---
title: "What is the difference between incremental backup and differential backup?"  
description: "What is the difference between incremental backup and differential backup?"  
author: "Deepak Aiyappa"  
published: 2018-10-08  
canonical: https://answers.mindstick.com/qa/50291/what-is-the-difference-between-incremental-backup-and-differential-backup  
category: "troubleshooting"  
tags: ["troubleshooting"]  
reading_time: 1 minute  

---

#  What is the difference between incremental backup and differential backup?

What is the [difference](https://www.mindstick.com/blog/398/difference-between-object-type-and-var-type) between [incremental](https://www.mindstick.com/interview/23335/what-is-incremental-testing) [backup](https://www.mindstick.com/news/4172/google-photos-gets-undo-device-backup-feature-here-s-nbsp-how-nbsp-to-nbsp-use-nbsp-it) and [differential backup](https://www.mindstick.com/forum/159805/what-is-the-process-for-restoring-a-differential-backup)?\
\
\

## Answers

### Answer by Hitesh Vohra

**[Differential](https://answers.mindstick.com/qa/106842/what-is-a-differential) backups** were the next stage in backup strategy advancement. Only the files that have changed since the last full backup are backed up in a differential backup. Differential backups are more flexible than full backups, but they're still too inconvenient to make more than once a day, particularly as the next complete backup approaches. \
**Incremental backup**s likewise only [**back up**](https://answers.mindstick.com/qa/50335/how-to-restore-your-iphone-or-ipad-from-a-backup) modified data, but just the data that has changed since the prior backup, whether it was a complete or incremental backup. Differential incremental backups are frequently referred to as 'differential incremental backups,' whereas cumulative incremental backups are referred to as cumulative incremental backups **[Read more](https://answers.mindstick.com/qa/50292/what-is-the-difference-between-server-os-and-desktop-os)**


---

Original Source: https://answers.mindstick.com/qa/50291/what-is-the-difference-between-incremental-backup-and-differential-backup

Copyright © MindStick Software Pvt. Ltd. This Markdown version is provided for developers, AI systems, and offline reading.