BackupNinja vs borgmatic
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted backup & recovery options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
borgmatic
Simple configuration-driven frontend for BorgBackup
| Feature | BackupNinja | borgmatic |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Read-the-docs project | Under-an-hour setup |
| Status | Archived | Actively maintained |
| Category | Backup & Recovery | Backup & Recovery |
| License | GPL-2.0 | GPL-3.0 |
| Language | Shell | Python |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 64 MB | 128 MB |
| Deployment | bare-metal | docker, binary |
| GitHub stars | ★ 68 | ★ 2,000 |
| First released | 2004 | 2013 |
| Replaces | CrashPlan | CrashPlan, Backblaze |
What are BackupNinja and borgmatic?
BackupNinja
Backupninja lets you coordinate system backups through a central configuration directory of simple files. It supports many backends including rdiff-backup, rsync, duplicity, and database dumps.
- Central config directory
- Many backup backends
- Database dump handlers
borgmatic
borgmatic is a command-line tool that wraps BorgBackup to make it easy to schedule and configure backups. It adds features like database dumps, monitoring hooks, and consistency checks.
- Declarative YAML configuration
- Database backup integration
- Monitoring service hooks
BackupNinja vs borgmatic: key differences
The biggest difference is maintenance: BackupNinja's repository is archived and no longer developed, while borgmatic is actively maintained. BackupNinja is written in Shell, while borgmatic is built with Python. Licensing differs — GPL-2.0 for BackupNinja versus GPL-3.0 for borgmatic. BackupNinja is the lighter option, starting around 64 MB of RAM against 128 MB for borgmatic. BackupNinja is the more established project (first released 2004), while borgmatic arrived in 2013. Borgmatic has the considerably larger community, at 2,000 GitHub stars versus 68. Borgmatic lists first-class Docker deployment; BackupNinja does not.
Why pick each one
Choose BackupNinja if…
- Released under the GPL-2.0 license
- Written in Shell
- Tiny footprint — runs in 64 MB RAM
Choose borgmatic if…
- Released under the GPL-3.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Active community (2k GitHub stars)
- Written in Python
Frequently asked questions
Is BackupNinja or borgmatic better?
Neither is universally better. borgmatic has the larger community; both share a medium setup difficulty, so the decision comes down to features and licensing.
Are BackupNinja and borgmatic free and open-source?
Yes. BackupNinja is licensed under GPL-2.0 and borgmatic under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run BackupNinja and borgmatic with Docker?
BackupNinja: check the project docs for container support. borgmatic: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, BackupNinja or borgmatic?
BackupNinja has the smaller minimum footprint at 64 MB of RAM, compared to about 128 MB for borgmatic. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.