Updated July 29, 2026. “Free backup software” can mean anything from a genuinely open-source repository engine to a proprietary cloud service with a small free allowance. This guide focuses on software whose core backup implementation is open source, while clearly flagging one important mixed-license exception. We checked current project activity, licenses, community interest, supported systems, documentation, recovery features, security design, and suitability for homes and small businesses.
The short answer
- Best overall for technical users: restic
- Best modern graphical choice: Kopia
- Best Linux/Unix power-user choice: BorgBackup
- Easiest browser-based setup: Duplicati, with a significant mixed-license and recovery-planning caveat
- Best for centrally protecting several PCs: UrBackup
- Best easy full-disk image: Rescuezilla
- Best technician imaging and deployment tool: Clonezilla
- Best simple GNOME backup: Pika Backup
- Best transparent Linux snapshots: Back In Time
- Best open-source fleet and tape platform: Bareos
Our real winner is not a single application. It is a system with version history, an isolated or offline copy, offsite protection, monitoring, documented recovery secrets, and a restore that has actually been tested.
What “the popular vote” means in this guide
There is no trustworthy worldwide ballot for backup software. Download totals are inconsistent, self-hosted installations are hard to count, and a GitHub star does not prove that anyone restored data successfully. We therefore use several transparent signals rather than pretending one number settles the question:
- Repository interest: GitHub stars and forks captured July 29, 2026; Pika Backup uses GNOME GitLab and is labeled separately.
- Project health: recent activity, current documentation, releases, and a reachable support or issue path.
- Platform reach: whether ordinary Windows, macOS, Linux, NAS, and server users can actually deploy it.
- Recovery fit: file history, selective restore, full-machine imaging, centralized management, verification, and disaster-recovery practicality.
- Security design: encryption, credential boundaries, delete resistance, and the ability to maintain an offline or independently controlled copy.
- Day-two reality: scheduling, alerts, retention, upgrades, capacity planning, and how much ongoing administration is required.
The star counts below measure interest in the listed repository—not active installations, restore success, support quality, or total historical adoption. Clonezilla and UrBackup are especially likely to be undercounted because the measured GitHub repositories are not their only distribution channels.
Community-interest snapshot
| Project | Stars | Forks | License status |
|---|---|---|---|
| restic | 35,230 | 1,822 | BSD-2-Clause |
| Duplicati | 14,834 | 1,057 | Open-source core plus proprietary directory; see warning |
| Kopia | 13,749 | 691 | Apache-2.0 |
| BorgBackup | 13,549 | 864 | BSD-3-Clause |
| Rescuezilla | 2,665 | 127 | GPL-3.0 |
| Back In Time | 2,637 | 296 | GPL-2.0-or-later |
| Bareos | 1,234 | 307 | AGPL-3.0 with project exceptions |
| Clonezilla repository | 978 | 122 | GPL-2.0 |
| UrBackup backend | 891 | 170 | AGPL-3.0-or-later |
| Pika Backup (GNOME GitLab) | 107 | 47 | GPL-3.0-only; counts are from a different platform |
Quick comparison
| Product | Best for | Style | Platforms | Encryption | Setup |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| restic | Technical home/office users | CLI file snapshots | Windows, macOS, Linux, BSD | Always encrypted/authenticated repository | 3/5 |
| Kopia | GUI plus cloud/NAS flexibility | GUI and CLI snapshots | Windows, macOS, Linux | Mandatory end-to-end encryption | 2–3/5 |
| Borg | Linux/Unix and SSH repositories | CLI archives | Linux, macOS, FreeBSD; Windows experimental | Optional authenticated encryption | 3–4/5 |
| Duplicati | Easy scheduled cloud backup | Web UI/service/CLI | Windows, macOS, Linux | Optional AES-256 or GPG | 2/5 |
| UrBackup | Several centrally managed PCs | Client/server files and images | Windows, Linux, macOS clients | Transport options; storage protection needs planning | 3–4/5 |
| Pika | Simple GNOME personal backup | Borg-powered GUI | Linux/GNOME | Encrypted Borg repository | 1–2/5 |
| Back In Time | Browseable Linux snapshots | rsync hard-link snapshots | Linux | Destination-dependent | 2/5 |
| Rescuezilla | Easy whole-drive images | Bootable GUI media | PC/Mac boot environment | Not a repository-encryption platform | 2/5 |
| Clonezilla | Technician imaging/deployment | Bootable text/menu workflow | Broad disk/filesystem support | Optional encrypted images | 4/5 |
| Bareos | Fleets, formal retention, tape | Enterprise client/server | Windows, Linux, macOS, BSD | Encrypted transport and backup options | 5/5 |
How to choose in 60 seconds
- Need yesterday’s deleted document? Choose a versioned file-backup tool such as Kopia, restic, Borg, Duplicati, Pika, Back In Time, UrBackup, or Bareos.
- Need a dead system drive restored quickly? Add Rescuezilla or Clonezilla—or a tested UrBackup image workflow—alongside frequent file backups.
- Need one dashboard for several PCs? Start with UrBackup. Consider Bareos only when an administrator will maintain a true backup platform.
- Need cloud/object storage and mixed operating systems? restic or Kopia are the strongest starting points.
- Need Linux to a controlled SSH server? Borg is exceptionally capable.
- Need tape, catalogs, media pools, and formal schedules? Bareos belongs on the shortlist.