Losing all your files, photos, and emails is not a gamble that most people want to take. Therefore, you need one of the 5 best backup software options to keep your stuff safe!
- Mac Backup Software Reviews
- Free Backup Software Download
- Best Free Mac Backup Software 2019
- Best Free Backup Software Mac Os X
- Best Free Backup Software For Mac
Jun 23, 2020 Acronis True Image 2020 – All-Around Best Backup Software for All Devices. For quite a few years now Acronis True Image has stood out as the clear winner among backup software programs. It is by far the best backup software for Windows 10 and the best Mac backup software. Its cross-platform availability is just the beginning. Download and install the best free apps for Backup Software on Windows, Mac, iOS, and Android from CNET Download.com, your trusted source for the top software picks. A file backup software can be used to backup all the important files that you have. Certain file based data backup software will allow users to backup some parts of the file or the entire drive. These full backup software or file backup software, free download are very easy to use and will enable the users to schedule the backup process so that it doesn’t have to be done every time specifically. Here we have gathered the top 10 free iPhone 11 backup software for Windows and Mac. The tools will enable you to backup iPhone without iTunes or iCloud. Have a look at the list and decide which tool suits the best for your needs. Top 1: UltFone iOS Data Manager - Best Free iPhone Backup Software.
Read on for the detailed analysis of each app.
AOMEI Backupper Professional - Best Windows Backup Software
AOMEI Backupper Professional is our choice for the best Windows backup software because it is loaded with features but also sports a clean, easy interface for novice users. The menu of features includes mirror imaging, file/folder backups, partition, and full-disk backups, disk cloning, along with the ability to compress files or split large backup files into small pieces. It handles real-time synchronization (even on open files) and scheduling with ease.
The price for AOMEI Backupper Professional is only $39.95, which won’t break the bank, but they do have a scaled-down free version as well. However, now the bad news, AOMEI isn’t the fastest backup software (although it also didn’t consume a lot of resources), it has no cloud support and only works on Windows machines. There is no built-in support, so users are on their own when figuring out how to navigate the UI.
Acronis True Image 2020 – All-Around Best Backup Software for All Devices
For quite a few years now Acronis True Image has stood out as the clear winner among backup software programs. It is by far the best backup software for Windows 10 and the best Mac backup software. Its cross-platform availability is just the beginning. It has dozens of other features that make it the best when looking for reliable, flexible, and feature-rich backup software.
Not only does Acronis True Image offer powerful backup features including disk cloning, file versioning, mirror imaging, file/folder-level backups, all-in-one recovery drives, it also protects against malware, ransomware, crypto-jacking in real-time and offers blockchain data notarization.
The bonus features of Acronis True Image are cloud syncing (for off-site storage and recovery) and remote access. It checks all the boxes of scheduling, versioning, and efficient use of resources. As a bonus, it works on all devices from Android and iOS to Windows and Mac machines. It is virtually the Swiss Army knife of backup programs. You can backup to just about any destination drive, local or remote and keep tabs on what Wi-Fi network you are connected to when backing up.
However, for all this greatness, you will have to pay a hefty $49.99. The only other downside is that with this much power comes an extensive interface with lots of options. Some users may find it a bit overwhelming.
EaseUS ToDo Backup Home - Best Free Backup Software
Another excellent contender is EaseUS Todo Backup Home. The free version offers a lot of great features. Out of the box, you can easily backup files, folders, email, and documents. You can even backup an entire partition or hard drive along with an Android device. EaseUS Todo Backup Home easily handles incremental or full backups and also offers a cloud sync component where you can backup to Google Drive, Dropbox, and other cloud destinations.
The easy-to-use wizard makes setting up a backup schedule quick and easy, and you can compress your backup files to save space. However, some of the more advanced features are only available with the paid version. For Windows users, the cost is $29/year, and for Mac users, the price is $29.95 with free lifetime upgrades. The paid version also provides email alerts, backup to USB, and transfers to new PCs. The interface is clean and straightforward, but it can’t do simple file backups or sync, and that is our only complaint.
NovaBackup PC - Best PC Backup Software
NovaBackup PC NovaBackup PC provides excellent protection for your PC and all your files, music, images, and documents. One of the most desirable features of this one is its security. It runs locally, never connecting to the internet and can add AES 256-bit encryption to your backups for additional protection.
With NovaBackup PC you have the option to backup files, folders, partitions, and entire hard drives but it also includes virus scanning, email notifications, and you can restore disk images onto dissimilar hardware, a key feature worth considering.
The big downside to NovaBackup PC is that they charge an annual subscription fee. You cannot just buy the software outright. The cost is $49.95/year, per computer. Sorry Mac users, NovaBackup PC only works on Windows machines.
Paragon Backup and Recovery Advanced
Paragon Backup and Recovery software is another interesting option. Not only does it handle the regular tasks of file/folder backups, disk imaging, partitions, and whole disk backups, it also handles complex backup scenarios. The backup job wizard expertly guides you through selecting your source files and backup destination. You can even back up to a USB drive and save things as an ISO file.
Now for the exciting part. A feature that we love about Paragon is that it backs up using virtual drives (pVHD, VMware’s, or VHD/VHDX) all supported by Windows. What this means is, that if your hard drive crashes, you can pull files from your backup without having to perform an entire restore. The simple interface is easy-to-use and clean, and most users will have no trouble figuring out what to do to set up their backup schedules.
The price is a bit steep, $49.95 but you get a lot for that cost. They don’t offer any cloud storage options which is a negative, but you do get backup file compression features and split size options as well.
How to Choose the Best Backup Software
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Before we dig into the best backup software options, let’s consider what makes a backup program better than the rest.
- Flexibility – one of the most essential features of a good backup program is that it needs to be flexible. Look for software that allows you to back up a single file or an entire disk and save to multiple locations.
- Reliability – does it run on time every day? Have you tried restoring files and does it work flawlessly? Again, reliability is one of the top features to look for in backup software.
- Scheduling – be sure you can run automatic backup on a schedule.
- Versioning – the sign of a really good backup program is that it keeps dated versions so you can restore your files back to an exact place in time.
- Support – how good is the product support if you need help?
- Performance – if the program uses critical resources and slows down your computer, then it may not be the best option.
- FTP or Cloud Backup – look for software that allows you to back up to an FTP site or cloud destination.
- Support for Mobile Devices – backing up your mobile devices is a bonus feature to keep your eye on as well.
The Bottom Line
When it comes to backing up mobile devices, your best option is always the cloud-based sync. The best iPhone backup software is the built-in Apple iCloud which you just set and forget, and you’re all set. You can also do a quick backup on the fly if you need to.
The best Android backup software is by far Google Sync, which again is something you turn on and then don’t have to worry about. Google takes care of syncing your device continuously, so you never miss a thing, and when you get a new phone, all your stuff is restored magically.
For your Windows PC or Mac, you have a lot of great options for backup software, and it all boils down to balancing price with the features that are most important to you. Our top pick across the board is Acronis True Image.
Why You Should Trust Us
I’m Adrian Try, and I’ve been using and abusing computers for decades. I’ve used quite a variety of backup apps and strategies, and I’ve suffered a few disasters as well. As a tech support guy, I’ve come across dozens of people whose computer died without having a backup. They lost everything. Learn from their mistake!
Over the decades I’ve backed up onto floppy disks, Zip drives, CDs, DVDs, external hard drives and network drives. I’ve used PC Backup for DOS, Cobian Backup for Windows and Time Machine for Mac. I’ve used command line solutions using DOS’s xcopy and Linux’s rsync, and Clonezilla, a bootable Linux CD capable of cloning hard drives. But despite all of this, things have still gone wrong, and I’ve lost data. Here are a couple of stories.
On the day my second child was born, I came home from the hospital to discover that our house had been broken into, and our computers stolen. The excitement of the day vanished instantly. Fortunately, I had backed up my computer the previous day, and left the tall pile of floppies on my desk, right next to my laptop. That was too convenient for the thieves, who took my backup as well—a good example of why it’s good to keep your backups in a different location.
Many years later, my teenage son asked to borrow my wife’s spare USB hard drive. The first thing he did was format it, without even glancing at the contents first. Unfortunately, he picked up my backup hard drive by mistake, and I lost the lot again. I discovered clearly labeling your backup drives is a very good idea.
These days Time Machine constantly backs up anything I change to an external hard drive. In addition, most of my files are also stored online and on multiple devices. That’s a lot of very valuable redundancy. It’s been quite a while since I’ve lost anything important.
What You Need to Know Up-Front about Computer Backups
1. Back Up Regularly
How often should you back up? Well, how much work are you comfortable losing? A week? A day? An hour? How much do you value your time? How much do you hate doing your work twice?
It’s good practice to back up your files daily, and even more often if you’re working on a critical project. On my iMac, Time Machine is constantly backing up behind the scenes, so as soon as I create or modify a document, it’s copied to an external hard drive.
2. Types of Backup
Not all backup software works in the same way, and there are several strategies used to make a second copy of your data.
A local backup copies your files and folders to an external hard drive plugged into your computer or somewhere on your network. If you lose a file or folder, you can restore it quickly. Backing up all of your files on a regular basis is time-consuming, so you may want to copy just the files that have changed since you last backed up. That’s known as an incremental backup.
A bootable clone, or disk image, creates an exact duplicate of your hard drive, including your operating system and software. If your hard drive fails, you can boot directly from your backup hard drive and get straight back to work.
A cloud backup is like a local backup, but your files are stored online rather than on a local hard drive. That way, if your computer is taken out by fire, flood or theft, your backup will still be available. Your initial backup may take days or weeks to complete, and you’ll need to pay an ongoing fee for the storage, but they are worthwhile. We’ll cover cloud backup solutions in a separate review.
3. Offsite Backup is Crucial
Some disasters that can take out your computer may also take out your backup. That includes natural disasters like fire and flood, and as I discovered, theft.
When I worked in a bank’s data center in the 80s, we’d fill suitcases with dozens of tape backups, and carry them to the next branch where we stored them in a fireproof safe. The suitcases were heavy, and it was hard work. These days, offsite backup is much easier.
One option is cloud backup, and as I said, we’ve covered those online backup services in a separate review. Another option is to use several hard drives for your disk images and store one at a different location.
4. Syncing Your Files is Helpful, but Not True Backup
Now that most of us use multiple devices—desktops, laptops, smartphones, and tablets—many of our documents are synchronized between those devices via the cloud. I personally use iCloud, Dropbox, Google Drive and more.
That makes me feel more secure and is helpful. If I drop my phone into the ocean, all of my files will magically reappear on my new one. But syncing services are not true backup.
One major problem is that if you delete or change a file on one device, the file will be deleted or changed on all of your devices. While some syncing services allow you to return to a previous version of a document, it’s best to use a comprehensive backup strategy as well.
5. A Good Backup Strategy Involves Several Backup Types
A thorough backup strategy will involve performing a number of backups using different methods, and possibly different apps. At a minimum, I recommend you keep a local backup of your files, a clone of your drive, and some sort of offsite backup, either online or by storing an external hard drive at a different address.
Who Should Back Up Their Computer? Everyone.
Everyone should back up their computer. All sorts of things can happen that result in data loss. No one is immune, so you should be prepared.
What could possibly go wrong?
- You could delete the wrong file or format the wrong drive.
- You could modify an important document, and decide that you prefer it the way it was.
- Some of your files could become corrupt due to a hard drive or file system problem.
- Your computer or hard drive could suddenly and unexpectedly die.
- You could drop your laptop. I’ve laughed at a few YouTube videos of laptops being dropped in the ocean or being left on the roof of a car.
- Your computer could be stolen. It happened to me. I never got it back.
- Your building could burn down. Smoke, fire and sprinklers are not healthy for computers.
- You could be attacked by a virus or hacker.
Sorry if that sounds negative. I hope none of those things ever happen to you, but I can’t guarantee it. So it’s best to prepare for the worst. I once met a lady whose computer crashed the day before her major university assignment was due, and lost everything. Don’t let that happen to you.
How We Tested and Picked
Mac Backup Software Reviews
1. What types of backup can the app create?
Does the app backup your files and folders, or create a clone of your hard drive? We include apps that can perform both types of backup, and some can do both. In this roundup we won’t include apps that back up to the cloud—those apps deserve their own review.
2. What types of media can it back up to?
Can the app back up to external hard drives or network-attached storage? CDs and DVDs are slower and offer less storage than these, so are rarely used today. Spinning drives are larger and less expensive than SSDs, so are a good medium for backup.
3. How easy is the software to set up and use?
Creating a backup system is initially a big job, so apps that make setup easy score extra points. Then implementing your backup strategy takes diligence, so apps that offer a choice between automatic, scheduled and manual backups can make your life much easier.
Backups can be time-consuming, so it’s helpful not to have to back up all of your files each time. Apps that offer incremental backups can save you hours.
And finally, some apps offer sequential backups. These are multiple dated backup copies, so you are not overwriting a good file on your backup disk with one that has just become corrupt. That way you’re more likely to have an uncorrupt version on one of your drives.
4. How easy is it to restore your data using the app?
The whole point of all of these backups is to recover your files if something ever goes wrong. How easy does the app make it to do this? It’s good to experiment and find this out in advance. Create a test file, delete it, and try to restore it.
5. Cost
Backup is an investment in the value of your data, and worth paying for. It’s a type of insurance that will minimize the inconvenience you’ll suffer if (or when) something goes wrong.
Backup apps cover a range of prices, from free to $50 or more:
- Apple Time Machine, free
- Get Backup Pro, $19.99
- SuperDuper!, free, or $27.95 for all features
- Mac Backup Guru, $29.00
- Carbon Copy Cloner, $39.99
- Acronis True Image 2019, $49.99
Above is what the apps we recommend cost, sorted from cheapest to most expensive.
The Winners
Best Choice for Incremental File Backups: Time Machine
Many people don’t back up their computers because it can be difficult and a little technical to set up, and in the busyness of life, people just don’t get around to doing it. Apple’s Time Machine was designed to change all of that. It’s built into the operating system, easy to set up, and works in the background 24-7, so you don’t have to remember to do it.
Time Machine was originally designed to work with Apple’s Time Capsule hardware, which, along with their Airport routers is being discontinued. But the Time Machine software will continue to be supported and works with other hard drives. It should remain an excellent backup option for years to come.
Time Machine is included free with macOS
“Time Machine backs up all of your files to an external storage device so that you can restore them later or see how they looked in the past.”
Time Machine backs up your files and folders to a hard drive connected to your computer or on your network. It’s convenient, uses a local hard drive, and constantly backs up your files as they change or are created, so you’ll lose very little (probably nothing) when disaster hits. And importantly, restoring individual files and folders is easy.
Here’s how Apple Support describes the app:
“With Time Machine, you can back up your entire Mac, including system files, apps, music, photos, emails, and documents. When Time Machine is turned on, it automatically backs up your Mac and performs hourly, daily, and weekly backups of your files.”
“When you use Time Machine on a computer using Apple File System (APFS), Time Machine not only keeps a copy of everything on your backup disk, it also saves local snapshots of files that have changed on your internal disk, so you can recover previous versions. These local snapshots are saved hourly (unless you deselect Back Up Automatically) and they’re stored on your computer’s internal disk.”
The app is very easy to set up. When you first connect a blank hard drive, you may be asked if you’d like to use the drive to back up your computer. Alternatively, click on the Time Machine icon at the left of your menu bar, and select Open Time Machine Preferences.
Once you have set up the software, Time Machine keeps:
- Local snapshots as space permits,
- Hourly backups for the last 24 hours,
- Daily backups for the past month,
- Weekly backups for all previous months.
So there’s a lot of redundancy there. Although it uses more storage space, it’s a good thing. If you’ve just discovered something went wrong with one of your files months ago, there’s a good chance you’ll still have an older good copy still backed up.
I back up my 1TB internal hard drive (which is currently half full) to an external 2TB drive. 1TB isn’t enough, because there will be multiple copies of each file. I’m currently using 1.25TB of my backup drive.
Restoring a file or folder is quick and easy. Select Enter Time Machine from the menu bar icon.
Helpfully, the Time Machine interface looks just like Finder, with previous versions of your folder going off into the background.
You can move back through time by clicking on the title bars of the windows in the background, the buttons on the right, or the calendar on the far right.
When you find the file you’re after, you can have a look at it, get more information, restore it, or copy it. The ability to “quick look” at a file before restoring is useful, so you can make sure it is the desired version of the file you’re looking for.
Best Choice for Hard Drive Cloning: Carbon Copy Cloner
Bombich Software’s Carbon Copy Cloner is a more capable backup app with a more complex interface, though “Simple Mode” is also available, allowing you to back up your drive in three clicks. Significantly, the app allows you to back up your computer in an additional way: by creating an exact clone of your Mac’s hard drive.
Carbon Copy Cloner can create a bootable drive that mirrors your Mac’s internal drive, and then update only the files that have been added or modified. In a disaster, you will be able to start up your computer with this drive and work as normal, then restore your files onto a new drive once you purchase one.
A Personal & Household license is $39.99 from the developer’s website (one-time fee), covering all computers in the household. Corporate purchasing is also available, starting at the same price per computer. A 30-day trial is available.
Where Time Machine is great at restoring files and folders that have vanished or gone wrong, Carbon Copy Cloner is the app you want when you have to restore your entire drive, say when you’ve had to replace your hard drive or SSD due to a failure, or you’ve bought a new Mac. And because your backup is a bootable drive that’s a mirror image of your main drive when disaster hits and your main drive fails, all you need to do is reboot your computer from your backup, and you’re up and running.
All of that makes the two apps complementary rather than competitors. In fact, I recommend you use both. You can never have too many backups!
This app has more features than Time Machine, so its interface is more complex. But Bomtich has made their app as intuitive as possible by using four strategies:
1. They’ve tweaked the app’s interface to make it as easy to use as possible.
2. They’ve provided a “Simple Mode” interface that can perform a backup in three clicks.
3. The “Cloning Coach” will alert you to any configuration concerns and concerns about your backup strategy.
4. They also offer guided setup and restore, so that getting back your lost information is as easy as possible.
Besides making the interface easy to use, you can automatically keep your backups up-to-date by scheduling them. Carbon Copy Cloner can back up your data hourly, daily, weekly, monthly and more. You can specify what type of backup is to be done, and chain together groups of scheduled tasks.
The Competition and Comparisons
SuperDuper! (Bootable Backups)
Shirt Pocket’s SuperDuper! v3 is an alternative to Carbon Copy Cloner. It’s a simpler app, where many of the features are free, and the full app is more affordable. SuperDuper! has been around for a healthy 14 years, and although new features have been added, the app looks a little dated.
The interface is very easy to use. Just choose which drive to back up, which drive to clone it onto, and the type of backup you want to perform. Like Carbon Copy Cloner, it will create a fully bootable backup, and can update it with just the changes you’ve made since the last backup.
Download SuperDuper! for free from the developer’s website. Pay $27.95 to unlock scheduling, smart update, sandboxes, scripting and more.
ChronoSync (Syncing, File Backup)
Econ Technologies ChronoSync 4 is a versatile app with many talents. It can synchronize files between your computers, backup your files and folders, and create a bootable clone of your hard drive. This one app can perform every type of backup you need.
Restoring files backed up by ChronoSync can be as easy as browsing for the backed up file using Finder and copying it, or using the app itself to sync your files back to your hard drive.
You can schedule your backups to take place at a regular time, or whenever you connect a specific hard drive to your computer. It is able to back up only the files that have changed since your last backup, and can copy multiple files simultaneously to speed up the operation.
$49.99 from the Econ Store. Bundles and student discounts are available. ChronoSync Express (an entry-level version that can’t do bootable backups) is $24.99 from the Mac App Store. ChronoSync Express is included with a SetApp subscription. A 15-day free trial is available.
Acronis True Image (Disk Cloning)
Acronis True Image 2019 for Mac is another alternative to Carbon Copy Cloner, allowing you to make cloned images of your hard drive. The more expensive plans also include online backup.
True Image is a little more expensive than Carbon Copy Cloner, and aimed more at corporations than individuals and small businesses. It lacks a personal license that allows you to use the app on all your computers. The app costs $79.99 for three computers, and $99.99 for five.
You use the app through an intuitive dashboard, and the restore feature allows you to quickly recover your entire drive, or just the files you need.
Acronis True Image 2019 Standard (single license) costs $49.99 (per computer) from the developer’s website. A 30-day free trial is available.
Mac Backup Guru (Bootable Backups)
MacDaddy’s Mac Backup Guru is another app that creates a bootable disk image of your main drive. In fact, it supports three different types of backup: direct cloning, synchronization, and incremental snapshots. You can use it to backup either your complete hard drive, or just the folders you specify.
What makes it different is that it can continually keep that backup in sync with any new changes you make, or alternatively keep incremental backups that don’t overwrite older backups with your changes, in case you need to go back to an earlier version of a document. It’s also a little less expensive than its competitors.
$29 from the developer’s website. A free trial is available.
Get Backup Pro (Disk Cloning, Folder Sync)
Belight Software’s Get Backup Pro is the most affordable app on our list (not including Apple’s free Time Machine), and it offers you a range of backup types, including incremental and compressed file backups, bootable cloned backups, and folder synchronization. It’s another app that may do everything you need.
Free Backup Software Download
“Backup, clone, archive, sync—all in one app.”
Backup and sync can be scheduled, and the app supports external or network drives, as well as CDs or DVDs. Backup templates let you include data from iTunes, Photos, Mail, Contacts and your Documents folder. You can encrypt your backups for additional security.
The app is easy to use, including when it comes time to restore your files. You’re even able to restore your files onto a computer that doesn’t have the app installed.
$19.99 from the developer’s website, or included in a SetApp subscription. A free trial is available.
Free Alternatives
1. Free Apps
Best Free Mac Backup Software 2019
We’ve already mentioned a few free ways to backup your Mac: Apple’s Time Machine comes preinstalled with macOS, and SuperDuper!’s free version is able to do quite a lot. You can also perform a quick and dirty backup using Finder, by dragging your files to an external drive.
Here are a couple of additional free backup apps that you may like to consider:
- FreeFileSync is a free and open source app that creates backups by syncing your changes to an external drive.
- BackupList+ can create full system clones, regular backups, incremental backups and disk images can be performed. It’s useful, but not as user-friendly as some of the other apps.
Some cloud backup providers allow you to back up your computer locally with their software for free. We’ll cover those apps in a future review.
2. Use the Command Line
If you’re more technically inclined, you can bypass apps and use the command line to perform backups. There are a number of commands that are helpful for doing this, and by placing these in a shell script, you’ll only have to set things up once.
Useful commands include:
- cp, the standard Unix copy command,
- tmutil, which allows you to control Time Machine from the command line,
- ditto, which copies files and folders intelligently from the command line,
- rsync, which can back up what has changed since the last backup, even partial files,
- asr (apply software restore), which allows you to restore your files from the command line,
- hdiutil, which allows you to mount a disk image from the command line.
Best Free Backup Software Mac Os X
If you’d like to learn how to use the command line to roll your own backup system, refer to these helpful articles and forum discussions:
Best Free Backup Software For Mac
- Mac 101: Learn the Power of rsync for Backup, Remote, Archive Systems – Macsales
- Backup to external HDD with terminal commands – Stack Overflow
- Control Time Machine from the command line – Macworld
- Make Back Ups from the Command Line in Mac OS X with These 4 Tricks – OSXDaily