{"id":108532,"date":"2023-04-25T09:28:31","date_gmt":"2023-04-25T16:28:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.backblaze.com\/blog\/?p=108532"},"modified":"2025-12-14T16:04:29","modified_gmt":"2025-12-15T00:04:29","slug":"how-long-should-you-keep-backups","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.backblaze.com\/blog\/how-long-should-you-keep-backups\/","title":{"rendered":"How Long Should You Keep Backups?"},"content":{"rendered":"\r\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1440\" height=\"820\" class=\"wp-image-108533\" src=\"https:\/\/www.backblaze.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/bb-bh-How-Long-Should-You-Keep-Backups-e1682361458727.png\" alt=\"A decorative image showing a calendar, a laptop, a desktop, and a phone. \" srcset=\"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/bb-bh-How-Long-Should-You-Keep-Backups-e1682361458727.png 1440w, https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/bb-bh-How-Long-Should-You-Keep-Backups-e1682361458727-300x171.png 300w, https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/bb-bh-How-Long-Should-You-Keep-Backups-e1682361458727-1024x583.png 1024w, https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/bb-bh-How-Long-Should-You-Keep-Backups-e1682361458727-768x437.png 768w, https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/bb-bh-How-Long-Should-You-Keep-Backups-e1682361458727-560x319.png 560w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1440px) 100vw, 1440px\" \/><\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<div class=\"wp-block-spacer\" style=\"height: 25px;\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\u00a0<\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p id=\"bzdropcap\">You know you need to back up your data. Maybe you\u2019ve developed a backup strategy and gotten the process started, or maybe you\u2019re still in the planning phase. Now you\u2019re starting to wonder: how long do I need to keep all these backups I\u2019m going to accumulate? It\u2019s the right question to ask, but the truth is there\u2019s no one-size-fits-all answer.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>How long you keep your backups will depend on your IT team\u2019s priorities, and will include practical factors like storage costs and the operational realities that define the usefulness of each backup. Highly regulated industries like banking and healthcare have even more challenges to consider on top of that. With all that in mind, here\u2019s what you need to know to determine how long you should keep your backups.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">First Things First: You Need a Retention Policy<\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>If you\u2019re asking how long you should keep your backups, you\u2019re already on your way to designing a retention policy. Your organization\u2019s retention policy is the official protocol that will codify your backup strategy from top to bottom. The policy should not just outline what data you\u2019re backing up and for how long, but also explain why you\u2019ve determined to keep it for that length of time and what you plan to do with it beyond that point.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>Practically speaking, the decision about how long to keep your backups boils down to a balancing act between storage costs and operational value. You need to understand how long your backups will be useful in order to determine when it\u2019s time to replace or dispose of them; keeping backups past their viability leads to both unnecessary spend and the kind of complexity that breeds risk.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Backup vs. Archive<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>Disposal isn\u2019t the only option when a backup ages. Sometimes it\u2019s more appropriate to <a href=\"\/blog\/data-backup-vs-archive\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">archive data<\/a> as a long-term storage option. As your organization\u2019s data footprint expands, it\u2019s important to determine how you interact with different types of data to make the best decisions about how to safeguard it (and for how long).<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>While backups are used to restore data in case of loss or damage, or to return a system to a previous state, archives are more often used to off-load data from faster or more frequently accessed storage systems.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\r\n<li><strong>Backup:<\/strong> A data recovery strategy for when loss, damage, or disaster occurs.<\/li>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<li><strong>Archive:<\/strong> A long-term or permanent data retrieval strategy for data that is not as likely to be accessed, but still needs to be retained.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>Knowing archiving is an option can impact how long you decide to keep your backups. Instead of deleting them completely, you can choose to move them from short-term storage into a long-term archive. For instance, you could choose to keep more recent backups on premises, perhaps stored on a local <a href=\"\/blog\/server-backup-101-choosing-a-server-backup-solution\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">server<\/a> or <a href=\"\/blog\/category\/cloud-storage\/nas\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">network attached storage (NAS) device<\/a>, and move your archives to cloud storage for long-range safekeeping.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>How you choose to store your backups can also be a factor into your decision on how long to keep them. <a href=\"\/blog\/how-to-migrate-from-lto-to-the-cloud\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Moving archives to cloud storage<\/a> is more convenient than other long-term retention strategies like tape. Keeping archives in cloud storage could allow you to keep that data for longer simply because it\u2019s less time-consuming than maintaining tape archives, and you also don\u2019t have to worry about the deterioration of tape over time.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>Putting your archive in <a href=\"\/blog\/cloud-storage-pricing-what-you-need-to-know\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">cloud storage can help manage the cost side<\/a> of the equation, too, but only if handled carefully. While <a href=\"\/blog\/lto-vs-cloud-storage-vs-hybrid\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">cloud storage is typically cheaper than tape archives<\/a> in the long run, you might save even more by moving your archives from hot to cold storage. For most cloud storage providers, cold storage is generally a cheaper option if you\u2019re talking dollars per GB stored. But, it\u2019s important to remember that retrieving data from cold storage can incur high egress fees and take 12\u201348 hours to retrieve data. When you need to recover data quickly, such as in a <a href=\"\/blog\/complete-guide-ransomware\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">ransomware attack<\/a> or cybersecurity breach, each moment you don\u2019t have your data means more time your business is not online\u2014and that\u2019s expensive.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<div class=\"abstract\" style=\"line-height: 1.8; margin: 24px 12px; padding: 24px 12px 10px 12px;\">\r\n<h4>How One School District Balances Storage Costs and Retention<\/h4>\r\n<p>With 200 servers and 125TB of data, Bethel School District outside of Tacoma, Washington needed a scalable cloud storage solution for archiving server backups. They\u2019d been using Amazon S3, but high costs were straining their budget\u2014so much so that they had to shorten needed retention periods.<\/p>\r\n<p>Moving to Backblaze produced savings of 75%, and Backblaze\u2019s flat pricing structure gives the school district a predictable invoice, eliminating the guesswork they anticipated from other solutions. They\u2019re also planning to reinstate a longer retention period for better protection from ransomware attacks, as they no longer need to control spiraling Amazon S3 costs.<\/p>\r\n<\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Next Order of Business: The Structure of Your Backup Strategy<\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>The types of backups you\u2019re storing will also factor into how long you keep them. There are many different ways to structure a secure backup strategy, and it\u2019s likely that your organization will interact with each kind of backup differently. Some backup types need to be stored for longer than others to do their job, and those decisions have a lot to do with how the various types interact to form an effective strategy.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The Basics: 3-2-1<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>The <a href=\"\/blog\/3-2-1-backup-best-practices-using-the-cloud\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">3-2-1 backup strategy<\/a> is the widely accepted industry minimum standard. It dictates keeping three copies of your data: two stored locally (on two different types of devices) and one stored off-site. This diversified backup strategy covers all the bases; it\u2019s easy to access backups stored on-site, while off-site (and often offline or <a href=\"\/blog\/object-lock-101-protecting-data-from-ransomware\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">immutable<\/a>) backups provide security through redundancy. It\u2019s probably a good idea to have a specific retention policy for each of your three backups\u2014even if you end up keeping your two locally stored files for the same length of time\u2014because each copy serves a different purpose in your broader backup strategy.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\r\n<figure class=\"aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"600\" height=\"467\" class=\"wp-image-108537\" src=\"https:\/\/www.backblaze.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/3-2-1-Backup-Diagram-e1682365298799.jpeg\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/3-2-1-Backup-Diagram-e1682365298799.jpeg 600w, https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/3-2-1-Backup-Diagram-e1682365298799-300x234.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/3-2-1-Backup-Diagram-e1682365298799-560x436.jpeg 560w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><\/figure>\r\n<\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Full vs. Incremental Backups<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>While designing your backup strategy, you\u2019ll also need to choose how you\u2019re using <a href=\"\/blog\/whats-the-diff-full-incremental-differential-and-synthetic-full-backups\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">full versus incremental backups<\/a>. Performing full backups each time (like completely backing up a work computer daily) requires huge amounts of time, bandwidth, and space, which all inflate your storage usage at the end of the day. Other options serve to increase efficiency and reduce your storage footprint.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\r\n<li><strong>Full backup:<\/strong> A complete copy of your data, starting from scratch either without any pre-existing backups or as if no other backup exists yet.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n\r\n\r\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\r\n<figure class=\"aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1000\" height=\"507\" class=\"wp-image-108538\" src=\"https:\/\/www.backblaze.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/bb-bh-Synthetic-Full-Backup-Graphs-Final_Full-2-1-e1682365325124.png\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/bb-bh-Synthetic-Full-Backup-Graphs-Final_Full-2-1-e1682365325124.png 1000w, https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/bb-bh-Synthetic-Full-Backup-Graphs-Final_Full-2-1-e1682365325124-300x152.png 300w, https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/bb-bh-Synthetic-Full-Backup-Graphs-Final_Full-2-1-e1682365325124-768x389.png 768w, https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/bb-bh-Synthetic-Full-Backup-Graphs-Final_Full-2-1-e1682365325124-560x284.png 560w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px\" \/><\/figure>\r\n<\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\r\n<li><strong>Incremental backup:<\/strong> A copy of any data that has been added or changed since your last full backup (or your last incremental backup).<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n\r\n\r\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\r\n<figure class=\"aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1000\" height=\"1255\" class=\"wp-image-108539\" src=\"https:\/\/www.backblaze.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/bb-bh-Synthetic-Full-Backup-Graphs-Final_Incremental-2-1-e1682365348739.png\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/bb-bh-Synthetic-Full-Backup-Graphs-Final_Incremental-2-1-e1682365348739.png 1000w, https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/bb-bh-Synthetic-Full-Backup-Graphs-Final_Incremental-2-1-e1682365348739-239x300.png 239w, https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/bb-bh-Synthetic-Full-Backup-Graphs-Final_Incremental-2-1-e1682365348739-816x1024.png 816w, https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/bb-bh-Synthetic-Full-Backup-Graphs-Final_Incremental-2-1-e1682365348739-768x964.png 768w, https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/bb-bh-Synthetic-Full-Backup-Graphs-Final_Incremental-2-1-e1682365348739-560x703.png 560w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px\" \/><\/figure>\r\n<\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>When thinking about how long to keep your full backups, consider how far back you may need to completely restore a system. Many cyber attacks can go unnoticed for some time. For instance, you could learn that an employee\u2019s computer was infected with malware or a virus several months ago, and you need to completely restore their system with a full backup. It\u2019s not uncommon for businesses to keep full backups for a year or even longer. On the other hand, incremental backups may not need to be kept for as long because you can always just restore from a full backup instead.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Grandfather-Father-Son Backups<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>Effectively combining different backup types into a cohesive strategy leads to a staggered, chronological approach that is greater than the sum of its parts. The <a href=\"\/blog\/better-backup-practices-what-is-the-grandfather-father-son-approach\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">grandfather-father-son system<\/a> is a great example of this concept in action. Here\u2019s an example of how it might work:<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\r\n<li><strong>Grandfather:<\/strong> A monthly full backup is stored either off-site or in the cloud.<\/li>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<li><strong>Father:<\/strong> Weekly full backups are stored locally in a hot cloud storage solution.<\/li>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<li><strong>Son:<\/strong> Daily incremental backups are stored as a stopgap alongside father backups.<\/li>\r\n<\/ol>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"940\" class=\"wp-image-108548\" src=\"https:\/\/www.backblaze.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/bb-bh-What-Is-the-Grandfather-Father-Son-Backup-Strategy-Diagram_Design-A2-e1652895485764-2048x1879-1-1024x940.png\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/bb-bh-What-Is-the-Grandfather-Father-Son-Backup-Strategy-Diagram_Design-A2-e1652895485764-2048x1879-1-1024x940.png 1024w, https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/bb-bh-What-Is-the-Grandfather-Father-Son-Backup-Strategy-Diagram_Design-A2-e1652895485764-2048x1879-1-300x275.png 300w, https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/bb-bh-What-Is-the-Grandfather-Father-Son-Backup-Strategy-Diagram_Design-A2-e1652895485764-2048x1879-1-768x705.png 768w, https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/bb-bh-What-Is-the-Grandfather-Father-Son-Backup-Strategy-Diagram_Design-A2-e1652895485764-2048x1879-1-1536x1409.png 1536w, https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/bb-bh-What-Is-the-Grandfather-Father-Son-Backup-Strategy-Diagram_Design-A2-e1652895485764-2048x1879-1-560x514.png 560w, https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/bb-bh-What-Is-the-Grandfather-Father-Son-Backup-Strategy-Diagram_Design-A2-e1652895485764-2048x1879-1.png 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>It makes sense that different types of backups will need to be stored for different lengths of time and in different places. You\u2019ll need to make decisions about how long to keep old full backups (once they\u2019ve been replaced with newer ones), for example. The type and the age of your data backups, along with their role in the broader context of your strategy, should factor into your determination about how long to keep them.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">A Note on Minimum Storage Duration Policies<\/h3>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>When considering cloud storage to store your backups, it\u2019s important to know that many providers have <a href=\"\/blog\/lets-be-honest-retention-minimums-are-delete-penalties\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">minimum storage duration policies<\/a>. These are fees charged for data that is not kept in cloud storage for some period of time defined by the cloud storage provider, and it can be anywhere from 30\u2013180 days. These are essentially delete penalties\u2014minimum retention requirement fees apply not only to data that gets deleted from cloud storage but also any data that is overwritten. Think about that in the context of the backup strategies we\u2019ve just outlined: each time you create a new full backup, you\u2019re overwriting data.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>So if, for example, you choose a cloud storage provider with a 90-day minimum storage duration, and you keep your full backups for 60 days, you will be charged fees each time you overwrite or delete a backup. Some cloud storage providers, like <a href=\"https:\/\/www.backblaze.com\/cloud-storage\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Backblaze B2 Cloud Storage<\/a>, do not have a minimum storage duration policy, so you do not have to let that influence how long you choose to keep backups. That kind of flexibility to keep, overwrite, and delete your data as often as you need is important <a href=\"\/blog\/calculate-cost-cloud-storage\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">to manage your storage costs and business needs<\/a> without the fear of surprise bills or hidden fees.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Don\u2019t Forget: Your Industry\u2019s Regulations Can Tip the Scales<\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>While weighing storage costs and operational needs is the fundamental starting point of any retention policy, it\u2019s also important to note that many organizations face regulatory requirements that complicate the question of how long to keep backups. Governing bodies designed to protect both individuals and business interests often mandate that certain kinds of data be readily available and producible upon request for a set amount of time, and they require higher standards of data protection when you\u2019re storing personally identifiable information (PII). Here are some examples of industries with their own unique data retention regulations:<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\r\n<li><strong>Healthcare:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.backblaze.com\/case-studiesgladstone-institutes\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Medical and patient data retention<\/a> is governed by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hipaajournal.com\/hipaa-retention-requirements\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">HIPAA<\/a> rules, but how those rules are applied can vary from state to state.<\/li>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<li><strong>Insurance:<\/strong> Different types of policies are governed by different rules in each state, but insurance companies do generally need to comply with established retention periods. More recently, companies have also been adding <a href=\"\/blog\/what-is-cyber-insurance\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">cyber insurance<\/a>, which comes with its <a href=\"https:\/\/www.backblaze.com\/case-studiesacentek\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">own set of requirements.<\/a><\/li>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<li><strong>Finance:<\/strong> A huge web of legislation (like the Bank Secrecy Act, Electronic Funds Transfer Act, and more) mandates how long banking and financial institutions must retain their data.<\/li>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<li><strong>Education:<\/strong> Universities sit in an interesting space. On one hand, they store a ton of sensitive data about their students. They\u2019re often public services, which means that there\u2019s a certain amount of governmental regulation attached. They also store vast amounts of data related to research, and often have <a href=\"https:\/\/www.backblaze.com\/case-studiespittsburg-state-university\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">on-premises servers and private clouds to protect<\/a>\u2014and that\u2019s all before you get to larger universities which have medical centers and hospitals attached. With all that in mind, it\u2019s unsurprising that they\u2019re subject to higher standards for protecting data.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>Federal and regional legislation around general data security can also dictate how long a company needs to keep backups depending on where it does business (think GDPR, CCPA, etc.). So in addition to industry-specific regulations, your company\u2019s primary geographic location\u2014or your customers\u2019 location\u2014can also influence how long you need to keep data backups.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The Bottom Line: How Long You Keep Backups Will Be Unique to Your Business<\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>The answer to how long you need to keep your backups has everything to do with the specifics of your organization. The industry you\u2019re in, the type of data you deal with, and the structure of your backup strategy should all combine to inform your final decision. And as we\u2019ve seen, you\u2019ll likely wind up with multiple answers to the question pertaining to all the different types of backups you need to create and store.<\/p>\r\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>When you&#8217;re designing your backup strategy, an important foundational question is how long you need to retain your backups. Let&#8217;s talk about some of the things that might help you answer that question. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":175,"featured_media":108533,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"content-type":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[121,434],"tags":[468],"class_list":["post-108532","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-backing-up","category-featured-1","tag-b2cloud","entry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Backup Retention Policies: How Long Should You Keep Your Backups?<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"When you&#039;re designing your backup strategy, an important foundational question is how long you need to retain your backups.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.backblaze.com\/blog\/how-long-should-you-keep-backups\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Backup Retention Policies: How Long Should You Keep Your Backups?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"When you&#039;re designing your backup strategy, an important foundational question is how long you need to retain your backups.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.backblaze.com\/blog\/how-long-should-you-keep-backups\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Backblaze Blog | Cloud Storage &amp; Cloud Backup\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/backblaze\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2023-04-25T16:28:31+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-12-15T00:04:29+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/bb-bh-How-Long-Should-You-Keep-Backups-e1682361458727.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1440\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"820\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Kari Rivas\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@backblaze\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@backblaze\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Kari Rivas\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"10 minutes\" \/>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Backup Retention Policies: How Long Should You Keep Your Backups?","description":"When you're designing your backup strategy, an important foundational question is how long you need to retain your backups.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.backblaze.com\/blog\/how-long-should-you-keep-backups\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Backup Retention Policies: How Long Should You Keep Your Backups?","og_description":"When you're designing your backup strategy, an important foundational question is how long you need to retain your backups.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.backblaze.com\/blog\/how-long-should-you-keep-backups\/","og_site_name":"Backblaze Blog | Cloud Storage &amp; Cloud Backup","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/backblaze","article_published_time":"2023-04-25T16:28:31+00:00","article_modified_time":"2025-12-15T00:04:29+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1440,"height":820,"url":"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/bb-bh-How-Long-Should-You-Keep-Backups-e1682361458727.png","type":"image\/png"}],"author":"Kari Rivas","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@backblaze","twitter_site":"@backblaze","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Kari Rivas","Est. reading time":"10 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.backblaze.com\/blog\/how-long-should-you-keep-backups\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.backblaze.com\/blog\/how-long-should-you-keep-backups\/"},"author":{"name":"Kari Rivas","@id":"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/cd16e363fb44fc4234121fca85ded1d2"},"headline":"How Long Should You Keep Backups?","datePublished":"2023-04-25T16:28:31+00:00","dateModified":"2025-12-15T00:04:29+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.backblaze.com\/blog\/how-long-should-you-keep-backups\/"},"wordCount":2051,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/blog\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.backblaze.com\/blog\/how-long-should-you-keep-backups\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/bb-bh-How-Long-Should-You-Keep-Backups-e1682361458727.png","keywords":["B2Cloud"],"articleSection":["Backing Up","Featured"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.backblaze.com\/blog\/how-long-should-you-keep-backups\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.backblaze.com\/blog\/how-long-should-you-keep-backups\/","url":"https:\/\/www.backblaze.com\/blog\/how-long-should-you-keep-backups\/","name":"Backup Retention Policies: How Long Should You Keep Your Backups?","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/blog\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.backblaze.com\/blog\/how-long-should-you-keep-backups\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.backblaze.com\/blog\/how-long-should-you-keep-backups\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/bb-bh-How-Long-Should-You-Keep-Backups-e1682361458727.png","datePublished":"2023-04-25T16:28:31+00:00","dateModified":"2025-12-15T00:04:29+00:00","description":"When you're designing your backup strategy, an important foundational question is how long you need to retain your backups.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.backblaze.com\/blog\/how-long-should-you-keep-backups\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.backblaze.com\/blog\/how-long-should-you-keep-backups\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.backblaze.com\/blog\/how-long-should-you-keep-backups\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/bb-bh-How-Long-Should-You-Keep-Backups-e1682361458727.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/bb-bh-How-Long-Should-You-Keep-Backups-e1682361458727.png","width":1440,"height":820,"caption":"A decorative image showing a calendar, a laptop, a desktop, and a phone."},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.backblaze.com\/blog\/how-long-should-you-keep-backups\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/blog\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"How Long Should You Keep Backups?"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/blog\/","name":"Backblaze Cloud Solutions Blog","description":"Cloud Storage &amp; Cloud Backup","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/blog\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/blog\/#organization","name":"Backblaze","url":"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/blog\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.backblaze.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/backblaze_icon_transparent.png?fit=512%2C512&ssl=1","contentUrl":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.backblaze.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/backblaze_icon_transparent.png?fit=512%2C512&ssl=1","width":512,"height":512,"caption":"Backblaze"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/backblaze","https:\/\/x.com\/backblaze","https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/user\/Backblaze","https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Backblaze"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/cd16e363fb44fc4234121fca85ded1d2","name":"Kari Rivas","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Kari-Rivas-150x150.jpg","url":"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Kari-Rivas-150x150.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Kari-Rivas-150x150.jpg","caption":"Kari Rivas"},"description":"As a Senior Product Marketing Manager, Kari Rivas leads backup and archive marketing at Backblaze, the leading cloud storage innovator delivering a modern alternative to traditional cloud providers. She works closely with IT professionals, managed service providers, and other businesses to ensure they never lose their valuable data. She received her MBA in 2010 and has spent 15 years in marketing, most notably in the education and SaaS spaces. Connect with her on LinkedIn.","url":"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/blog\/author\/kari\/"}]}},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/bb-bh-How-Long-Should-You-Keep-Backups-e1682361458727.png","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/108532","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/175"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=108532"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/108532\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/108533"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=108532"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=108532"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/backblazeprod.wpenginepowered.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=108532"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}