WordPress backup plugins

As mentioned before, we at WebHostingBuzz believe that backups is a server job, not something WordPress should be taking care of.

However, we also understand that it ‘s not always possible to use server-side backup routines. There can be several reasons of not being able to use external backup tools:

  • cPanel not available (it costs something to have it)
  • no budget for a business-grade backup solution (CodeGuard starts at $5/mo)
  • you want to skip the more difficult part of setting up DIY backups
  • very limited to no control over your web hosting account
  • you have good reasons for being able to manage backups from WordPress backend
  • you believe that backups should be handled by WordPress (yes, we can live with this)

If you saw yourself in any of the above points – read on.

WordPress backup plugins may contain certain options that, when used improperly, can affect server performance and stability. Don’t hesitate to contact us and ask for help with the most suitable backup configuration.

Free WordPress backup plugins

We recommend the following 100% free (or free with paid versions) plugins to backup your WordPress websites.

BackWPup

BackWPup logoBackWPup is loaded with great features, yet it’s simple in terms of installation and usage.

It allows to backup WordPress database, files, content (XML export) using a number of options – include/exclude directories, compress backups and much more. It can store backups on a cloud storage (Dropbox, Amazon S3, Microsoft Azure, etc) and on any remote FTP server.

BackWPup is a perfect backup plugin for almost anyone running a WordPress-based website. It also supports WordPress Network (former WPMU or WordPress Multisite) – quite a rare feature for a free WordPress backup plugin.

Get the free version of BackWPup plugin here.

BackWPup ProBackWPup Pro offers a number of additional features – wizards, differential backups, premium support and much more – check it out.

Prices start at $75 one-off for 2 domains with 12 month of updates and support.

As they say, “The most important backup is the one that has never been made!”. We second that thought.

 

BackUpWordPress

BackUpWordPressLooking for a simple WordPress backup option? You’ve just found BackUpWordpress.

We recommend this plugin to those not particularly technically minded owners of small-to-medium sized websites.

Once installed, it’s just a matter of choosing how often backups should be created, time to start backup creation and number of backup copies to store.

BackUpWordpress stores backups on the same server where WordPress website is hosted. Thus we recommend to download backups to your PC to ensure they won’t be lost in case of problems on web hosting side.

WP-Dump

WP-DumpA real one-click WordPress backup. This plugin saves WordPress database and files to zip files.

It also allows to change URLs in the database dump if you want to use a copy of your website locally (e.g. for development purposes).

Get the plugin here.

We recommend to use this plugin on small WordPress websites only as it’s not capable of handing large databases and large amount of files.

WP-Dump doesn’t have any options to schedule backups. Also, it can’t store backups anywhere but on the same server where WordPress website is hosted. So we don’t recommend to take it as one and only backup tool needed.

Commercial WordPress backup plugins

In case you want to spend a dime…

BackupBuddy

BackupBuddyBackupBuddy by iThemes allows to schedule WordPress backups and have them sent to 3rd party storage services (Dropbox, Amazon S3, Rackspace Cloud or FTP server).

Other features include the ability to restore backups and move the whole WordPress installation to another server.

Pricing options vary from $80 for 2 licences to $197 for developer licence covering all 20 of their plugins.

 

 

iThemes Codex states the experimental state of WordPress Network support. Make sure to read through the rest iThemes Codex page and pay attention to a few other recommendations, restrictions and known issues.

Snapshot

SnapshotSnapshot by WPMU DEV creates painless and easy to access backups. It allows to schedule automatic backups of WordPress files and database, also supports Amazon S3, Dropbox or SFTP for storing backups.

Snapshot is able to create ‘Time Machine’ snapshots of the entire website, it also includes a detailed log of all snapshots. Customizable restore points allow to easily restore the site to any point in time.

The plugin features full WordPress Network compatibility.

Pricing starts at $9 for this plugin, you can purchase and use it for unlimited time and on unlimited websites.

Bonus advice

And here is bonus tip from WebHostingBuzz Experts: take screenshots of different settings in WordPress backend.

Really, in case something goes wrong you might need to reconfigure things in WordPress backend. Also, with some complicated plugins/themes you’re likely to spend a fair amount of time getting stuff set up. Should something bad happen – those screenshots you’ve saved will make setting everything up again much easier than it could have been.


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  • clara santa

    The list of plugins here are very good and useful for wordpress database backup and restoration.

    Data base amazon s3 by wpadm as great plugin you can check it out.