---
id: backups.how-much-space-do-backups-use
url: https://storagestudio.us/faq/backups/how-much-space-do-backups-use
category: "Backups & restore points"
subcategory: "Speed, progress and the first backup"
question: "How much space do Data Backup versions take up?"
alt_questions:
  - "Do versions use a lot of space?"
  - "Will backups fill my drive?"
  - "Is Data Backup incremental?"
  - "backup storage size Storage Studio"
  - "Are backups compressed?"
  - "does every version store a full copy"
short_answer: "Much less than a copy per version: after the first backup only changed pieces are stored, identical content is kept once, data is compressed, and older versions are thinned to daily, weekly and monthly."
tags: ["space", "incremental", "versions"]
related: ["https://storagestudio.us/faq/backups/how-long-are-backup-versions-kept", "https://storagestudio.us/faq/backups/what-does-data-backup-skip"]
applies_to: "all"
last_reviewed: 2026-10-01
---

# How much space do Data Backup versions take up?

Far less than a full copy per version. After the first backup, each version stores only the new and changed pieces, identical content is stored once no matter how many versions contain it, and backups are compressed.

To stop history growing forever, older versions are **thinned over time**: recent ones are kept in full, then one a day, then one a week, then one a month further back. See [how long versions are kept](https://storagestudio.us/faq/backups/how-long-are-backup-versions-kept).