Minarca 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?
Minarca
Cross-platform backup software with a central server
VS
Velero
Backup and migrate Kubernetes cluster resources
| Feature | Minarca | Velero |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Backup & Recovery | Backup & Recovery |
| License | GPL-3.0 | Apache-2.0 |
| Language | Python | Go |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Hard |
| Min. RAM | 512 MB | 256 MB |
| Deployment | docker, bare-metal | kubernetes, helm |
| GitHub stars | ★ 100 | ★ 10,187 |
| First released | 2015 | 2017 |
| Replaces | CrashPlan | Kasten K10 |
Why pick each one
Choose Minarca if…
- Released under the GPL-3.0 license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Written in Python
- Lightweight — runs in 512 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 Minarca or Velero better?
Neither is universally better. Velero has the larger community, while Minarca is simpler to set up (medium difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Minarca and Velero free and open-source?
Yes. Minarca is licensed under GPL-3.0 and Velero under Apache-2.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Minarca and Velero with Docker?
Minarca: yes. Velero: check the project docs for container support.