borgmatic vs Burp
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
VS
Burp
Network backup and restore program for Unix and Windows
| Feature | borgmatic | Burp |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Read-the-docs project |
| Category | Backup & Recovery | Backup & Recovery |
| License | GPL-3.0 | AGPL-3.0 |
| Language | Python | C |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Hard |
| Min. RAM | 128 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | docker, binary | bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 2,000 | ★ 502 |
| First released | 2013 | 2011 |
| Replaces | CrashPlan, Backblaze | CrashPlan |
What are borgmatic and Burp?
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
Burp
Burp is a backup and restore program that uses librsync to save network and disk usage, while protecting against corruption. It supports client-side encryption and Windows VSS.
- librsync-based deduplication
- Client-side encryption
- Windows VSS support
borgmatic vs Burp: key differences
Borgmatic is written in Python, while Burp is built with C. Licensing differs — GPL-3.0 for borgmatic versus AGPL-3.0 for Burp. Borgmatic is the lighter option, starting around 128 MB of RAM against 256 MB for Burp. Burp is the more established project (first released 2011), while borgmatic arrived in 2013. Borgmatic has the considerably larger community, at 2,000 GitHub stars versus 502. Borgmatic lists first-class Docker deployment; Burp does not.
Why pick each one
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
Choose Burp if…
- Released under the AGPL-3.0 license
- Written in C
- Tiny footprint — runs in 256 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is borgmatic or Burp better?
borgmatic is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler medium setup. Consider Burp if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are borgmatic and Burp free and open-source?
Yes. borgmatic is licensed under GPL-3.0 and Burp under AGPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run borgmatic and Burp with Docker?
borgmatic: yes. Burp: check the project docs for container support.
Which is lighter on resources, borgmatic or Burp?
borgmatic has the smaller minimum footprint at 128 MB of RAM, compared to about 256 MB for Burp. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.