It takes time to build a great WordPress website. However, it can disappear with one server crash or hack. WordPress backup plugins enable you to restore your site easily. Even better, most of them are affordable, if not free. To help you quickly decide which of the dozens of backup plugins is right for you, we’ve scrutinized them to determine the best.
Here are the five best backup plugins to use with your WordPress website:
- UpdraftPlus: Best overall WordPress backup plugin that’s free, easy to use, and reliable
- BackWPup: This backup plugin is the best free option with automatic backups
- VaultPress with Jetpack: Best for content-heavy sites given its inclusion of unlimited storage
- WP Time Capsule: Best plugin to save resources by backing up site changes
- Duplicator: Best backup plugin for those looking to protect their website when changing web hosting providers
We chose UpdraftPlus as the best overall WordPress backup plugin because it is not only free but also a very simple and reliable plugin with high ratings. Still, it’s worth considering your options before choosing one plugin.
Let’s take a closer look at the best WordPress backup plugins:
UpdraftPlus: Best Overall WordPress Backup Plugin
UpdraftPlus is the best overall WordPress backup plugin. Between the fact that it’s free, user-friendly, and very reliable, it’s no surprise that it’s also one of the most popular backup plugins. One of the best things about it is that you can easily back up your WordPress site to the cloud of your choice, from Google Drive to Dropbox. It also makes restoring your site very simple, with just the click of one button.
Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
It’s free | Best for small business websites |
Backup to the cloud | Users report trouble using it with site migrations |
Easy to use to backup and restore sites |
BackWPup: Best Free Backup Plugin for Automatic Backups
BackWPup is a great option for those who want a free, easy-to-use plugin to back up sites to the cloud (e.g., Dropbox) or your computer. With this plugin, you can back up your WordPress installation and database, as well as choose whether you want to back up the entire site or just certain folders. This makes it a really flexible plugin, and the peace of mind from automatic backups is really nice to have.
Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
Very user-friendly | The free version has very limited features |
Set up automatic backups | Support is only available with premium plans |
Back up to the cloud |
VaultPress: Most Comprehensive Low-cost Backup Plugin
VaultPress by Jetpack is one of the most powerful backup and security plugins available. It’s loaded with great features, such as daily or real-time backups to ensure you always have your most recent changes secured, security scans, and virus detection. It’s built by Automattic, which is part of the same team that built WordPress, so you can rest assured it’s designed by experts and provides expert-level security and reliability.
Though it’s not available for free, its starting price is $7.95 per month with annual billing or $9.95 per month with month-to-month billing, making it a very affordable premium plugin.
Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
Very comprehensive plugin | Automatic site backups are not available with the free version |
Real-time backups | Plans jump in price for added security features |
Unlimited site storage |
WP Time Capsule: Best Resource-saving Backup Plugin
WP Time Capsule is the best WordPress backup plugin for those who want to conserve resources by simply backing up site changes and updates. Unlike most backup plugins, WP Time Capsule doesn’t save your entire site with every backup—just your most recent changes. This not only saves valuable resources, but it’s also very helpful if you’re making small changes and decide you want to revert back to a former version.
However, unlike other plugins that offer a free version, WP Time Capsule only offers a 30-day free trial. After the trial ends, you will be required to sign up for a premium version, starting at $49 per year, in order to continue using the plugin.
Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
Backup just recent changes | It doesn’t offer a free version |
Real-time backups | |
Easy, one-click staging |
Duplicator: Best for Safeguarding Sites When Changing Hosts
Duplicator is one of the highest-rated backup plugins on WordPress. It has an average rating of 4.9 out of 5 stars from nearly 3,000 reviews. Rating aside, it’s the best backup plugin to safeguard a website when migrating to a new web hosting provider. It enables you to not only back up your site, but can also move, migrate, and clone your website. It has both a free version and a premium version for $59, which gives users one year of support and updates.
Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
Near perfect rating | It involves a learning curve to use |
Secure and reliable | Can be glitchy with some hosting providers |
Move, migrate, or clone a website |
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
How do you install a WordPress backup plugin?
Installing a WordPress backup plugin is simple. First, choose which backup plugin you want to use. Then, go to your WordPress admin dashboard and navigate to “Plugins” from the left-hand vertical menu. Click “Add New” and then use the search bar to search for your desired backup plugin. After locating it, click the corresponding “Install” button and then click the “Activate” button. You will then need to go to the plugin and update your settings.
For more insight, get the step-by-step instructions on how to back up a WordPress website.
How do you restore an UpdraftPlus WordPress backup?
You can restore a backup in WordPress using UpdraftPlus in just a few steps. To start, log in to your WordPress admin dashboard and navigate to “Settings” from the left-hand vertical menu. Then, select “UpdraftPlus” from the options, and go to the “Existing Backups” tab. From there, click “Restore” for the version you want. This will open the Restoration Wizard. For more guidance, check out our article on how to restore a WordPress backup.
Bottom Line
The best backup plugins for WordPress give you the peace of mind that should you lose your site (and all of your hard work), you will be able to quickly recover it. This requires that plugins are reliable, secure, and offer all the backup features and settings necessary to enable you to easily back up and restore your small business website.
However, as useful as these tools are, it is best to have more than one backup to protect your site. Typically, the best way to do this is to back up your site to your web hosting service, such as Bluehost, as well as use a backup plugin, such as UpdraftPlus. This way, should something happen to either backup location, you are still able to recover your site.
You Might Also Like…
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