git-annex manages large files with git without storing their contents in git. It is a powerful tool for technical users who archive, back up and move data across many drives and remotes, and it is the closest relative of Varsto on this list.
Each repository can live on any machine or disk, and "special remotes" reach S3 and compatible stores, rclone, rsync, plain or removable directories, WebDAV and more. A git branch records which repository holds each file ("git annex whereis"), and numcopies refuses to drop content unless enough verified copies exist elsewhere. Encryption is optional per special remote, using GnuPG; file names in the git repository itself stay visible unless gcrypt is used. It is mainly a command-line tool; there is a simpler assistant, Android works through Termux, and there is no iOS app.
| git-annex | Varsto | |
|---|---|---|
| Where your files live | Anywhere you choose: own disks, NAS, S3, other clouds through rclone. | On your own devices and on storages you choose: S3-compatible buckets, any rclone remote, local or network directories, and pools of removable disks. |
| Account or central server | None. | None. There is no Varsto server; devices find each other through your storages and on the LAN. |
| Encryption | Optional per special remote (GnuPG); names in the repository visible unless gcrypt is used. | End-to-end, client-side, before anything leaves the device; hybrid post-quantum (ML-KEM for sharing keys, Ed25519 + ML-DSA-65 signatures). Not independently audited yet. |
| Devices online together | Not needed; sync is explicit or scheduled rather than continuous by default. | Not needed: devices sync through your storages, and directly peer to peer when they can reach each other. |
| Knows where every copy is | Yes: location tracking and numcopies, the inspiration for Varsto's ledger and policies. | Yes: a signed ledger records which storage and device holds every block; durability policies (by default 1 copy anywhere, 1 external, 1 on your own devices or disks, checked by another device within 30 days) warn when a rule is not met. |
| Removable and offline disks | Yes: first-class, a disk's contents stay known while it is unplugged. | Yes: disk pools are filled, checked and recognised when they come back; files on a disk that is away ask for that disk. |
| Licence and price | Free software (AGPL-3+), free. | Source-available (PolyForm Shield 1.0.0), free; you pay only your storage provider. |
| Maturity | Mature, actively released for more than a decade. | Alpha: not for production data, formats may still change. |
Choose git-annex when you are comfortable with git and the command line, want maximum control and transparency, and value a mature free-software tool over a ready-made app.
Varsto aims to give the same guarantees (every copy accounted for, rules for how many copies must exist, removable disks that come and go) to people who do not use git: continuous background sync, a desktop and phone interface, encryption that always covers names and contents, peer-to-peer transfer and sharing with other people.
Varsto is alpha software: do not trust it with data you have no other copy of, and its cryptography has not been independently audited. The other products here are mature. Facts about them were checked from their own documentation in October 2026; prices and plans change often, so see their own pages for current figures. Corrections are welcome on the forum or on GitHub.