pgBackRest vs Timeshift
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?
pgBackRest
Reliable backup and restore solution for PostgreSQL
VS
Timeshift
System restore tool for Linux using snapshots
| Feature | pgBackRest | Timeshift |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Backup & Recovery | Backup & Recovery |
| License | MIT | GPL-3.0 |
| Language | C | Vala |
| Setup difficulty | Hard | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 128 MB |
| Deployment | docker, binary | binary, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 4,296 | ★ 4,219 |
| First released | 2013 | 2014 |
| Replaces | Veeam | Time Machine, System Restore |
Why pick each one
Choose pgBackRest if…
- Released under the MIT license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Active community (4.3k GitHub stars)
- Written in C
Choose Timeshift if…
- Released under the GPL-3.0 license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- Active community (4.2k GitHub stars)
- Written in Vala
Frequently asked questions
Is pgBackRest or Timeshift better?
Neither is universally better. pgBackRest has the larger community, while Timeshift is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are pgBackRest and Timeshift free and open-source?
Yes. pgBackRest is licensed under MIT and Timeshift under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run pgBackRest and Timeshift with Docker?
pgBackRest: yes. Timeshift: check the project docs for container support.