Acronis vs Proton Pass

Acronis is a Swiss-headquartered cyber protection company founded in 2003, known for its True Image disk imaging software and, today, mainly for a multitenant platform that managed service providers use to back up, secure and manage their clients' systems. EQT agreed in 2024 to take a majority stake, and Acronis says more than 20,000 service providers and 750,000 businesses use its platform.

The business offering, marketed as the Acronis Cyber Platform and sold to service providers as Acronis Cyber Protect Cloud, combines backup of servers, PCs, VMs and Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace with disaster recovery, EDR and MDR, email security, data loss prevention, patching, RMM and PSA-style billing and service desk tools. MSPs pay per workload for actual usage; IT departments buy one to three year terms. The consumer line, Acronis True Image, is sold per year: Essentials for local backup and cloning, Advanced with cloud storage and anti-malware, and Premium with 1 TB or more of cloud storage.

Acronis fits MSPs that want one console for backup, security and RMM, and home or small-office users who need full-disk images and cloning. Backblaze is simpler and cheaper for plain cloud backup, Afi.ai focuses on SaaS backup for Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace, and Veeam is the usual choice for large virtualized data centers.

Buying tip: True Image prices rise with each extra computer and terabyte, so a 3 or 5 computer pack is better value for households. MSPs should check which security modules they already license elsewhere.

Proton Pass is an open-source, end-to-end encrypted password manager made by Proton, the Geneva-based company behind Proton Mail, Proton VPN and Proton Drive. Launched in 2023, it applies Proton's privacy-first approach to credentials: data is encrypted on your device, the code is open source and independently audited, and the company operates under Swiss privacy law.

Pass stores passwords, passkeys, credit cards, secure notes and identity details, with apps for iOS, Android, Windows, macOS, Linux and browser extensions for autofill. Its standout feature is hide-my-email aliases, inherited from Proton's 2022 acquisition of SimpleLogin: when you sign up for a website, Pass can create a unique email alias that forwards to your real inbox, so leaks and spam can be cut off per service. Paid plans add unlimited aliases, a built-in two-factor authenticator, vault sharing and monitoring for weak or breached passwords, and Proton Pass for Business adds team vaults, policies and admin controls. The free plan is generous, with unlimited logins and devices and a limited number of aliases, and Pass is also included in Proton's bundles such as Proton Unlimited.

Proton Pass suits privacy-conscious individuals, existing Proton users and small teams who want encryption and email privacy in one tool. It is younger than its rivals, so enterprise integrations, SSO provisioning and some autofill edge cases are less mature. Bitwarden is the open-source alternative with the longest track record and self-hosting, 1Password leads for polished team and enterprise features.