Carbonite evaluate: All-you-can-eat on-line backup

Finest Costs Immediately: Carbonite Backup

The venerable Carbonite stays considered one of our favourite on-line backup options, due to limitless storage to your backups and deep integration into Home windows Explorer.

Creator’s observe: There’s some inconsistency in the best way the proprietor OpenText refers to this program, principally calling it Carbonite, but in addition Carbonite Backup, Carbonite Protected, Carbonite Protected Backup, and Carbonite Protected CE (Shopper Version?).

What are Carbonite’s options?

Carbonite gives limitless on-line knowledge backup with file versioning — i.e., it retains older variations of recordsdata. Versioning is what makes Carbonite a backup slightly than a sync service. All knowledge is encrypted and it’s possible you’ll decide to maintain the encryption key in your individual possession or let Carbonite host it.

Learn on to be taught extra, then see our roundup of the most effective cloud backup companies for comparability.

By default this system intelligently targets solely the commonest knowledge and areas — i.e., the Home windows paperwork, photos, music, and many others. folders, although there’s an possibility to start out with no recordsdata or choose your individual folders. You might also add or subtract recordsdata and folders from the backup through Home windows Explorer by right-clicking and deciding on the suitable possibility proven within the picture under.

There aren’t any jobs in Carbonite as such, simply the only backup process that uploads the information you choose to Carbonite’s on-line storage farm. Which brings me to a minor gripe — the shortage of a neighborhood secondary vacation spot akin to an exterior drive. Native backups are far faster and simpler to revive. Look to Window’s personal File Historical past for that. Attempt Macrium Mirror Free for entire partition/drive picture backups.

If I’ve every other grievance, it’s the restricted on-line viewing (pictures) and lack of modifying. Carbonite is for backup and storage, not working on-line.

If you happen to fall into that group of customers who retailer important knowledge outdoors of the widespread areas or just need to select what you need backed up by yourself, Carbonite makes it very simple (Home windows 10) to comparatively simple (Home windows 11) so as to add supply folders and recordsdata to your backup.

Carbonite additionally encompasses a intelligent methodology of signaling the backed-up standing of a file or folder by superimposing a tiny coloured dot on the icon: orange for backup pending and inexperienced for already backed up, and many others. (See above.)

Testing on two PCs, these dots have been current; nevertheless, on a 3rd testbed they weren’t. Carbonite tech help indicated that this was probably as a consequence of different software program having hooked into this potential. After a Home windows re-install, the difficulty disappeared so we’re assuming they have been appropriate.

Carbonite skips granular scheduling in favor of a restricted type of steady knowledge safety (CDP). Steady backup typically means recordsdata are backed up quickly after they modify. On this case, nevertheless, there’s a major limitation in that just one change is backed up in close to actual time.

Subsequent adjustments to a file will not be backed up for one more 24 hours. As an illustration, if I have been engaged on this text in Phrase, and saving repeatedly as is my behavior, the ultimate model won’t be backed up till the subsequent day — even when I clicked on the Again up now button within the settings space.

Carbonite additionally gives once-a-day backup, which will probably be greater than enough for many customers. To be sincere, I’d slightly set this for the tip of the workday (it’s possible you’ll select the hour) than depend on Carbonite’s type of “steady,” which could not again up till properly into tomorrow. Except I need each model I’ve saved, that’s. I typically don’t, however once more, Home windows File Historical past can handle this.

Restoring knowledge from Carbonite is so simple as deciding on “Get my recordsdata again” from the primary web page of the Carbonite consumer. Now you’re taken on-line if you wish to “Select recordsdata,” otherwise you’re stepped by the method within the native consumer should you select “Get all of my recordsdata.”

You too can use the Carbonite digital drive. Nevertheless, this could solely be discovered when you choose This PC (proven under) from the Home windows Explorer naviagation tree — it’s not listed within the tree itself or Explorer as inside, exterior, and even digital drives usually are.

You too can skip the consumer software program altogether and obtain knowledge on to any PC you select from the Carbonite web site after signing in together with your login and password. Notice which you could’t drag and drop or in any other case add recordsdata to Carbonite through your browser. I agree with the follow, that is about backup, not file sharing.

Notice that whereas older variations of recordsdata are retained (aka versioning), you’ll have to right-click over the file and choose “Restore earlier variations” to see them — they’re not displayed by default. Clear, however maybe not intuitive to those that aren’t accustomed to context menus.

Carbonite additionally offers shoppers for iOS and Android. These present entry to recordsdata, however don’t again up something from the telephone.

Notice that should you uninstall Carbonite, you’ll have to reboot earlier than the standing dots on the folders and recordsdata will disappear.

How briskly is Carbonite Backup?

I seen no efficiency hit in any respect whereas utilizing Carbonite in steady backup mode whereas backing up round 500MB price of often modified recordsdata. That’s in all probability as a result of the backup shouldn’t be completed in actual time, and even repeatedly within the conventional sense.

Carbonite advised us that recordsdata will probably be backed up inside 10 minutes of the primary recorded change, however subsequent adjustments might not happen for as much as 24 hours. My final go-round with this system, subsequent adjustments appeared to add much more shortly. Nevertheless, this time there have been standing notes on the digital drive saying the “File will probably be backed up once more in 23 hours” and at eight hours and counting, most have been nonetheless within the Pending Backup folder.

Except you need to save each model of your extremely edited recordsdata, you could be higher off with a once-a-day backup.

These experiences all seek advice from the Fundamental model of Carbonite that I examined. The far costlier Skilled variations might behave otherwise relating to “steady” backup.

How a lot does Carbonite value?

Carbonite’s single-computer Fundamental plan is $96 a yr, the Plus plan with help for a single exterior drive is $132 a yr, and a Prime plan with courier supply of your backup is $162 a yr. All plans embrace limitless storage, however the Fundamental plan doesn’t routinely again up movies and doesn’t help exterior drives.

There are first-year reductions in place that quantity to $76 for Fundamental, $79 for Plus, and $97 for Prime. These fall again to the usual pricing described above in subsequent years.

Fundamental, which is the plan I examined, doesn’t help community areas or logical drives mounted with cloud administration software program. It additionally lacks the Webroot antivirus featured within the two pricier plans.

Carbonite gives a complete comparability of pricing and options that will help you resolve. Notice that you just’ll see any present reductions at that hyperlink, and these might not seem should you click on “purchase” within the native consumer software program.

There’s a free 15-day trial accessible so you’ll be able to kick the tires and resolve if Carbonite is your cup of tea.

Do you have to purchase Carbonite Backup?

Carbonite (the Fundamental variations) is a succesful, easy-to-use, set-it-and-forget-it backup service that eliminates any worries about working out of room when backing up your stuff. I want the backup intervals have been a bit tighter, however that’s a minor grievance.

Editor’s observe: As a result of on-line companies are sometimes iterative, gaining new options and efficiency enhancements over time, this evaluate is topic to alter with a view to precisely mirror the present state of the service. Any adjustments to textual content or our last evaluate verdict will probably be famous on the prime of this text.

This text was edited on April 28, 2026 to mirror title and worth adjustments, in addition to adjustments to the precise program.

How PCWorld checks software program

All software program is at the moment put in and examined on an Asus Strix Z790-I Gaming WIFI motherboard sporting an Intel Core i5-12400 with 64GB of reminiscence (two 32GB Kingston Fury DDR5 4800MHz modules), working Home windows 11 Professional 21H2. Sure, that’s older software program so it’s possible you’ll observe some discrepancies in methodology right here and there should you’re working newer variations of Home windows.

Storage is courtesy of each Kingston and Seagate 2TB NVMe SSDs.