Hostinger runs automatic backups every day for most shared hosting, cloud hosting, and VPS plans. If you’re on a single shared hosting plan, the backup happens once every 24 hours. For Business and Cloud Startup plans, backups are also daily.
The exact time of the backup varies by server, but Hostinger schedules it during low-traffic periods. This guide covers the backup frequency for every plan, how to check your own backup log, and how to restore a backup if you ever need it.
Quick summary for anyone who wants the essential facts up front:
| Detail | Value |
|---|---|
| Time required | 5 minutes to check your backup schedule; 10–30 minutes to restore a backup |
| Difficulty | Beginner |
| What you need | A Hostinger account with an active hosting plan, access to hPanel, and the login credentials for that account |
| What you will achieve | A clear understanding of how often Hostinger backs up your site, how to verify the backup schedule, and how to restore a backup on your own |
Before You Start
Before you dig into the backup settings, you need to know which Hostinger plan you’re on. The backup frequency is not the same across all plans, and some older plans might have different rules. You also need to have your login details ready, because you’ll be working inside the hPanel control panel.
- Check your plan type. Log in to Hostinger and look at the top of your dashboard. It shows your current plan (e.g., Single Shared Hosting, Business, Cloud Startup, VPS). If you’re on a VPS or dedicated server, backups are handled differently, you may need to set them up manually.
- Make sure you’re the account owner. Only the primary account holder or a user with full access can see the backup section and restore files. If you’re a collaborator with limited permissions, you might not see the Backup option at all.
- Know your backup storage limit. Hostinger stores backups on the server, but the space is limited. For shared hosting, the backup storage is usually 1-2 GB. If your site is larger than that, older backups may be deleted to make room for new ones.
- Understand that restores overwrite current data. When you restore a backup, it replaces your current files and database with the version from the backup date. Any changes made after that backup date will be lost unless you save them separately.
How Often Does Hostinger Backup Websites Work — The Full Breakdown
The answer depends on three factors: your plan, your account’s age, and whether you’ve set up any custom schedules. Here’s the exact frequency for each plan type, verified against Hostinger’s official help pages.
Shared Hosting (Single, Premium, Business)
- Single Shared Hosting: Daily backups are included. The backup runs once every 24 hours. Hostinger keeps the last 7 daily backups.
- Premium Shared Hosting: Same as Single, daily backups with 7-day retention.
- Business Shared Hosting: Daily backups, but with a longer retention period. Hostinger keeps the last 30 daily backups for Business plans.
Cloud Hosting (Cloud Startup, Cloud Professional, Cloud Enterprise)
- Cloud Startup: Daily backups with 7-day retention.
- Cloud Professional: Daily backups with 14-day retention.
- Cloud Enterprise: Daily backups with 30-day retention.
VPS Hosting
- Managed VPS: Daily backups are included. Hostinger keeps the last 7 daily backups. You can also take manual snapshots at any time, but those count against your storage limit.
- Unmanaged VPS: Daily backups are not included by default. You need to set up your own backup solution or purchase the Backup add-on.
WordPress Hosting (Managed WordPress)
- All WordPress plans: Daily backups are automatic. Hostinger keeps the last 7 daily backups. Some higher-tier WordPress plans include weekly backups as well, but the default is daily.
What Time Does the Backup Happen?
Hostinger does not publish a fixed time for backups. The exact time depends on the server load and the specific server your account lives on. In practice, most backups run between 2:00 AM and 6:00 AM server time.
You can check the exact time of your last backup inside the Backup section of hPanel.
How Long Does Hostinger Keep Backups?
Retention periods are listed above. After the retention period ends, the oldest backup is automatically deleted when a new backup is created. So if you have a 7-day retention, you will always have backups from the last 7 days, never more, never less.
What About Weekly or Monthly Backups?
Hostinger does not offer weekly or monthly backup schedules as a standard feature. The only frequency is daily. If you want a backup that is older than the retention period, you must download a copy manually and store it elsewhere.
Some users set up a cron job to export their database and files to an external storage service like Google Drive or Amazon S3.
How to Check Your Backup Frequency and Last Backup Time
You don’t need to guess. You can see exactly when your last backup was taken and how many are stored. Follow these steps.
Step 1: Log in to hPanel
Go to Hostinger.com and sign in with your account email and password. After logging in, you will see the hPanel dashboard for your hosting plan.
Step 2: Open the Backups Section
In the left sidebar, click “Files” and then click “Backups.” If you don’t see “Backups” under Files, look for a section called “Backup” directly in the sidebar. Some accounts have a dedicated “Backup” icon.
Step 3: View the Backup List
You will see a list of available backups. Each entry shows the date and time the backup was created. The list is sorted from newest to oldest.
The top entry is your most recent backup. If you see a gap of more than 24 hours between the newest and the second newest, that means the backup schedule is working correctly, one backup per day.
Step 4: Check the Retention Period
Count the number of backups listed. For a Single Shared plan, you should see at most 7 entries. For a Business plan, you should see up to 30 entries.
If you see fewer, that’s normal if your account is newer than the retention period. If you see more, you might have a different plan or an older grandfathered account.
Step 5: Verify the Backup Frequency Over Time
Check the dates. If you have backups from yesterday, two days ago, three days ago, and so on, the daily schedule is working. If you see a backup from two days ago but not from yesterday, that could mean the backup failed on the missing day.
Hostinger retries failed backups, but sometimes a backup is skipped if the server is under heavy load. You can contact support to check the logs.
How to Restore a Backup in hPanel
Restoring is straightforward, but you must be careful. A restore overwrites your current site. If you’re unsure which backup to use, download a copy of your current files first.
Step 1: Open the Backups Section
Same as above, go to hPanel, click “Files” then “Backups.”
Step 2: Choose the Backup You Want to Restore
Click the “Restore” button next to the backup date you want. A confirmation window will appear.
Step 3: Select What to Restore
You can restore the full backup (files and database) or just the files or just the database. Choose the option that matches your needs. If you only changed a few files, restoring just the files is faster and safer.
Step 4: Confirm the Restore
Click “Confirm” to start the restore process. You will see a progress bar. The restore usually takes 2, 10 minutes, depending on the size of your site.
Important: Do not close the browser tab or navigate away from the page while the restore is running. If you lose the connection, the restore might fail halfway, leaving your site in a broken state. Wait for the success message.
Step 5: Check Your Site After Restore
Once the restore is complete, visit your website and check that everything works. Test pages, posts, images, and any forms or plugins. If something looks wrong, you can restore a different backup.
What to Do If Something Goes Wrong
Problem: No Backups Are Listed
If the Backups section is empty, your plan might not include automatic backups. This is most common on the Single Shared Hosting plan if you signed up before a certain date or on an unmanaged VPS. Check your plan details in the Account section.
If you believe backups should be included, contact Hostinger support.
Fix: Purchase the Backup add-on or set up a manual backup using a plugin like UpdraftPlus (for WordPress) or a cron job.
Problem: Restore Failed With an Error
A restore can fail if the backup file is corrupted or if the server runs out of storage space. You will see a red error message.
Fix: Try restoring a different backup from the list. If all restores fail, check your disk usage in hPanel under “Files” > “Disk Usage.” If you are near the limit, delete some files or upgrade your plan. Then try again.
If the problem persists, contact Hostinger support.
Problem: The Backup Time Is Off by More Than 24 Hours
If you see a backup from 48 hours ago but none from yesterday, the daily backup might have been skipped. This can happen if the server was under maintenance or if your site exceeded the backup storage limit.
Fix: Manually create a backup by downloading your files and database through FTP and phpMyAdmin. Then contact support to ask why the automatic backup was skipped. They can check the server logs.
What Happens Next
Once you understand how often Hostinger backs up your site, you can plan your maintenance routine around it. The daily backup schedule means you have a safety net if something goes wrong, a plugin update breaks your site, you accidentally delete a file, or a hacker defaces your pages. You can restore from yesterday’s backup and lose at most one day of changes.
For critical sites, you might want to supplement Hostinger’s automatic backups with your own off-site backups. Download a copy of your site every week or use a backup plugin that sends copies to Google Drive or Dropbox. That way, if something catastrophic happens to the server, you still have a recent copy.
If you’re still shopping for a hosting plan, the backup frequency is a strong reason to choose Hostinger. Most budget hosts offer weekly backups. Hostinger gives you daily backups on every shared and cloud plan, and the restore process is simple enough that you never need to contact support to recover your site.
Now that you know the backup schedule, you can focus on building your site without worrying about losing data. If you’re ready to start or switch to Hostinger, you can use the coupon below to get a discount on your first plan.
Frequently Asked Questions
How often does Hostinger backup websites on shared hosting?
Hostinger runs automatic backups every 24 hours on all shared hosting plans (Single, Premium, and Business). The backup is scheduled during low-traffic hours, usually between 2 AM and 6 AM server time. You can see the exact time of your last backup inside the Backups section of hPanel.
Can I change the backup frequency on Hostinger?
No, you cannot change the automatic backup frequency. Hostinger runs daily backups on a fixed schedule. The only way to get more frequent backups is to set up a manual backup using a third-party plugin or a cron job.
Some VPS and dedicated server plans allow you to configure custom schedules, but that requires manual setup.
How long does Hostinger keep backups?
Hostinger keeps backups for 7 days on Single, Premium, and Cloud Startup plans. Business and Cloud Professional plans keep backups for 14 days. Cloud Enterprise and Business shared hosting plans keep backups for 30 days.
After the retention period ends, the oldest backup is automatically deleted when a new one is created.
Does Hostinger backup websites on VPS plans?
Managed VPS plans include daily backups with 7-day retention. Unmanaged VPS plans do not include automatic backups unless you purchase the Backup add-on. If you are on an unmanaged VPS, you must set up your own backup solution or use the snapshot feature if it is available on your plan.
What should I do if I need a backup older than 7 days?
Download a copy of your site manually before the old backup is deleted. You can use the hPanel file manager to download your files and use phpMyAdmin to export your database. Store the files on your computer or cloud storage.
Hostinger does not offer a way to extend the retention period for automatic backups.
Can I restore a backup without losing recent changes?
Yes, you can restore only the files or only the database. If you restore the full backup, you will lose all changes made after that backup date. But if you restore just the files, your database changes remain.
If you restore just the database, your file changes remain. Plan carefully before clicking restore.
Get Started With Hostinger
If you’re setting up a new site or moving from another host, Hostinger’s daily backup system gives you peace of mind. You can start with a plan that fits your budget and still get automatic daily backups. Use the coupon below to save on your first purchase.
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