Top Tarsnap Alternatives for Secure Cloud Backup
Tarsnap, developed by Dr. Colin Percival, has been a reliable choice for online backup since its public beta in 2008, known for its security and efficiency. Built around the libarchive library and utilizing Amazon Web Services infrastructure, Tarsnap offers a robust solution for those prioritizing data integrity and privacy. However, like any specialized software, users may seek a Tarsnap alternative for various reasons, including pricing, specific feature sets, or broader platform compatibility. This guide explores some of the best alternatives available today.
Top Tarsnap Alternatives
Whether you're looking for a more user-friendly interface, unlimited storage, or a different pricing model, there are many excellent cloud backup and synchronization services that can serve as a compelling Tarsnap alternative. Let's dive into some of the top contenders.
BackBlaze
Backblaze is a commercial online backup service offering unlimited space for a flat monthly fee, making it a strong Tarsnap alternative for users who want a simple, set-and-forget solution. It encrypts and uploads all your data without requiring file selection, and is available on Mac and Windows, providing features like Cloud Storage, Incremental backup, Remote backup, and Encrypted sync.
Dropbox
Dropbox is a world-leading freemium online storage and file sync service, offering 2GB free space and apps for nearly all major platforms including Mac, Windows, Linux, Web, Android, and iOS. As a Tarsnap alternative, it excels in file synchronization, sharing, and collaborative features, including selective synchronization, real-time synchronization, and integrations with Office Online.
Google Drive
Google Drive is a comprehensive freemium file storage and synchronization service that integrates deeply with Google's ecosystem, making it a powerful Tarsnap alternative for collaboration. Available on Mac, Windows, Web, Android, and iOS, it offers cloud storage, file sharing, collaborative editing, and features like GSuite Integration, automatic conversion to multiple formats, and offline access.
Duplicati
Duplicati is a free and open-source backup client that stands out as a strong Tarsnap alternative for users seeking encrypted, incremental, and compressed backups to various destinations including local, cloud, and remote file servers. It's cross-platform (Mac, Windows, Linux) and boasts features like encrypted backups, scheduled backups, data deduplication, and support for Amazon Glacier and Google Drive.
Box
Box is a freemium platform for secure content management, workflow, and collaboration, making it a business-oriented Tarsnap alternative. Available across Mac, Windows, Web, Android, and iOS, Box offers robust features like Office Online integration, sync between devices, file sharing, team collaboration, and unlimited storage for certain plans, focusing on enterprise-grade security.
MediaFire
MediaFire is a freemium cloud storage service focusing on simple file uploading and downloading, offering unlimited bandwidth. While perhaps a simpler Tarsnap alternative, it provides a straightforward cloud storage solution for users on Mac, Windows, Linux, Web, Android, and iPhone, primarily for sharing and quick access to files.
Spideroak One Backup
SpiderOak One Backup is a commercial online backup, storage, access, sharing & sync tool renowned for its “No Knowledge” privacy policy, making it an excellent security-focused Tarsnap alternative. Available for Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux, it features end-to-end encryption, encrypted backups, file versioning, incremental backup, and automatic backup with unlimited storage.
Yandex.Disk
Yandex.Disk is a freemium cloud storage service that provides access to your files from any internet-enabled device, serving as a versatile Tarsnap alternative. It offers file-sync, backup, file sharing, and integrated search across Mac, Windows, Linux, Web, Android, and iPhone, with a strong focus on security and support for WebDAV.
CrashPlan
CrashPlan offers automatic data loss protection primarily for small businesses, available as a commercial solution for Windows and Web. As a Tarsnap alternative, it provides encrypted backups, incremental backups, AES encryption, automatic backup, file versioning, and unlimited storage, making it ideal for continuous, worry-free data protection.
BackBlaze
Backblaze is highlighted again for its simplicity and unlimited space offering for a low monthly fee. As a direct Tarsnap alternative, it simplifies online backup by encrypting and uploading all your data without complex configurations. It supports Mac and Windows and features include cloud storage, incremental backup, remote backup, and encrypted sync.
Tonido
Tonido offers private file sharing, sync, and mobile access for home and business, making it a unique self-hosted Tarsnap alternative. Available across Mac, Windows, Linux, Web, Android, and iOS, it allows users to access, sync, and share all their documents, photos, music, and videos from anywhere, with no storage limits, emphasizing privacy and control over your data.
The best Tarsnap alternative ultimately depends on your specific needs, whether that's robust security, unlimited storage, multi-platform compatibility, or cost-effectiveness. Explore these options to find the perfect cloud backup solution that aligns with your data management priorities.