UpdraftPlus vs Duplicator: Solving the Debate Once and For All

Backing up and migrating your WordPress site can be daunting, especially if you’re worried about keeping your data safe. That’s why you might struggle to find the best tools for the job.

With so many backup and migration plugins out there, how do you choose?

Two names consistently rise to the top: UpdraftPlus and Duplicator. Both are powerful, with their own strengths.

I took the time to extensively use both plugins myself. I compared all of their features so that you’d know exactly which plugin fits your needs.

Here are the key takeaways:

• Duplicator Pro wins overall: Better for migrations, disaster recovery, and large sites
• Single file advantage: Duplicator creates one compressed backup file vs. UpdraftPlus’s multiple separate files
• Disaster recovery: Only Duplicator lets you restore sites when locked out of WordPress admin
• Pricing difference: Duplicator Pro starts at $49.50/year with unlimited backups and migrations vs. UpdraftPlus Premium at $70/year with limited clone tokens
• Migration ease: Duplicator offers true drag-and-drop migrations; UpdraftPlus requires more setup steps
• Free versions available: Both offer capable free versions, but Duplicator’s free version can install backups on empty servers

Quick Summary: UpdraftPlus vs Duplicator

Duplicator Pro is the best all-around tool for backups and migrations. It supports drag-and-drop migrations, multiple restore options, automatic backups, and can install websites even without WordPress set up. On the other hand, UpdraftPlus is a popular beginner-friendly alternative.

Unlike UpdraftPlus, Duplicator Pro allows you to restore your site even when you’re locked out of your WordPress admin dashboard. Even the free version of Duplicator can install WordPress on a completely empty server, speeding up migrations.

Here’s a sneak peek at our comparison of UpdraftPlus and Duplicator!

Feature	UpdraftPlus	Duplicator
User-friendly interface	✅	✅
Automatic backups	✅	✅
Generates one backup file	❌	✅
Cloud storage	✅	✅
Restore options	✅	✅
Drag-and-drop migrations	✅	✅
Multisite support	✅	✅
Large site support	❌	✅
Empty site support	❌	✅
Off-site backup recovery	❌	✅
Free version	✅	✅
Developer features	❌	✅
Centralized backup management	✅	✅
Backup reports	✅	✅
Unlimited cloning	❌	✅

Table of Contents

What to Look for In a WordPress Backup and Migration Plugin

If you want to start backing up or migrating your website, there are plenty of WordPress plugins available to you. To get the best one, here’s what you should look out for:

• Manual and automatic backups

A beginner-friendly plugin will make it easy to create website backups. You’ll also be able to set schedules to automatically back up your site at a certain time. 

• Cloud storage

To reduce strain on your hosting plan, you can send backups to off-site locations like Google Drive, Dropbox, or OneDrive.

• Restore options

Backups are of no use unless you can restore them. The best plugin will allow you to replace a broken site with an error-free saved copy. 

• Simple migration features

Although migrations can be daunting, the right plugin will perform this service in just a few steps. 

• Support for Multisites and large websites

A basic WordPress migration plugin will only be equipped to handle small to medium-sized sites. If you’re planning to migrate a larger site, the plugin will need to easily package large files. 

• Customer Support

Like with any plugin, you’ll also want your software to come with stellar customer support. This way, if you experience any difficulties you can quickly get answers. 

UpdraftPlus vs Duplicator: Compared

With all of the different backup and migration plugins out there, it can be difficult to narrow down your options. If you need help deciding between UpdraftPlus and Duplicator, we have your back. Let’s compare these two popular plugins so you can decide which one is right for you!

Features: UpdraftPlus vs Duplicator

First things first, you’ll want to know what each plugin does. Let’s take a look at the main features included in UpdraftPlus and Duplicator. 

Duplicator

Duplicator is a comprehensive tool for backing up, migrating, and even cloning websites. Because of its capabilities, Duplicator is used by over 1.5 million users.

Here are just a few of the features included with Duplicator:

• Complete WordPress backups
• Automatic scheduled backups
• One-click backup restore
• Cloud backup storage to Google Drive, Dropbox, Amazon S3, Microsoft OneDrive, FTP/SFTP, and more
• Drag-and-drop site migrations
• Supports Multisite networks and large sites
• Custom search and replace
• cPanel integration
• Server-to-server imports
• Compatible with managed web hosting providers
• WP-CLI commands

UpdraftPlus

Similar to Duplicator, UpdraftPlus can perform backups and migrations. It’s a popular tool for beginners to handle WordPress maintenance without any complex coding.

Here are some of the main features of UpdraftPlus:

• Scheduled and manual backups
• Incremental backups
• Backup restore options
• Remote storage options to Rackspace Cloud Files, Microsoft Azure, Amazon S3, and more
• Cloning and migration
• Pre-update backups
• Supports Multisite

Ease of Use: UpdraftPlus vs Duplicator

Especially if you’re a beginner, it’s important to only install plugins that are easy to use. This way, you won’t waste time trying to figure out how to back up or migrate your website. Let’s compare UpdraftPlus and Duplicator to see which has more user-friendly functionality.  

Duplicator Ease of Use

One common maintenance task you’ll need to perform is a website backup. With the Duplicator plugin, you can easily create a copy of your website whenever you need to.

To start a new backup with Duplicator, navigate to Duplicator Pro » Backups » Add New. Give the backup a name and select a storage location.

If you want to save the backup off-site, Duplicator supports many third-party cloud storage services including:

• Google Drive
• Dropbox
• Microsoft OneDrive
• Amazon S3
• Wasabi
• DreamObjects
• Vultr
• DigitalOcean Spaces
• Cloudflare R2
• Google Cloud
• Backblaze B2

Then, feel free to customize what data you want to save in the backup. Duplicator has presets that make this super easy.

After you hit Next, Duplicator will scan your site. This ensures that your content will be backed up successfully. If there aren’t any issues, continue with the backup.

Now you’ve backed up your WordPress website! To download it, find the Backups page and click on Download » Archive.

You’ll then have a moveable copy of your site downloaded onto your computer. This can easily be migrated to another location or simply saved as a backup in the case of an emergency. 

UpdraftPlus Ease of Use

UpdraftPlus also has built-in backup options. Once you install the plugin, go to UpdraftPlus » Backup/Restore and click on Backup Now.

Then, you’ll have a few options to customize the backup. If you’d like, exclude the database or your WordPress files.

After creating a backup, it’ll be listed under Existing backups.

You’ll see different options for downloading your backup. You can save copies of your database, plugins, themes, or uploads. 

Although UpdraftPlus provides fewer steps in the backup process, you won’t have as many opportunities for customization. Plus, Duplicator provides a useful site scan that ensures your website is backed up correctly. UpdraftPlus provides separate backup files, while Duplicator has one compressed and optimized zip file.

Backup Restore Options: UpdraftPlus vs Duplicator

At some point, you might accidentally lose data to an unexpected error, server crash, or hack. Although this can be scary, a backup plugin can help you quickly restore your website to normal. 

Duplicator Backup Restore Options

Once you create a backup with Duplicator, you’ll see a Restore button next to it. Click on this whenever you need to instantly roll back your site to this version.

This can be useful if you want to try out new changes. If something doesn’t turn out the way you want it to, you can restore a previous backup.

If a catastrophic error locks you out of your dashboard, you can’t access this restore button. Fortunately, Duplicator also supports disaster recovery.

Before anything happens, click on the disaster recovery icon next to a backup. Keep in mind that this needs to be a full backup that’s stored on your local server.

After you set disaster recovery, you can save the recovery link or download the launcher.

After something goes wrong on your site, simply paste the URL into a browser window. You can also open the recovery launcher file. Both of these methods will launch the Duplicator recovery wizard even if your website is down.

After accepting the terms and conditions, hit Restore Backup. You’ll need to confirm that you want to install this older version of your site.

Then, simply use the Admin Login button to access your site again.

You’ll notice that Duplicator replaced the broken website with an error-free WordPress backup!

UpdraftPlus Backup Restore Options

With UpdraftPlus, you’ll only be able to restore your backup from the WordPress admin dashboard. To do this, click on Restore next to the most recent backup.

Then, select the data you want to restore. UpdraftPlus will give you the option to deselect any plugins, themes, uploads, or database information.

If needed, you can choose which database tables to exclude from the restoration. Next, hit Restore again.

Now UpdraftPlus will restore your backup. It’ll notify you if it’s successful.

You can click on Return to UpdraftPlus configuration to go back to your restored WordPress dashboard. 

UpdraftPlus provides a simple way to restore your website from the dashboard, but it might not be useful after critical errors.

If you want to make sure your data is always safe, we’d recommend using Duplicator’s disaster recovery. This will allow you to recover a backup even if you can’t open your dashboard. 

Migrations: UpdraftPlus vs Duplicator

Duplicator and UpdraftPlus are both capable of moving your website to a different host or domain name. But which one is better?

Duplicator Migrations

Fortunately, Duplicator makes migrations very simple. Start by creating a backup of your site. Then, download the archive file the same way you saved a backup earlier.

On a second site, install and activate the Pro version of Duplicator. After this, navigate to the Import page. You can then drag and drop your archive file into the import box.

Once the backup is ready to install, click on Continue.

Then, hit Launch Installer to start the migration.

Now Duplicator’s installation wizard will walk you through the rest of the migration process!

Alternatively, you don’t even need WordPress installed. After downloading both the archive and installer files, upload them to the new website’s root directory.

Then, all you’ll need to do is paste this URL in a browser window: https://your-domain/installer.php

Be sure to edit this to include your new site’s domain. This URL will launch Duplicator’s installer.

You can then follow the step-by-step instructions on how to install your original website.

This process can be useful if you’re setting up a local site without installing WordPress first. If you develop websites for clients, you can quickly migrate them to any server whenever you need to.

UpdraftPlus Migrations

If you want to migrate a site with UpdraftPlus, you can restore a backup on a different WordPress installation.

First, create a backup of your live site and download it. You’ll have to manually download each part of the backup.

Then, install UpdraftPlus on the second site. Find Existing backups » Upload backup files. Here, upload your original site’s backup files.

Now you’ll see the backup listed at the bottom of the page. You can hit Restore to replace the default WordPress installation with your saved backup. 

For a direct server-to-server transfer, you’ll have to purchase the UpdraftMigrator add-on. This is included in UpdraftPlus Premium. 

By upgrading, you can send a backup to another site. To do this, install UpdraftPlus Premium on the second site. Then, click on Receive a backup from a remote site.

Next, create a unique key for the site and copy it.

On your original site, paste the new key to add the second site as the destination.

Now you’ll be able to transfer a backup from the first site to the second one.

With UpdraftPlus, you have to connect two websites and give them permission to send data to each other. This process can take more time than Duplicator’s simple drag-and-drop migrations. Duplicator also doesn’t need WordPress to be installed, making migrations fast for developers.

Pricing: UpdraftPlus vs Duplicator

Even if one plugin does everything you need it to do, it may be out of your price range. Especially if you’re a blogger or small business owner, it’s important to compare the cost of UpdraftPlus vs Duplicator. Let’s take a look!

Duplicator Pricing

You can download a free version of Duplicator from the WordPress Plugin Directory. Duplicator Lite has over 1 million active installations and a 4.9-star rating.

With this version, you’ll be able to back up your site. By uploading the archive and installer files to a new server, you can also easily migrate or clone your website.

If you need more advanced features, Duplicator Pro starts at $49.50 per year. Even this basic plan supports unlimited backups and migrations. You’ll also take advantage of scheduled regular backups, recovery points, cloud storage, drag-and-drop migrations, and more.

UpdraftPlus Pricing

Like Duplicator, UpdraftPlus provides a free plugin. You’ll have backup and restore options, as well as automated backup schedules.

However, UpdraftPlus Premium costs a minimum of $70 per year. With the basic personal plan, you’ll only get one UpdraftClone token. If you want to clone your site often, you’ll have to purchase additional tokens. 

UpdraftPlus vs Duplicator: Pros and Cons

Let’s round up a quick overview of UpdraftPlus and Duplicator so you can compare them!

Duplicator

Pros:

• Migration, cloning, and backup features
• Automatic backup schedules
• Free version
• Easy drag-and-drop migrations
• Compiles all website data into a single zip file
• Many cloud storage integrations
• Recovery point URLs for restorations without dashboard access
• Supports Multisite and large sites up to 100GB
• Developer hooks
• Smart migration wizard

Cons:

• The free version requires some technical expertise since you’ll have to upload files to a File Transfer Protocol (FTP) client.

Duplicator Pro is a powerful and useful plugin for anyone who manages a WordPress site. It provides simple ways to back up and migrate your data. This makes it a great option for complete beginners.

Plus, Duplicator has many features designed for developers and users with more technical experience. It provides developer hooks, custom search and replace, and regenerate salts so you can customize the plugin to do whatever you need it to. 

UpdraftPlus

Pros:

• Beginner-friendly interface
• Free version
• Migration, cloning, and backup features
• Automated backup schedules
• Multisite support
• Incremental backups
• Automated backups before updates

Cons:

• Separate backup files for database, themes, plugins, and uploads
• No developer features
• More expensive than competitors
• Limited UpdraftClone tokens
• Restore options only available from the WordPress dashboard

UpdraftPlus can be an effective backup and migration plugin if you’re new to WordPress. Without too many customization options or extra steps, you can easily create copies of your site and move them to other locations.

Although it might initially seem like a good option, UpdraftPlus isn’t as flexible as Duplicator. You can get more advanced features with the premium version, but the plans are generally more expensive than similar plugins. 

Although UpdraftPlus has some beginner-friendly features, its paid versions are expensive. Additionally, add-ons like UpdraftClone use a token system. If you’re planning on cloning your website more than once, you’ll need to purchase a higher-tier plan.

In comparison, even the cheapest Duplicator plan supports unlimited backups and migrations. There are also plenty of tools for developers to customize backups, set up staging sites, and more.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Conclusion

Your website is too important to leave to chance. Invest in a tool that’s as serious about protecting your digital assets as you are.

Duplicator goes beyond typical plugins by offering advanced features like drag-and-drop migrations and disaster recovery options, giving you peace of mind and reliable data protection.

Are you ready to benefit from automatic backups, drag-and-drop migrations, cloud storage, and disaster recovery? Download Duplicator Pro today!

While you’re here, I think you’ll like these other WordPress guides:

• Duplicator Review: Is It the Best Backup and Migration Plugin?
• 9 Best Plugins to Clone a WordPress Site
• How to Create a Cloud WordPress Backup
• All-in-One WP Migration vs Duplicator: Which Migration Plugin Is Best?
• The Ultimate WordPress Migration Checklist: Master the Move!