Bupstash vs Kopia
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted backup & recovery options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Kopia
Fast, encrypted backup with a clean interface
| Feature | Bupstash | Kopia |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Read-the-docs project | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 13 · At risk | 94 · Excellent |
| Category | Backup & Recovery | Backup & Recovery |
| License | MIT | Apache-2.0 |
| Language | Rust | Go |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 128 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | binary | binary, docker |
| GitHub stars | ★ 924 | ★ 14,188 |
| First released | 2020 | 2019 |
| Replaces | Backblaze, CrashPlan | Backblaze, Carbonite |
What are Bupstash and Kopia?
Bupstash
Bupstash is a tool for encrypted, deduplicated, and compressed backups. It is designed to be simple, secure, and efficient, storing backups locally or over SSH.
- Encrypted deduplicated backups
- Works over SSH
- Simple command-line interface
Kopia
Kopia is a fast and secure backup tool that creates encrypted, deduplicated snapshots and offers both a CLI and a desktop GUI. It targets users who want modern backups with a clean interface. It is deployed as a binary or via Docker.
- Encrypted deduplicated snapshots
- Both CLI and desktop GUI
- Many storage backends
- Compression and policies
Bupstash vs Kopia: key differences
Bupstash is written in Rust, while Kopia is built with Go. Licensing differs — MIT for Bupstash versus Apache-2.0 for Kopia. Bupstash is the lighter option, starting around 128 MB of RAM against 256 MB for Kopia. Kopia has the considerably larger community, at 14,188 GitHub stars versus 924. Kopia lists first-class Docker deployment; Bupstash does not.
Why pick each one
Choose Bupstash if…
- Released under the MIT license
- Written in Rust
- Tiny footprint — runs in 128 MB RAM
Choose Kopia if…
- GUI and CLI both available
- Fast and efficient
- Modern design
Watch out for
- Younger than Restic
- Advanced options can confuse
Frequently asked questions
Is Bupstash or Kopia better?
Kopia is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler easy setup. Consider Bupstash if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are Bupstash and Kopia free and open-source?
Yes. Bupstash is licensed under MIT and Kopia under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Bupstash and Kopia with Docker?
Bupstash: check the project docs for container support. Kopia: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, Bupstash or Kopia?
Bupstash has the smaller minimum footprint at 128 MB of RAM, compared to about 256 MB for Kopia. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.