Backup as a service (BaaS) is the right answer for the team that does not want to operate the backup infrastructure. The trade-offs are cost, vendor lock-in, and the restore time. The BaaS market in 2026 is dominated by the three major cloud providers, with a long tail of specialized providers for the workloads the major providers do not handle well.
Table of contents
- The BaaS landscape
- The major cloud BaaS
- The specialized BaaS
- The trade-offs
- When to use BaaS
- When to self-host
- FAQ
The BaaS landscape
The BaaS landscape in 2026 has three layers:
- The major cloud BaaS. AWS Backup, Azure Backup, Google Cloud Backup. The right answer when the team is already on the cloud and the workload is a managed service.
- The specialized BaaS. Veeam, Commvault, Rubrik, Cohesity. The right answer when the team has a hybrid workload (on-premises + cloud) or a workload the major providers do not handle well.
- The niche BaaS. Provider-specific (e.g., MongoDB Atlas Backup, Snowflake Time Travel, GitHub backup). The right answer when the team is all-in on one provider and the provider’s native backup is good enough.
The major cloud BaaS
The major cloud BaaS in 2026, ordered by adoption:
- AWS Backup. The leader. Supports RDS, EBS, EFS, FSx, DynamoDB, Aurora, Storage Gateway. The right answer when the team is on AWS.
- Azure Backup. The runner-up. Supports Azure VMs, Azure SQL, Azure Files, Azure Disks. The right answer when the team is on Azure.
- Google Cloud Backup. The third. Supports Compute Engine, Cloud SQL, Cloud Storage, Persistent Disk. The right answer when the team is on GCP.
The specialized BaaS
The specialized BaaS in 2026, ordered by adoption:
- Veeam. The leader. Supports VMware, Hyper-V, AWS, Azure, GCP, physical servers. The right answer for the team with a hybrid workload.
- Commvault. The enterprise equivalent. Supports the same workloads as Veeam, plus SAP, Oracle, mainframes. The right answer for the large enterprise.
- Rubrik. The middle ground. Supports the same workloads as Veeam, with a focus on the cloud-native workload.
- Cohesity. The middle ground. Supports the same workloads as Veeam, with a focus on the hybrid cloud.
The trade-offs
The trade-offs the team needs to understand:
- Cost. BaaS is more expensive than self-hosted backup. The premium is typically 2-3x.
- Vendor lock-in. Switching BaaS providers is a migration project. The data has to be moved, the restore process has to be re-tested, the team has to be re-trained.
- Restore time. BaaS restores are typically slower than self-hosted restores. The data has to be pulled from the BaaS provider, which adds latency.
- Compliance. BaaS providers have to meet the team’s compliance requirements. The team that is in healthcare, finance, or any regulated industry has to verify the BaaS provider’s compliance certifications.
When to use BaaS
The team that should use BaaS:
- The team that does not want to operate the backup infrastructure.
- The team that is on a major cloud and the workload is a managed service.
- The team that has a small backup volume (under 10 TB) and the cost of BaaS is not significant.
- The team that does not have the engineering time to operate a self-hosted backup.
When to self-host
The team that should self-host the backup:
- The team that has a large backup volume (over 10 TB) and the cost of BaaS is significant.
- The team that has compliance requirements the BaaS providers cannot meet.
- The team that needs a fast restore time and the BaaS provider’s restore latency is too high.
- The team that has the engineering time to operate a self-hosted backup.
FAQ
What is backup as a service (BaaS)?
A managed backup service that the team consumes instead of operating. The right answer when the team does not want to operate the backup infrastructure.
What is the best BaaS provider in 2026?
The right answer depends on the team. For AWS workloads: AWS Backup. For Azure workloads: Azure Backup. For hybrid workloads: Veeam or Commvault.
How much does BaaS cost?
Typically 2-3x more than self-hosted backup. The premium is the cost of the managed service and the vendor’s compliance certifications.
What is the difference between BaaS and disaster recovery?
BaaS is the backup - the data is copied to a separate location. Disaster recovery is the plan to restore the workload from the backup. The two are complementary; most teams need both.
How do I get started with BaaS?
Pick the BaaS provider that matches the team’s cloud, configure the backup policy, test the restore, and document the runbook. The team should test the restore at least once a quarter.
If you are sizing a backup tier for a new project, the RunxBuild hosting calculator is the place to model the line items. The backup, the storage, the egress, the restore - each one is a separate number, and the team’s mental model for the platform is the sum of those numbers. The RunxBuild dashboard is where the team sees the actual backup status in one place.