Velero vs Wayback
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
Wayback
A self-hosted toolkit for archiving webpages to the Internet Archive,
| Feature | Velero | Wayback |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Backup & Recovery | Backup & Recovery |
| License | Apache-2.0 | GPL-3.0 |
| Language | Go | Go |
| Setup difficulty | Hard | Medium |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 512 MB |
| Deployment | kubernetes, helm | bare-metal |
| GitHub stars | ★ 10,187 | ★ 2,223 |
| First released | 2017 | 2024 |
| Replaces | Kasten K10 | — |
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 Wayback if…
- Released under the GPL-3.0 license
- Active community (2.2k GitHub stars)
- Written in Go
- Lightweight — runs in 512 MB RAM
Frequently asked questions
Is Velero or Wayback better?
Neither is universally better. Velero has the larger community, while Wayback is simpler to set up (medium difficulty). Choose based on the comparison table above and your own setup.
Are Velero and Wayback free and open-source?
Yes. Velero is licensed under Apache-2.0 and Wayback under GPL-3.0. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run Velero and Wayback with Docker?
Velero: check the project docs for container support. Wayback: check the project docs for container support.