A reliable WordPress backup plugin automatically sends site backups off your server on a schedule and restores everything with a single click.
Duplicator with Duplicator Cloud is our top pick, and UpdraftPlus is best for free backups to Google Drive.
In this guide, we’ll compare the 6 best WordPress backup plugins, including their cloud storage, incremental backups (copies of only what changed) and free features.
Our Top Picks for the Best WordPress Backup Plugins
| Pick | Best For | Pricing |
|---|---|---|
| Duplicator | Cloud backups with one-click restore | Free + paid from $69.30/yr |
| UpdraftPlus | Free backups to Google Drive or Dropbox | Free + paid from $70/yr |
| Jetpack VaultPress Backup | Real-time backups for WooCommerce stores | Paid from $59.40 for the first year (backups need a paid plan) |
| BlogVault | Managed off-site backup service | 7-day free trial + paid from $49.50/yr |
| Total Upkeep | Budget backups | Free + paid from $2.50/mo, billed yearly |
| BackWPup | No-frills free backups | Free + paid from $49/yr |
Local vs Cloud Backups: Where Your Backup Should Live
While many web hosts create automatic backups for you, those copies typically live on the same server as your website. If that server crashes or gets hacked, your backup can disappear right alongside your site.
To protect your business, you need an off-site backup. This is a separate copy stored somewhere other than your web server.
A simple way to plan this is the 3-2-1 rule, which means keeping 3 copies of your data on 2 different storage types, with at least 1 copy off-site.
There are two ways to get your backups off-site:
- A plugin that sends backups to cloud storage – Plugins like Duplicator and UpdraftPlus send your backup files directly to your preferred cloud provider, such as Duplicator Cloud, Google Drive, Dropbox, or Amazon S3.
- A backup service that keeps copies on its own servers – Services like BlogVault and Jetpack VaultPress Backup create the backup and store it for you, so you don’t need a separate storage account.
Full vs Incremental Backups
A full backup copies your entire website every time. Meanwhile, an incremental backup only saves the files and database changes made since your last backup.
This means incremental backups run faster, consume less cloud storage, and avoid putting unnecessary strain on your web host.
Incremental backups are essential if you run a high-traffic site, busy WooCommerce store, or perform daily or hourly backups. Here’s how each plugin handles them:
- Duplicator – Incremental backups require Duplicator Pro (version 5.1 or newer) paired with a paid Duplicator Cloud storage plan.
- BlogVault – All plans come with incremental backups built-in, and all processing takes place on BlogVault’s offsite servers to keep your site fast.
- Jetpack VaultPress Backup – Every paid plan makes one full backup first, then automatically switches to incremental backups.
- UpdraftPlus – Incremental backups need UpdraftPlus Premium, as the free version only makes full backups.
How We Test and Review Backup Plugins
To see how these plugins perform in real-world scenarios, we tested them on a sample site with roughly 1 GB of files and a 41 MB database. We also set up a second test environment specifically for BlogVault.
Here’s how they performed:
- A full backup to cloud storage – Duplicator created a 433 MB backup package in about a minute, completing its upload to Duplicator Cloud in 9 minutes total. Meanwhile, UpdraftPlus generated a 425 MB backup and sent it directly to Google Drive in just 3 minutes and 12 seconds.
- An incremental backup after a small change – After adding a new blog post and an image, Duplicator Pro ran an incremental backup in 53 seconds. It was just 3.81 MB, compared with 475 MB for the full backup that incremental mode starts from.
- A restore – Duplicator’s one-click recovery brought our entire site back online in 71 seconds. UpdraftPlus restored the exact same site from Google Drive in 2 minutes and 58 seconds.
- A restore with wp-admin locked out – We broke our test site so neither the site nor wp-admin would load, then restored it from the Duplicator Cloud dashboard in 28 seconds. On a second test site, Duplicator’s Recovery Point link did the same job in 112 seconds.
- A restore with the free version – While you can restore a backup using the free version of BackWPup, it requires a manual extra step. You have to download the backup file to your computer and re-upload it through the restore page first.
Keep in mind that upload and restore speeds will vary depending on your host and internet connection, so use these figures as a general benchmark. We also manually verified all pricing and free plan features directly on each developer’s site.
Why Trust WPBeginner?
WPBeginner is led by Syed Balkhi, a recognized expert and entrepreneur in the WordPress community. Our team has more than 16 years of experience in building and optimizing WordPress websites, so we know what backup features are the most important for website owners.
To give you the best recommendations, we set up demo websites to test every backup plugin and see how it performs in real life. Our editorial team also fact-checks our content for factual accuracy.
Want to learn more? Check out our editorial guidelines for more information.
1. Duplicator (Cloud Backups With One-Click Restore)
Duplicator is a popular WordPress plugin designed for backing up and migrating websites. You can choose between the premium plugin, or the free Duplicator Lite.
We use Duplicator on many of our partner sites to ensure our site data is always safe and easy to move. We’ve also written a full Duplicator review based on these experiences.
Duplicator Cloud is a paid storage plan, even if you use the free Duplicator Lite plugin. It sends your backups directly to secure remote servers without requiring a third party account like Google Drive or Amazon S3.
Plans start at $29/year for 2 GB and go up to $199/year for 150 GB.
Duplicator Cloud can restore your site even when WordPress won’t load.
To set this up, click the recovery icon next to the ‘Edit’ button on your website’s page in Duplicator Cloud and save a recovery connector, which is your site’s FTP or SFTP login. Choose SFTP if your host offers it, because the FTP option sends your password as plain, readable text.
For this feature to work, your package must be a complete site backup that includes your database, core files, themes, plugins, and uploads. If you exclude any folders or tables to save storage space, you will not be able to perform an emergency restoration through Duplicator Cloud.
To restore a backup, open the backup menu, select Restore Full Backup, and confirm your choice by clicking Start Restore.
From there, accept the terms inside the Duplicator installer that opens within your dashboard and click Restore Backup to finalize the process. In our test, this seamless workflow brought a locked out site back online in just 28 seconds.
Duplicator Pro can also restore your site without Duplicator Cloud.
Set a Recovery Point under Duplicator Pro » Tools » Recovery and save the Recovery URL, then open that link if you’re ever locked out of your site.
Duplicator Pro 5.1 and newer can make incremental backups to Duplicator Cloud, and the Cloud storage plan is paid. After one full backup, Duplicator saves only what changed. In our test, that was 3.81 MB in 53 seconds, compared with 475 MB for the first full backup.
You turn this on from Duplicator Pro » Incremental Backups, where you can back up changes every 1 to 24 hours. In our test, the 475 MB full backup took up 1.16 GB of Duplicator Cloud storage, so choose a storage plan with plenty of room.
If the incremental backup says it ‘does not meet the build requirements’ after you restore or move a site, go to Duplicator Pro » Tools and click ‘Delete Installation Files’, then try again.
Pros of Duplicator:
- One-click restores are included in the free version.
- AES-256 encryption scrambles your backup file so only someone with the password can open it.
- Pro also sends backups to Google Drive, Dropbox, Amazon S3 and OneDrive.
- It supports large sites and multisite networks.
- You can run a backup by asking your AI assistant, using the free WPVibe plugin.
Cons of Duplicator:
- Scheduled backups need Duplicator Pro, which can back up your site automatically every day or week.
- Duplicator Cloud storage is a separate yearly plan.
Pricing: You can download Duplicator Lite from WordPress.org. Meanwhile, premium plans start at $69.30/year (normally $99), and Duplicator Cloud storage starts at $29/year.
WPBeginner readers can use our Duplicator Pro coupon code for a discount on their purchase.
Why we recommend Duplicator: It gives you one-click restores for free, and Duplicator Cloud adds off-site storage and incremental backups without a separate storage account.
2. UpdraftPlus (Free Backups to Google Drive or Dropbox)
UpdraftPlus is the best free option if you want off-site backups without paying for additional storage.
You can choose between the free version or upgrade to UpdraftPlus Premium, depending on your site’s needs.
The free plugin lets you schedule automatic backups and send them directly to popular remote services like Google Drive, Dropbox, and Amazon S3.
In our test, the free version restored the entire website straight from Google Drive directly through the dashboard. We’ve also written a full UpdraftPlus review based on these experiences.
Within the free version, you can set automatic backups to run every 2 to 12 hours, daily, weekly or monthly.
However, advanced features like incremental backups, OneDrive support, SFTP, and several other remote storage destinations require an UpdraftPlus Premium subscription.
Pros of UpdraftPlus:
- You can restore files, plugins, themes, or the database on their own, or restore everything at once.
- Email notifications alert you automatically whenever a backup finishes.
Cons of UpdraftPlus:
- Database encryption requires UpdraftPlus Premium, so backups made with the free plugin aren’t encrypted.
Pricing: You can download the free version of UpdraftPlus from the official WordPress repository. Meanwhile, UpdraftPlus Premium starts at $70/year for up to 2 sites.
Why we recommend UpdraftPlus: It offers scheduled off-site backups and full restores completely for free, using cloud storage accounts you likely already have. This makes UpdraftPlus an easy, cost-effective way to keep your site data safe.
3. Jetpack VaultPress Backup (Real-Time Backups for WooCommerce Stores)
Jetpack VaultPress Backup is a dedicated backup service from Automattic, the company behind WordPress.com. You can choose between the standalone backup plan or bundle it with other Jetpack features depending on your site’s needs.
This service saves a copy of your website every time a change occurs and stores it directly on Jetpack’s remote servers.
If you run an online store, Jetpack can restore your site while keeping your most recent orders and customer data intact. This means you won’t lose new sales data when you roll back to an earlier backup.
Pros of Jetpack VaultPress Backup:
- Backed by Automattic’s enterprise-grade infrastructure and security expertise.
- Backups run entirely on external servers so your site stays fast and responsive without taking up your own hosting resources.
- Simple one-click restoration process for both full and partial backups.
- Direct support from WordPress.com’s expert team.
Cons of Jetpack VaultPress Backup:
- The free plugin needs a paid Jetpack plan before it can make any backups.
- The 10 GB plan includes a 30-day backup archive, which can fill up on large sites.
Pricing: The Jetpack VaultPress Backup plugin is free to install, but backups need a paid plan. Plans start at $59.40 for the first year with 10 GB of storage, then renew at $119.40/year.
Why we recommend Jetpack VaultPress Backup: It’s the best option on our list for e-commerce sites because real-time backups protect every new order as it happens. This keeps your WooCommerce order history completely safe without putting extra stress on your server.
4. BlogVault (Managed Off-Site Backup Service)
BlogVault is a managed backup service, which means its remote servers automatically create and store your site’s backups for you. Its incremental backups run on BlogVault’s servers, so there’s no extra load on your hosting. You can pick a plan that fits your preferred backup schedule and gives you access to the exact management tools you need.
During our testing, BlogVault performed its initial daily backup by copying our entire second test site offsite, which totaled about 2 GB of data. We have shared our complete thoughts and experience with this service in our detailed BlogVault review.
Store owners can enable real time backups in BlogVault to immediately log every WooCommerce order and customer update. Real-time backups save each change as it happens, so you don’t lose sales data between daily backups.
BlogVault’s integrated monitoring dashboard sets it apart from other tools. You can easily track your backup status, site uptime, malware threats, and Core Web Vitals all from one central location.
Pros of BlogVault:
- Built-in malware scanning and web application firewall.
- Automatic backup testing to verify that your backup files work before you need them.
- Detailed activity logging tracks every change made to your WordPress site.
- Staging and test restores that let you check a backup on BlogVault’s servers without altering your live site.
Cons of BlogVault:
- The starting plan only includes daily backups, while real-time updates require a higher-tier subscription.
Pricing: BlogVault has a 7-day free trial with no credit card needed. Paid plans start at $49.50 for the first year (normally $99/year) for daily backups on a single website.
Why we recommend BlogVault: This is the best managed solution on our list. It automatically handles backups, secure offsite storage, and test restores behind the scenes, keeping your website safe without slowing down performance.
5. Total Upkeep (Budget Backups)
Total Upkeep is one of the most budget-friendly backup plugins available for WordPress users. You can choose between the free version or upgrade to the Premium plan depending on your site’s needs.
Unlike other backup plugins that simply create backups, Total Upkeep includes a Site Check feature that actively scans for potential problems before they cause data loss.
The free plugin stores your files on your web hosting server or via remote FTP and SFTP connections.
However, if you want to store your backups on external services like Google Drive, Amazon S3, or DreamObjects, you will need to upgrade to the premium plugin.
Pros of Total Upkeep:
- Automatically creates WordPress backups right before software updates to prevent unexpected site crashes.
- Built-in Site Check feature for proactive error detection and data loss prevention.
- Flexible backup scheduling with options for custom file and database table selection.
- Includes an emergency restoration script to recover completely crashed sites.
Cons of Total Upkeep:
- Sending backups to Google Drive or Amazon S3 needs Total Upkeep Premium.
Pricing: You can download the lite version of Total Upkeep for free. Meanwhile, Total Upkeep Premium costs $2.50/month (billed annually at $30/year) and includes coverage for unlimited websites.
Why we recommend Total Upkeep: This is a solid, budget-conscious choice for website owners who manage multiple sites.
6. BackWPup (No-Frills Free Backups)
BackWPup is an ideal choice if you’re looking for a simple, no-frills backup solution that just works.
A short setup wizard guides you through choosing what to back up, how often to run it, and where to store your files, allowing you to create complete WordPress backups for free.
While the free version lets you restore a backup, it requires a few manual steps. You need to download the backup file, upload it on the BackWPup » Restore backup page, and enter your database details.
If you want to perform one click restores directly from your remote storage, you will need to upgrade to the premium plugin.
Pros of BackWPup:
- Clear, simple interface that doesn’t overwhelm users with unnecessary options.
- Easy-to-schedule automatic backups that run seamlessly in the background.
- Free backups to Dropbox, Amazon S3, FTP and Microsoft Azure.
Cons of BackWPup:
- You can only restore backup files created specifically by BackWPup.
- Popular remote storage options like Google Drive and OneDrive require BackWPup Pro.
Pricing: You can grab the free version of BackWPup from WordPress.org. Meanwhile, BackWPup Pro starts at $49/year for 2 sites.
Why we recommend BackWPup: This backup plugin is a good fit for bloggers, small business owners, or anyone who wants a straightforward way to keep their files safe. A clear setup wizard guides you through every step, and automated scheduling keeps your backups running consistently without any extra effort.
Where to Store Your Backups (and Your Media Files)
Here are the most common places to store your backups:
- Duplicator Cloud – Built into Duplicator, so you don’t need a separate storage account.
- Google Drive or Dropbox – Convenient options that use free cloud storage you likely already have, and UpdraftPlus connects to both.
- Amazon S3 – The cheapest option per gigabyte for large sites, but it takes more setup.
If you came here looking for cloud storage for your images, WP Offload Media moves your media library to Amazon S3, Google Cloud or DigitalOcean Spaces. This saves server space while also speeding up delivery.
It isn’t a backup plugin, though. The free Lite version offloads new uploads only, while the premium plugin (from $39 for the first year) also moves your existing media library.
Alternatively, you can connect Google Drive directly to your WordPress media library.
Which Is the Best WordPress Backup Plugin?
Here’s the best pick for each job:
- Cloud backups with one-click restore – Duplicator paired with Duplicator Cloud.
- Free backups – UpdraftPlus, or Duplicator Lite if you want one-click restores.
- Large or busy sites – Incremental backups in Duplicator Pro or BlogVault.
- WooCommerce stores – Jetpack VaultPress Backup.
WordPress Backup FAQs
Does WordPress have built-in backups?
No, WordPress doesn’t include a built-in backup system. While WordPress does automatically save revisions of your individual posts and pages, it doesn’t create complete backups of your website files or MySQL databases.
How do I back up my entire WordPress site?
The easiest way to back up your WordPress site is to use backup plugins like Duplicator or UpdraftPlus.
Many WordPress hosting providers also include backups in their plans. However, those copies are usually stored on the same server as your site, so keep an off-site copy too for extra safety.
Is my host’s backup enough?
Usually not. Most web hosts store backups on the same server as your website. A single server failure or security breach can destroy both your live site and your backup files.
It’s best practice to keep at least one copy off-site, as we explain in our local vs cloud backups section.
What is the 3-2-1 backup rule?
The 3-2-1 backup rule requires keeping three total copies of your data across two different media types, with at least one copy stored offsite.
For example, you might have a live website on your hosting server, a local backup stored on a local drive or server, and a cloud backup stored off-site in Duplicator Cloud or Google Drive.
What is an incremental backup?
An incremental backup saves only the files and database entries that have changed since your last backup. Because it avoids re-copying unchanged data, an incremental backup is faster and smaller than a full backup.
You can learn more about which plugins support this feature in our full vs incremental backups section.
Where are my WordPress backups stored?
That depends on your plugin settings. Most plugins save backups in a folder on your web server by default, which isn’t safe if the server fails.
To keep your website data secure, connect your plugin to remote storage like Duplicator Cloud, Google Drive, or Dropbox. Storing your site files offsite protects your data if your main server fails.
How do I back up WordPress without a plugin?
You can download your files over FTP and export your database using your hosting control panel.
If you need a step-by-step walkthrough, our guide on how to make a WordPress database backup manually covers the entire process.
Is there a free backup plugin for WordPress?
Yes, several popular backup plugins offer free versions.
Duplicator’s free version is great if you want an easy-to-use backup wizard. UpdraftPlus is ideal if you need free cloud storage integration with services like Google Drive or Dropbox.
How often should I back up my WordPress site?
It depends on how often your site changes. It’s best to back up active blogs daily, while you should back up online stores in real time, or several times a day, to safeguard fresh customer orders.
If you rarely change your site, a weekly backup works fine.
Best WordPress Backup Guides for Your Website
- How to Backup Your WordPress Site (Ultimate Guide)
- Beginner’s Guide: How to Restore WordPress from Backup
- How to View a WordPress Backup as a Website (Easiest Way)
- Best Dropbox Plugins for WordPress (Expert Picks)
- How to Connect Google Drive to Your WordPress Media Library
- How to Easily Save a Blog Post to Your Computer
We hope this article has helped you find the best WordPress backup plugin for your website. You may also want to check out our guide on must-have WordPress plugins for your business and our comparison piece on All in One WP Migration vs Duplicator.
If you liked this article, then please subscribe to our YouTube Channel for WordPress video tutorials. You can also find us on Twitter and Facebook.
Mrteesurez
Thanks for the comparison and your final recommendation, it shows you have much experience about these services.
As you have advised, I am switching to Duplicator not only because of exciting features it has but also it’s cost friendly for small to medium business like us.
Dennis Muthomi
UpdraftPlus has always been my go-to WordPress backup plugin for my 3 blogs.
Actually, my web host charges $7 per month just for backups, but UpdraftPlus lets me create scheduled offsite backups to cloud storage (I use Google Cloud) for free.
It’s reliable, easy to use, and restoring backups is a breeze from the WordPress admin area.
Highly recommend UpdraftPlus over paying unnecessary hosting backup fees!
WPBeginner Support
Glad you found it helpful
Admin
Jiří Vaněk
I was looking for a solution to be able to backup the website to google drive. After reading this article, I decided to try Updraft about a month ago and I am very satisfied with it. Thanks to this, you at least have the peace of mind that you have backups stored not only locally, but also on the cloud. Thanks for the article that helped me decide which backup software would be best.
Dayo Olobayo
Thanks for sharing your positive experience with UpdraftPlus. This might be helpful for others looking for a backup solution. If I may ask, have you encountered any challenges using UpdraftPlus so far that others should be aware of?
THANKGOD JONATHAN
Great comparison of WordPress backup plugins! I was especially interested in the information about storage space and scheduling options. I’m now much better equipped to choose the right plugin for my needs. Thanks!
Ralph
I’m using Updraft Plus free version for over 5 years and it auto backup my blog every day and send it to my google drive. Luckily I never had to use it but I love how simple it is. Few clicks and I’m safe with backups. Apart from hosting backups, but just like in jokes – better have more backups than none.
A Owadud Bhuiyan
Thanks for sharing. Hope that this information will me in the future.
However, are there plugins available that can prevent fatal errors or critical issues when updating or adding new plugins?
WPBeginner Support
Backup plugins would be the most guaranteed way to keep your site safe from those errors. Without knowing what causes the error, there is no easy way to prevent an error from occurring
Admin
kanchan
nice post , thanks for sharing
WPBeginner Support
You’re welcome, glad you liked our list
Admin
Ryan
I used BackWPUp for a few years. It was a good tool, but lately it has caused my sites to crash just from being active. I’ve since removed it hoping for an update that hasn’t come. This brought me to you, my trusted source, and I’ll be trying out some of the alternates you mentioned.
Thank you.
WPBeginner Support
Thank you for sharing your feedback and we hope you find a solution that works for you!
Admin
TinaTheVA
Hello,
A lot of backup plugins require you to log into the site to restore, but often when a site goes down I can’t login. What is the most reliable backup tool for this scenario?
WPBeginner Support
For a site that goes down and needs to be restored, we recommend going through the troubleshooting steps in our guide below. If you restore a site that you cannot access, there is a chance that the same error could occur again.
https://www.wpbeginner.com/beginners-guide/beginners-guide-to-troubleshooting-wordpress-errors-step-by-step/
Admin
Bart
Duplicator does allow you to schedule your backups. It’s a shame that this one is last in your review, where I have tried some of the (popular) others and feel Duplicator deserves a much higher position.
WPBeginner Support
Thank you for sharing your opinion each solution has its pros and cons but we’re glad you found the one you prefer!
Admin
Abdul
Does UpdraftPlus also backup post? I mean content or just themes and plugins.
WPBeginner Support
The plugin will back up your content as well as your other files
Admin
Natalius
Thank you for this information; I know now what to do with my site backup planning. I appreciated
WPBeginner Support
Glad our guide was helpful
Admin
Kosta
Giving BackWPup a go right now! Don’t like that I can save direct to my computer but trying with backup to dropbox.
Thank you for this list!
WPBeginner Support
Glad you found our list helpful
Admin
Anurag Mishra
Thanks for giving such knowledgeable information. I will use updraft plus plugin for my blog website.
WPBeginner Support
You’re welcome, glad you found our recommendations helpful
Admin
Erin
OMG I am So glad I have found you! I am feeling so lost on this set up journey! Thank you for providing a site like this
WPBeginner Support
Glad our guides are able to help you
Admin
Wouter De Backer
Your information about Duplicator is completely outdated.
WPBeginner Support
The information in our article is still correct, the only recent change is Duplicator has added a pro version that allows scheduling since the last update to this article.
Admin
Steve M.
Currently have a WordPress site online with daily backups. Some day I may wish to move the site to another company. Do you have instructions on how to backup my site and set it up on my PC, edit it if i wish, then move it to another hosting company?
WPBeginner Support
For what you’re looking for, you would want to take a look at our two articles below:
https://www.wpbeginner.com/wp-tutorials/how-to-move-live-wordpress-site-to-local-server/
https://www.wpbeginner.com/wp-tutorials/how-to-move-wordpress-from-local-server-to-live-site/
Admin
Dev Null
Duplicator Pro version DOES do scheduled backups.
WPBeginner Support
Thanks for letting us know about that update to duplicator
Admin
Scott Washburn
Thank you! Great Stuff!
WPBeginner Support
You’re welcome
Admin
K. Luu
I am sunsetting my website hence I would like to save all the pages & posts in one go and access my content later on my computer. Is this possible to do with these plugins e.g. UpDraftPlus?
WPBeginner Support
Yes as long as you back up both your content and your database
Admin
Karen A. Traer
Thank you; this is exactly the type of information I look for from WPBegginer. Much appreciation for those who share their stories and insights, as well.
I am on a shoestring budget so understanding how powerful free alternatives are is a godsend.
WPBeginner Support
Glad our recommendations can help
Admin
Josef Dalal
Hi, thanks for the info. Must say that I use Updraftplus on most websites. also, these days moved for maintained hosting and found that creating backups from the server it’s also a good idea. for people with the paranoia of losing data.
Thanks again
Josef
WPBeginner Support
Glad you like our article and thanks for sharing your recommendation for other users.
Admin
Glenn Topping
Thanks for this list and, in actual fact, for all your other very helpful lists. I seem to have found this a bit late though.
I’ve been using All-In-One WP Migration for the past year and I’ve been very impressed with it. I first used it as I needed to migrate from one host to another, which it was perfect for, but I now use it for my regular backups. Works pretty well.
Thanks again for all of your valuable advice.
WPBeginner Support
Glad our guide could help and thanks for sharing your method
Admin
Jargal
I am creating backups for my WordPress site with Updraftplus. It really saved my life a few times. In my opinion, it is the best backup plugin for WordPress. Accidentally, I found a new free backup plugin called WPvivid Backup/Restore (from WordPress plugin directory) and installed it on my site. Surprisingly, it works very well on my site. Many WordPress blogs have posted the articles about the popular backup plugins. Being an audience, sometimes we want something new.
WPBeginner Support
Thanks for sharing the plugin that you found
Admin
Rory Nevin
Hi – I’ve been using Updraft Plus for a while now – backing up onto server and downloaded to local hard drive. However recently it won’t complete a backup – takes ages goes around in circles. I contacted my web host – they say because it’s on an Apache server it won’t complete Cron jobs and that I should switch to professional hosting – and I need a backup before doing so. Is this correct?
WPBeginner Support
You would want to reach out to Updraft Plus for issues with their plugin.
Admin
Linas
I use Updraft back up. Now, a recent update came with an incremental update.
I have “a talent” to mess up my websites so this plugin saves my a?? every time
WPBeginner Support
Glad the plugin helps
Admin
aaditya
Which one is best between – BackWPup Or Duplicator
WPBeginner Support
Hey Aditya,
Please see our analysis of both. It actually depends on your needs. Duplicator is excellent but it lacks certain features of other backup plugins like storing backups to cloud, automated scheduled backups, and more.
Admin
Patty
Note: BackupBuddy can no longer reliably back up to Rackspace. I’m using Rackspace only because it was an option that iThemes promoted; I had never heard of it before and would not be using it if not for iThemes. So I have a big problem. I’m currently spending a huge amount of time figuring out how to continue backing up.
Priyanshu
I want to migrate my wordpress site but i have no idea how to migrate on another hostinng.
WPBeginner Support
Hi Priyanshu,
Most WordPress hosting companies offer website migration, some even do that for free.
Admin
Bryan F
I use Backup Buddy for backups and site migration, with great success.
Carl
FYI Looks like BackupBuddy is not free anymore, I searched for the plugin and could not find it then searched Google and found their page with their new pricing plans.
WPBeginner Support
Hi Carl,
It is not a free plugin. It is a premium WordPress plugin, which means you need to pay for the license to get support and updates.
Admin
rubul smith
I am new WPbeginner here. I dont understand which is better for me. Can you help me ? give some advice .
WPBeginner Support
Hi Rubul,
All of them are good options. If you want a free plugin, then we recommend UpdraftPlus.
Admin
Melanie
Thanks for this. It’s on my to-do list.
August P
Updraft Plus is garbage! There’s some random JavaScript or jQuery problem error that the Updraft team is dismissing. It appears as an error in the Wordpress Dashboard of your site. It says: “Warning: If you can still read these words after the page finishes loading, then there is a JavaScript or jQuery problem in the site.” It makes the Updraft plugin unusable (it will not perform backups, won’t even do a migration if you purchase the premium addon). The proposed fixes don’t work, and the Updraft support response was basically, “sucks to be you.” I will NEVER use that plugin again! The lack of concern by the support team was disgraceful!
UpdraftPlus Support
Hi,
Our apologies for your experience with our support team. It is very important to us that we resolve all support requests.
The ‘JavaScript or jQuery error’ message indicates that there is a conflict or other issue on the site that is preventing UpdraftPlus from loading its own JavaScript.
I’m afraid that I cannot find a support request in our system that matches your name here, but if you can open a new support ticket via our support form and ask for the ticket to be assigned to ‘DN’, we can attempt to resolve the conflict (or provide a refund for any add-ons if we cannot).
Mathukutty P. V.
I tried it earlier on my blog and found memory exhaust problem. Increased php memory to 256. Not success. So stopped using. Again installed a week back and found same problem. I am on linux shared 512 M. Uninstalled yesterday. Found it backup everything database, images, plugins which is really not necessary on daily or weekly.
Janus
Backupbuddy and duplicator are my favorites but started with a year license for Updraft and when I should use it the server was down. And the backup was not for beginners.
James Johnson
I expect to do some business in Europe and need to comply with GDPR. Do you is there something in the program that will make that quick and simple? I’m in the early stages of settling up the business and want to build in compliance. I expect something like GDPR will come to pass in the fairly near future, so it can’t hurt to be ready.
I appreciate your assistance!
Regards,
Jim Johnson
WPBeginner Support
Hi James,
You can hire an attorney to help you with legal requirements. You may also want to see our ultimate GDPR guide for some more details.
Admin
Faith Biete
I will use backup buddy as my blog is a small one.
KenB
I did not have a good experience with backup buddy. I had been making backups for years without having to use a restore.
This week i went to move the site to a new host and it failed miserably.
Problems with the database access.
No timely help available.
I found all in one migration worked for me.
Cathy
I really must choose a backup plan and get it into place. I’m leaning toward VaultPress. I already have Jetpack installed on my Wordpress.org site. This might be a dumb question, but I’m a little confused by the statement that one needs a wordpress.com website for it to work. Does that include my self-hosted website?
Editorial Staff
A WordPress.com site requires you to make a site using http://www.wordpress.com, you would want to take a look at https://www.wpbeginner.com/beginners-guide/self-hosted-wordpress-org-vs-free-wordpress-com-infograph/
Admin
David
Is it possible that you misunderstood Cathy’s question? I think she was asking about your statement that “…you will have to subscribe to JetPack, get a WordPress.com account, and install the Jetpack…”. I assume that “a WordPress.com account” does not mean “a WordPress.com website”. I did a quick scan of your linked article, and I didn’t see that it explained that.
Regards, David.
WPBeginner Support
Hi David,
Sorry, yes you are right. A WordPress.com account doesn’t mean you need to create a WordPress.com blog or website.
Shiva
Hello,
We Follow WP-beginner from these type of words.
“We use VaultPress for two main reasons. It is extremely easy to use, and it offers real-time incremental backups. ”
In last year i commented here also, On that time, our website db storage as 250 GB,now 1.5 TB.
we following Vaultpress with jetpack premium . It is simple & real-time time backup.
Thanks WP-beginner suggesting best Apps in industry.
Shiva
WPBeginner Support
Hi Shiva,
Glad you find WPBeginner helpful
thanks for your kind words.
Admin
Steve
A 1.5TB database in Wordpress?
Debra
I am looking for a back-up solution for a very large real estate site with MLS/RETs integration that has a user friendly restore feature. Which of these backup solutions mentioned in this article would work. I used Duplicator Pro, but it failed to restore a site I had created and I had to completely redo the site. The backup that was with the Host Service was an epic fail! Looking for advice so this never happens to me again! Thank you.
tabasko
Hi there
I’m looking into a WP backup plugin able to copy data files to FTP without using ZIP (or make separate archive file) + able to backup my parent/root folder of the domain (as WP has been installed in its own folder.
Problem is that my hosting solution returns error message around ZIP (“too large file”).
Thanks for any information you can share
Ray
Can anyone tell me when updraft free version runs it auto backup? It appears to me from the couple of sites I have installed it on, it runs the AUTO backup at the sametime each day you installed it.
So if you installed it 11am then it will run the next day at 11am?
Anyone know if this is true?
WPBeginner Support
Hi Ray,
It does. However, you can also set up your own schedule by visiting Settings » UpdraftPlus Backups page and clicking on the Settings tab.
Admin
Ray Grau
@Support – thank you – but that setting section doesn’t allow us to set our own time to run. If I want it to run in the middle of the night using the (FREE Version) I have to stay till then and activate the plugin.
WPBeginner Support
Hi Ray,
We took another look and you are right. It allows you to set the frequency of backups like (12 hrs, daily, weekly, etc) but not the exact time when you want backups to run. For that, you will need premium version.
Mathukutty P. V.
updraft plus memory exhaust problem. Tried adding 256M in php.ini and wp-config.fp as advised by wp support but problem not solved. What is another best free plugin?
Joe Miles
Perhaps you have a site that’s very big on a server with low resources? Or somehow your server is already overloaded.
UpdraftPlus chunks the backup to make it unlikely to run out of server resources. So I’d expect you’ll also get the problems with other plugins.
Keep trying to resolve it with UpdraftPlus support.
M
My site is very small and newly started in sep. with other plugins not facing that problem. Contacted UpDraftplus support on WordPress but they could not solve the problem. TThey replied on twitter to make 256 or 512M in wp_config.fp. I did that in wp_config.fp and php.ini but not success. Which free version plugin is alternative and best?
Tyrion
There is a much greater chance that Backup Buddy will abort than it will run. Any little thing will prevent it from running, like if the cat sneezes too loudly.
John
Funny but misleading… I’ve used it for years on hundreds of websites without the slightest problem.
Mathukutty P.V.
After installing updraftplus resource exhausted. I tried 2/3 times installing.
Mathukutty P. V.
updraftplus or wp-dbmanager is better choice? Is it necessary to use plugin for backup when cpanel backup is available?
WPBeginner Support
Hi Mathukutty,
With cPanel you will have to manually create the backup. These backup plugins will allow you to automate the process and save backups on cloud storage.
Admin
natalie
I have repeatedly tried to back up my blog, using BackWPup 3.4.1; A project of Inpsyde GmbH
[INFO] WordPress
But I always get this email, please can you help and advice
ERROR: Backup archive too big to be sent by email!
[01-Sep-2017 04:01:44] ERROR: Job has ended with errors in 3164 seconds. You must resolve the errors for correct execution.
thanks
natalie
Frank
The backup it creates is too big to email to you. You’ll need to store and then download it if you want a copy on your computer.
Rob Bock
Backup buddy or the win. I’ve been developing a new site for a client for 3 months now. It’s a big site, with hundreds of hours invested and countless customizations. Come to find out one of my developers updated the theme files instead of applying customizations to the child theme so when we upgraded to WP 4.8 all customizations were lost.
Thankfully, I was able to use the importbuddy tool that comes with backup buddy and had the site restored back to its previous state in less than 10 minutes using a local backup. I was able to sync the offsite backups to my Amazon s3 storage as well. This won’t replace FTP folder backups or database backups through cPanel, but I’ve never felt more confident in a backup tool, and restoring from this was definitely a faster, easier experience than doing so from a manual FTP backup.
Johnsie
Just backup the wordpress folder and dump the database using a cron job and shell script. I wouldn’t trust a plugin for this sort of thing.
Mark
You said that Jetpack is required to use Vaultpress. I’ve been using Vaultpress for a couple years now and I do not have Jetpack installed, nor have I ever heard about this before. And it’s backing me up every day.
WPBeginner Support
Hi Mark,
All customers who signed up before December 2016, can continue using VaultPress without JetPack. As a new customer, you can’t buy VaultPress without Jetpack.
Admin