Velero vs Tarsnap GUI
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?
Velero
Backup and migrate Kubernetes cluster resources
VS
Tarsnap GUI
Cross-platform desktop front end for Tarsnap backups
| Feature | Velero | Tarsnap GUI |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Backup & Recovery | Backup & Recovery |
| License | Apache-2.0 | BSD-2-Clause |
| Language | Go | C++ |
| Setup difficulty | Hard | Easy |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 128 MB |
| Deployment | kubernetes, helm | binary, bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 10,187 | ★ 250 |
| First released | 2017 | 2016 |
| Replaces | Kasten K10 | Backblaze |
Why pick each one
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
Choose Tarsnap GUI if…
- Released under the BSD-2-Clause license
- Easy to set up — beginner-friendly
- Written in C++
- Tiny footprint — runs in 128 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is Velero or Tarsnap GUI better?
Neither is universally better. Velero has the larger community, while Tarsnap GUI is simpler to set up (easy difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Velero and Tarsnap GUI free and open-source?
Yes. Velero is licensed under Apache-2.0 and Tarsnap GUI under BSD-2-Clause. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Velero and Tarsnap GUI with Docker?
Velero: check the project docs for container support. Tarsnap GUI: check the project docs for container support.