Kup vs Velero
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted backup & recovery options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
Not the right match-up?
Kup
KDE backup scheduler for personal files
VS
Velero
Backup and migrate Kubernetes cluster resources
| Feature | Kup | Velero |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Backup & Recovery | Backup & Recovery |
| License | GPL-2.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Language | C++ | Go |
| Setup difficulty | Easy | Hard |
| Min. RAM | 128 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | binary | kubernetes, helm |
| GitHub stars | ★ 100 | ★ 10,187 |
| First released | 2012 | 2017 |
| Replaces | Time Machine | Kasten K10 |
Why pick each one
Choose Kup if…
- Released under the GPL-2.0 license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- Written in C++
- Tiny footprint — runs in 128 MB RAM
Choose Velero if…
- Released under the Apache-2.0 license
- Kubernetes-ready with Helm charts available
- Mature project with 10.2k GitHub stars
- Written in Go
Frequently asked questions
Is Kup or Velero better?
Neither is universally better. Velero has the larger community, while Kup is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Kup and Velero free and open-source?
Yes. Kup is licensed under GPL-2.0 and Velero under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Kup and Velero with Docker?
Kup: check the project docs for container support. Velero: check the project docs for container support.