BackblazeSecurity for small business — Backblaze is a strong fit for small businesses where most critical data…

Pricing

Priced per computer. Business Backup is $99 per computer per year ($8.25/month). Personal Backup is $9/month or $99/year per computer. Both offer unlimited storage with no file size caps.

Overview

Picture this: a two-person accounting firm wraps up tax season, and the next morning one employee's laptop hard drive fails completely. No recent backup means weeks of client files, spreadsheets, and correspondence are simply gone. That single incident can cost more in recovery attempts, lost billable hours, and client trust than years of backup subscriptions. Backblaze exists to make that scenario preventable without requiring an IT department to set it up. Backblaze is a cloud backup service that runs quietly in the background on Macs and PCs, continuously uploading every new or changed file to Backblaze's servers. It covers user-generated data—documents, photos, videos, project files, databases exported to local folders, and files on connected external drives—with no restrictions on individual file size or file type. Pricing is a straightforward $99 per computer per year (verify current rates on the vendor site), which makes budgeting simple for owners who hate surprise invoices. For a retail shop owner managing product photography and QuickBooks files on a single iMac, setup takes roughly fifteen minutes: download the app, create an account, and the first backup starts automatically. A marketing coordinator at a small agency can restore an accidentally deleted video project folder in minutes by logging into the Backblaze web interface and downloading the files. An operations manager overseeing five employee laptops can add each machine to the same business account, monitor backup status from a central dashboard, and set retention policies so deleted files remain recoverable for up to a year (or longer with optional add-ons—confirm current retention tiers with Backblaze). Onboarding is genuinely low-friction. The initial backup of a full hard drive can take days or even a couple of weeks on a slow upload connection—Backblaze offers a USB hard drive seed service for large initial uploads, though fees apply. After that, incremental backups run continuously with almost no performance impact. There's no complex configuration required, and the restore process is straightforward enough that non-technical staff can retrieve files without calling for help. Who should look elsewhere? Businesses that need real-time server backup, continuous NAS device backup without workarounds, or granular backup policies across a large mixed device fleet may find Backblaze's computer-centric model limiting. It is also a backup tool, not a sync or file-sharing platform—teams expecting Dropbox-style collaboration features will be disappointed. Very large organizations with complex compliance requirements around data residency should verify whether Backblaze's infrastructure meets those standards before committing.

Features

• Continuous automatic backup runs silently without manual intervention or scheduling
• Unlimited data per computer—no file size or file type restrictions apply
• Flat annual pricing per computer simplifies IT budget forecasting for small teams
• Web-based restore lets any authorized user retrieve files from a browser
• External drive backup covers USB and Thunderbolt drives connected at backup time
• Business Groups dashboard gives owners centralized visibility across multiple computers
• Optional physical restore via mailed USB drive speeds large file recoveries
• Version history retains deleted or changed files for up to one year by default

Best for

Backblaze is a strong fit for small businesses where most critical data lives on employee laptops and desktops rather than on servers. Professional services firms—accountants, consultants, photographers, video editors, and small law offices—benefit most because their work product is tied directly to individual machines. Retail shops and small agencies with two to twenty-five computers get immediate value from the per-seat flat pricing, which scales predictably. It works especially well for businesses that have zero dedicated IT staff and need a solution that an owner or office manager can deploy and forget. Remote and hybrid teams also benefit since the backup happens wherever the laptop is connected to the internet.

Limitations

Backblaze backs up computers, not servers—Windows Server editions and NAS devices are not supported under the standard personal or business computer plans (Backblaze B2 cloud storage is a separate product for those use cases). The initial backup of a large hard drive can take several days to several weeks depending on upload speed and data volume, which is a real gap in protection during onboarding. Files on external drives must be connected at the time of backup or they'll be flagged as missing and eventually removed from the backup set. It is not a sync tool, so it cannot replace Dropbox or Google Drive for real-time file sharing. Verify current retention limits and add-on costs on the vendor site before assuming defaults meet your needs.

Frequently asked questions

What is Backblaze?

Flat-rate, unlimited cloud backup for every business Mac and PC at $99 per computer per year—no file-size caps, no surprises. Picture this: a two-person accounting firm wraps up tax season, and the next morning one employee's laptop hard drive fails completely. No recent backup means weeks of client files, spreadsheets, and correspondence are simply gone. That single incident can cost more in recovery attempts, lost billable hours, and client trust than years of backup subscriptions. Backblaze exists to make that…

Who is Backblaze best for?

Backblaze is a strong fit for small businesses where most critical data lives on employee laptops and desktops rather than on servers. Professional services firms—accountants, consultants, photographers, video editors, and small law offices—benefit most because their work product is tied directly to individual machines. Retail shops and small agencies with two to twenty-five computers get immediate value from the per-seat flat pricing, which scales predictably. It works especially well for businesses that have zero dedicated IT staff and need a solution that an owner or office manager can deploy and forget. Remote and hybrid teams also benefit since the backup happens wherever the laptop is connected to the internet.

What are the main limitations of Backblaze?

Backblaze backs up computers, not servers—Windows Server editions and NAS devices are not supported under the standard personal or business computer plans (Backblaze B2 cloud storage is a separate product for those use cases). The initial backup of a large hard drive can take several days to several weeks depending on upload speed and data volume, which is a real gap in protection during onboarding. Files on external drives must be connected at the time of backup or they'll be flagged as missing and eventually removed from the backup set. It is not a sync tool, so it cannot replace Dropbox or Google Drive for real-time file sharing. Verify current retention limits and add-on costs on the vendor site before assuming defaults meet your needs.

Why does AIStackForSMB rate Backblaze 9/10 for SMBs?

Backblaze earns a 9 out of 10 for SMB suitability across four key dimensions. Time-to-value is exceptional—most businesses have a working backup running within an hour of purchase, with no professional services engagement required. Cost predictability is among the best in its category: the flat annual per-computer rate makes it trivial to forecast and easy to justify to a non-technical owner or board. Support burden is minimal because the software genuinely runs itself after setup, and the restore interface is simple enough that employees can self-serve without IT escalation. Admin overhead for multi-computer management is low thanks to the Business Groups dashboard, which surfaces backup health at a glance. The score stops short of a perfect 10 because server and NAS backup require a separate product (B2), the initial backup window can be uncomfortably long for data-heavy machines, and businesses with strict data residency compliance needs will need to do additional due diligence. For the vast majority of laptop- and desktop-centric SMBs, however, Backblaze delivers genuine peace of mind at a price that is hard to argue with.

How does pricing work for Backblaze?

Paid plans from about $8/mo (verify on the vendor site). Priced per computer. Business Backup is $99 per computer per year ($8.25/month). Personal Backup is $9/month or $99/year per computer. Both offer unlimited storage with no file size caps.

What category is Backblaze in?

Backblaze is grouped under Security on AIStackForSMB. Browse more tools in that category on our site under /categories/security.