These days it is not unusual for families to have more than one computer that is used regularly. With more computers the task of making sure the information on each of them is backed up gets a little more complicated and the cost of backing them all up can get a little more expensive.
To make the comparison tables I settled on a backup of 150GB of backup storage space needed with the cost of one year plans. That sounded like a reasonable backup size and time. All users and families are different and you might not need that much or you might need more storage. If you take lots of photos and high definition video you could be looking at considerably more space.
I broke the price comparison table up into two parts. The first is the services that offer unlimited storage. These are probably your best options because even if you start out needing 150GB of backup storage your backup needs will grow. By choosing an unlimited storage option you do not need to worry about how much storage you are using. Some services offers family or multiple computer plans and others do not and you simply purchase another license for another machine. Either way the prices are comparable.
Unlimited Storage Multiple Computer Backup
| 3 Computers | 4 Computers | 5 Computers | Storage Size | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CrashPlan | $119.99 | $119.99 | $119.99 | Unlimited |
| Livedrive | $114.75 | $132.15 | $149.55 | Unlimited – Just backup, does not include Briefcase. |
| Backblaze | $150.00 | $200.00 | $250.00 | Unlimited |
| Carbonite | $177.00 | $236.00 | $295.00 | Unlimited |
| Keepit | $178.20 | $237.60 | $297.00 | Unlimited |
| AltDrive | $99.50 | Need Business Plan | Need Business Plan | Unlimited |
For the unlimited storage backup services I think CrashPlan offers the best option. Their family plan actually allows up to 10 computers on one plan and you can use it to backup not only online but also to the other computers.
For Livedrive I took the price of just having backup on the number of computers. They do offer a pro plan that gives you more options and is more expensive. I am not a huge fan of Livedrive but the price is not bad. I would recommend you buy directly with Livedrive instead of a reseller though, since you never know if a reseller is going to go out of business or not.
Backblaze does not currently offer a family or multiple computer plan but at $50.00/year/computer it is still not very expensive and you can have all of the computers listed under one account.
Carbonite does start to get more expensive when you start adding in more computer. That is also the basic home plan that does not allow for external hard drives. If you are already on Carboinite it would not be bad to add an extra computer but once you need to add more than one extra there are cheaper alternatives.
KeepIt is a per computer licence similar to Backblaze but not near as inexpensive.
AltDrive is a new service here on Online Backup Deals and does offer a 3 computer plan, but more than that and they suggest getting the business offering. Could get expensive as your backup grows.
Limited Storage Size Multiple Computer Backup
| 3 Computers | 4 Computers | 5 Computers | Storage Size | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Memopal | $49.00 | $49.00 | $49.00 | 200GB |
| IDrive | $49.50 | $49.50 | $49.50 | 150GB |
| SafeCopy | $50.00 | $50.00 | $50.00 | 200GB |
| SOS Online Backup | $149.95 | $149.95 | $149.95 | 150GB |
| Mozy | $153.89 | $175.89 | $197.89 | 165GB |
| SpiderOak | $200.00 | $200.00 | $200.00 | 200GB |
| ElephantDrive | $201.10 | $201.10 | $201.10 | 250GB |
| SugarSync | $249.99 | $249.99 | $249.99 | 250GB |
Memopal and IDrive price wise are excellent deals for multiple computer backup. Memopal perhaps slightly better since you would get 200GB of space for the price to give you a little room for your backup to expand. SafeCopy is not far behind, but they are a US based Memopal reseller to their pricing should be similar. IDrive starts at 150GB so if your backup grew past that you would be looking at more money but they do offer some nice features like the Google Docs backup and a full feature mobile app to backup your mobile as well to the same account.
SOS Online Backup offers multiple computer backup and a social media backup with that as well so they are not a bad deal if you are a big users of Facebook and want to make sure that information is safe.
Since Mozy switched away from the unlimited storage model their plans have gotten more expensive, but they are still not to bad and with the recent release of Stash and better mobile apps are a good offering for people needing multiple computer backup.
SpiderOak offers storage in 100GB amounts so they are easy to grow as your needs change. They also have no limit on the number of machines you can have on an account so there is plenty of flexibility there. They are probably your best option for security as well so if you want to make sure no one can get your files except you SpiderOak is your best option.
ElephantDrive recently changed their plans and I had to tweet to see if their new plans offered multiple computers. After hearing back you would need to get their 250GB plan but not a bad option to consider.
SugarSync is the most expensive of the group but if you want to sync data to your mobile they are a great service.
Obviously there is more to backing up all of your families computers than just price but the options to keep all of your families data safe has become affordable.
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