Duplicati vs Rclone

Duplicati is a GUI-based backup tool with built-in scheduling, while Rclone is a command-line Swiss-Army knife for cloud storage. Below is a streamlined comparison to help you decide which fits your workflow best.

Quick comparison

Key differences

Duplicati (backup specialist)

• Point-and-click web interface
• Built-in scheduler & email reports
• Block-level deduplication & automatic retention
• Great for “set-and-forget” desktop backups

Rclone (file-ops powerhouse)

• CLI with dozens of sub-commands
• Scriptable and automation-friendly
• Supports 70+ cloud providers & mounts as a drive
• Ideal for large-scale sync, migrations, and power-user workflows

When to use each tool

# Typical Rclone backup script
rclone sync /var/data s3:backups \
  --exclude "*.tmp" \
  --log-file /var/log/backup.log

Feature highlights

Scheduling

• Duplicati: Visual scheduler, missed-backup handling, wake computer for job
• Rclone: Use cron (Linux/macOS) or Task Scheduler (Windows)

Encryption

• Duplicati: Always-on AES-256 encryption with passphrase
• Rclone: Optional via crypt remotes

Deduplication & Versioning

• Duplicati: Block-level dedupe + smart retention policies
• Rclone: File-level only; manual versioning with --backup-dir or dated folders

Decision matrix

Tip: Many users run both: Duplicati for automated daily backups and Rclone for specialised tasks like migrations or extra off-site copies.