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Backup · head to head

Restic vs Thanos

Restic logo

Restic

Backup

Fast, secure, and efficient backup program

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Thanos logo

Thanos

Cloud

Highly available Prometheus with long-term object storage

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; Thanos several components — sidecar, store, querier, compactor, ruler — each with its own configuration and failure modes
  • They diverge on capability: Restic covers Content-defined chunking, Thanos covers Global query.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Restic and Thanos actually diverge.

Attributes where Restic and Thanos differ
AttributeResticThanos
Pricing modelfreeOpen source, no licence fee
PlatformsWindows, Mac, LinuxKubernetes, Linux, Docker
CategoryBackupCloud
Founded2014Unknown

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 Restic

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

Only in Thanos

  • Global query
  • Object storage retention
  • Downsampling

Both cover

  • Deduplication

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 Thanos
  • Scripted server backups with snapshot retention policiesnot Thanos

Thanos

  • Querying metrics across many clusters or regions from one placenot Restic
  • Retaining metrics for years without local disk growthnot Restic
  • Removing the gap that appears when a single Prometheus instance restartsnot 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

Thanos

  • Several components — sidecar, store, querier, compactor, ruler — each with its own configuration and failure modes
  • The compactor is a common source of operational trouble and must not run twice against the same bucket
  • Query latency over object storage is meaningfully higher than local Prometheus
  • Object storage costs and API request charges become real at high volume

Pricing, plan by plan

Restic

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

Thanos

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

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 Thanos if

  • You need global query.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Kubernetes, Linux, Docker.
  • You also want object storage retention.
Thanos review

Questions people ask

Is Restic or Thanos better?
Neither clearly leads. Restic starts at Free and Thanos at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Restic or Thanos?
Restic starts at Free and Thanos at Free.
Does Restic or Thanos run on more platforms?
Restic runs on Windows, Mac, Linux. Thanos runs on Kubernetes, Linux, Docker.
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 Thanos is typically brought in for.
What can Restic do that Thanos cannot?
Restic covers Content-defined chunking, Cryptographic verification, Encryption, Multiple backends. Thanos covers Global query, Object storage retention, Downsampling. Both handle Deduplication.

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
Thanos: Is Thanos free?

Yes, open source and CNCF-incubating. Costs are the object storage it uses.

Thanos: Does Thanos replace Prometheus?

No. It runs alongside existing Prometheus servers, adding global query, deduplication and long-term storage.

Thanos: Thanos or VictoriaMetrics?

Thanos layers onto Prometheus using object storage and is the more established multi-cluster answer. VictoriaMetrics is a separate store aiming at lower resource use and fewer moving parts.

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