(10 Recommendations) Top Backup Software for Windows and Mac in 2024 (Free & Paid)

How to Select Excellent Backup Software | Essential Guidelines

We always require reliable backup software for Mac and Windows to safeguard crucial data on our computers, such as images, videos, and documents. The concern lies in the potential loss of our data due to threats like viruses, hackers, ransomware, and even natural disasters.

Hence, having reliable backup software for both Mac and Windows is crucial to safeguard our data. But the question remains: how do we select the right backup software, and what attributes make it good? Let's delve into the details in the following explanation.

The qualities of good backup software:

• User-Friendly.
• Good compatibility.
• Wide range of applicable versions.
• Data Security and Compliance.
• Free or Cost-effective.

Having learned what makes good backup software, here are some top options for you.

[Back to Top](#2) 10 Best Software Tools for Backing Up Your Windows Computer and Mac

Since both Windows and Mac operating systems are widely utilized, yet not all software is compatible with both, I will present the top 10 most popular backup software for each platform individually to prevent any confusion. First, let's look at the top backup software for Windows: 1. tools Todo Backup: A comprehensive backup solution with support for system, disk, file, and email backup. 2. Acronis True Image: Offers full system backup, disk cloning, and cloud storage options. 3. Norton Ghost: Known for its reliable system imaging and file backup capabilities. 4. Macrium Reflect: Provides disk imaging, file and folder backup, and a user-friendly interface. 5. AOMEI Backupper: An all-in-one backup tool with system backup, disk backup, partition backup, and file backup features. 6. ShadowProtect: Focuses on quick and efficient system backups with bare-metal restore capabilities. 7. Backup Exec: A business-oriented solution that offers advanced backup and recovery features. 8. Windows Backup (built-in): Microsoft's native backup utility for creating system images and file backups. 9. Veeam Backup & Replication: Primarily designed for virtual environments, but also supports physical machine backups. 10. Clonezilla: A free, open-source disk cloning and imaging tool ideal for large-scale deployments. Now, let's move on to the top backup software for Mac: 1. Time Machine (built-in): Apple's built-in backup solution that creates hourly, daily, and weekly backups of your entire system. 2. Carbon Copy Cloner: A popular disk cloning tool for creating bootable backups of your Mac. 3. SuperDuper!: Another reliable disk cloning software with scheduling options and bootable clone creation. 4. Backblaze: A cloud-based backup service that securely stores your files offsite. 5. CrashPlan: Provides unlimited cloud backup with an easy-to-use interface. 6. Arq Backup: Supports multiple cloud storage providers and offers continuous data protection. 7. Duplicati: A free, open-source backup software with encryption and cloud storage support. 8. ChronoSync: Offers synchronization, backup, and bootable backups with a range of scheduling options. 9. Setapp: A subscription service that includes several backup and utility tools for Mac. 10.sparsebundlebackup: A command-line utility for creating sparse bundle backups, often used with Time Machine alternatives. Remember to choose the software that best suits your needs and budget, considering factors like backup type, storage location, and additional features.

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TOP1. Tools Todo Backup

Tag: Best for system/file backup, it also offers recovery and cloning options.

A comprehensive backup solution is Todo Backup Home. It enables you to back up your entire system and individual files to various destinations. With this tool, you can backup a file, system, disk, partition, Outlook emails, or create a system image to protect against unexpected data loss. Once the backup process is complete, you can store it on multiple locations like an external hard drive or cloud storage.

Pricing:

• Free: 250GB free storage, 30-day free trial
• Paid: $39.95/year for Home; $49.95/year for Business.

Features:

• Multiple backup storage devices
• Smart backup - full/incremental/differential backup
• 100% safe to protect data from ransomware
• High-speed backup

Cons: Many ads are present in the free version.

TOP2. IDrive

Tag: Backs up unlimited computers and mobile devices.

IDrive, a company based in California, has been in the backup industry since 1995. While its cloud backup offering may not be the most affordable or feature-packed option, it excels in all key aspects, such as pricing, advanced backup features, and performance.

Pricing:

• 1 TB: 69.5$/year; 139$ for two years
• 250 TB: 99.5$/year; 199$ for two years

Features:

• Expert Support
• Fast upload speeds
• User-friendly interface
• Backups for Office 365, MS SQL, MS Exchange, Oracle, and MS SharePoint.

Cons: Don't have massive storage requirements.

TOP3. Iperius Backup

Tag: Best for backup and protecting data.

Iperius Backup provides backup solutions and encrypted file protection against ransomware, with the ability to execute multiple parallel backups. There are no limitations or license expirations. Using the features of the free plan, you can perform incremental backups to NAS, HDD, USB, RDX, and the network.

Pricing:

1. Free Plan: Desktop (1 PC): $32; Desktop (3 PCs): $65
2. Essential: $76 with an additional five plans available.

Features:

• Send backups to Cloud Drive
• Offers Disk imaging
• File/Drive/FTP Backup

Cons: Only available for Windows OS

TOP4. Zoolz

Tag: Best for features such as file filtering, scheduling, file encryption during transfer, etc.

Using a cloud storage and backup solution for homeowners is referred to as Zoolz Home. This service allows you to back up your network drives, external disks, and computer systems, and it also provides long-term storage options. With Zoolz Home, you can securely store your data on the cloud indefinitely. Notably, it offers military-grade 256-bit AES encryption, ensuring the safety of your information.

Pricing: $19.95 per year

Features:

• Utilize AES 256 encryption to safeguard your data.
• Ability to filter files.
• Support for setting up scheduled backups.
• Available for Mac as well.

Cons: Lengthy file retrieval time.

TOP5: NovaBackup PC

Tag: Best for backing up systems, data, and directories.

An excellent backup solution for both small and large businesses is NovaBACKUP PC. The software supports advanced backup features such as NAS, Azure, AWS, and various cloud storage options. It stands out with its efficiency, as it can complete a 1TB hard disk download in just 11 hours, compared to the average 20 hours taken by other applications.

Pricing:

1. Free: 15-day free trial
2. Paid version: $49.95 - 299.95 per year

Features:

• Support for NAS, RDX, Single Tape, AWS, Azure, Wasabi, and Blackblaze
• Local and Cloud backups
• AES encryption
• Automatic backup

Cons: Incompatible with File Explorer; Not user-friendly

TOP6. Ashampoo® Backup Pro 15

Tag: Best compatibility for saving backups on a hard drive, USB stick, network drive, or cloud service.

For Windows platforms, there is backup software named Ashampoo® Backup Pro 15. This software is compatible with various storage options, including any hard drive, USB stick, network drive, or cloud service for saving your backups. It is a robust application with an intuitive and well-designed interface.

Pricing: $49.99 one-time payment.

Features:

• Utilize a bootable rescue system
• It includes functionalities for restoring backups
• Maple storage configurations

Cons: Only available for Windows 10.

TOP7. Cobian Backup

Tag: Best for system/file/FTP backup.

Cobian Backup is a free backup software that provides a comprehensive set of features. The program allows you to back up files and folders to various locations, including network destinations. It also supports network backups and FTP functionality, enabling remote system backup.

Pricing: Free

Features:

• Supports simultaneous backup of multiple devices
• Incremental and differential backup
• Strong encryption to protect your data

Cons: No technical support available

TOP8. Tools Todo Backup for Mac

Tag: Best for system/file backup, cloning, upgrading, or transferring your system.

Todo Backup for Mac is a software specifically designed for Mac users. Its intelligent backup feature, along with other professional functions like system imaging and cloning, sets it apart from the competition. It allows backups to be scheduled on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis. It offers full backup, incremental backup, and differential backup options.

Pricing:

1. Home: $39.99/year
2. Business: $49/year

Features:

• Fast Backup and recovery speed
• File/system/partition/disk backup
• Transfer the system to another PC
• Security Zone Backup

Cons: The home version does not support Windows Server, centralized management, or SQL/Exchange backup and restore.

TOP9. Time Machine

Tag: Best for Incremental File Backups.

Apple's Time Capsule, along with their Airport routers, is being discontinued, but the hardware was originally designed for use with Time Machine. Despite this, Time Machine will remain supported and compatible with other external hard drives, ensuring its status as a leading backup option for years to come.

Time Machine is a complimentary feature in macOS that creates backups of your files and folders onto a connected or networked hard drive. It offers convenience, utilizes a local hard disk, and continuously backs up your files as they are modified or created, ensuring minimal loss in case of any disaster.

Pricing: 49.99$ for 1000GB; 69.99$ for 2000GB; 249.99$ for 8000GB;

Features:

• Pictures were taken locally when storage permitted
• Daily backups are performed hourly
• Backups from the previous week are retained daily
• Monthly backups are done weekly for the preceding months

Cons: Too costly

TOP10. SuperDuper

Tag: Best for full bootable backup and mirror image.

SuperDuper has been in existence for over 14 years. It is designed to efficiently update only the files that have been added or modified. This powerful tool can create a bootable drive that mirrors the internal drive of your Mac. In case of an emergency, you can use this drive to start your computer and continue with your regular activities uninterrupted. When you purchase a new drive, you can utilize SuperDuper to restore all your files onto it seamlessly.

Pricing: Free

Features:

• Supports hourly, daily, weekly, monthly, and more backup intervals.
• Enables the setup of scheduled backup tasks.
• Provides guided setup and restoration for effortless retrieval of lost data.

Cons: complex interface

Final Thought

Upon reading this article, you will likely discover the top 10 backup software for Mac and Windows. I highly recommend using Todo Backup as it offers both Windows and Mac versions. In terms of cost, it provides great value, and in terms of functionality, it fulfills almost all my requirements, such as backup, system imaging, data recovery, and cloning.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. Does Microsoft back up your data? Microsoft does provide backup services for certain data, depending on the specific product or service you're using. For example, OneDrive offers automatic backup for files and folders, and Azure Backup provides backup solutions for cloud-based workloads and on-premises servers. However, it's essential to understand that different Microsoft services have varying backup policies and retention periods. It's always recommended to familiarize yourself with the specific backup and recovery options provided by the service you're using and, if necessary, implement additional backup measures to ensure data safety.

Contrary to popular belief, Microsoft does provide a straightforward backup solution. Your Office 365 data is backed up by the company every 12 hours and retained for a period of 14 days. In the event of a ransomware attack, for example, you can reach out to Microsoft, and they will assist you in restoring your data.

2. Does Windows 10 have built-in backup software? Yes, Windows 10 does come with built-in backup software. It's called "Backup and Restore" and can be found in the Control Panel. This feature allows you to create backups of your files, system settings, and programs to an external hard drive or a network location. Additionally, Windows 10 also has a feature called "File History" that continuously backs up your files to an external storage device, enabling you to restore them easily if needed.

While there are numerous third-party tools available, Windows 10 comes equipped with the classic Backup and Restore feature right out of the box, allowing you to create automatic full backups at regular intervals.