic?
Restic starts at Free and rustic at Free.
Does Restic or rustic run on more platforms?
Restic runs on Windows, Mac, Linux. rustic runs on Linux, macOS, Windows.
Can I use Restic for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Restic best used for?
Restic is most often used for encrypted deduplicated backups to s3, b2, sftp and local disk from the command line, scripted server backups with snapshot retention policies. Of those, encrypted deduplicated backups to s3, b2, sftp and local disk from the command line and scripted server backups with snapshot retention policies are not what rustic is typically brought in for.
What can Restic do that rustic cannot?
Restic covers Content-defined chunking, Cryptographic verification, Deduplication, Encryption. rustic covers restic format compatibility, Configuration profiles, Deduplicated encrypted backups, Cold and append only storage 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.

Source
rustic: Can it read my existing restic repository?

Yes, that is the point of the project. Take a copy and verify before you rely on it, as with any change to backup tooling.

rustic: Should I switch from restic?

Only for a specific reason such as configuration profiles, memory use or cold storage handling. Compatibility means there is no cost to trying and no cost to going back.

rustic: Is it production ready?

It is used in production by a small community, but it is younger and less exercised than the implementation it is compatible with. Test restores accordingly.

rustic: Does it support the same back ends?

The common ones, including local, SFTP, S3 compatible storage and rclone. Check the current list before committing to an unusual target.

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