# Yester

> Yester is Time Machine in the cloud for Macs. It backs up the whole Mac every hour, encrypted on the Mac before upload, and restores a file, a folder or a whole Mac from one restore screen where you pick a version by sight. It is a menu bar app for macOS 26 or later, Apple silicon, distributed from https://yesterbackup.com, from £11.99 a month per Mac.

## Key facts

- Requirements: macOS 26 or later, Apple silicon (M1 and later). Intel Macs are not supported.
- Latest version: 1.0 beta. Notarised by Apple, distributed from the website, not the App Store.
- Backups: the whole Mac every hour (home folders, apps, mail, messages, photos, app data and settings). External drives are backed up once a day while plugged in.
- History: hourly for 24 hours, daily for 30 days, then weekly until the end of the plan’s window. Deleted files stay restorable for the same window.
- Security: everything is encrypted on the Mac before upload, including file names and previews. Only the customer’s recovery key unlocks it; Yester never holds a key.
- Deletion safety: nothing on the Mac can delete a backup, not ransomware and not a mistake. Versions are removed only when they pass the plan’s window.
- Company: Yester is made by Brightboard AI Ltd, registered in England and Wales (company number 16832757).
- Trademarks: Time Machine, Mac and macOS are trademarks of Apple Inc. Yester is independent and not affiliated with, sponsored by or endorsed by Apple.
- Weekly restore check: Yester restores 50 random files every week and compares them byte for byte.
- Whole-Mac restore: with an external drive through Migration Assistant, or straight from the cloud with the Mac usable after about ten minutes.

## Pricing

Priced per Mac by its built-in storage. Plans differ only in how far back you can go and in restore options and support. Monthly prices in pounds sterling:

| Built-in storage | Yester (90 days) | Yester Pro (1 year) | Yester Max (5 years) |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 512 GB | £11.99 | £16.99 | £23.99 |
| 1 TB | £16.99 | £21.99 | £28.99 |
| 2 TB | £24.99 | £29.99 | £36.99 |
| 4 TB | £39.99 | £44.99 | £51.99 |
| 8 TB | £69.99 | £74.99 | £81.99 |

- External drives: £6.99 per TB of capacity a month, billed in whole terabytes. Recent files restore instantly; files unchanged for 90 days take up to 12 hours.
- Yearly billing costs ten months: two months free.
- No trial. A full refund on request within 60 days of the first charge.
- After cancelling, the backup stays readable for 90 days.
- Prices in euros (EUR) and US dollars (USD) use the same numbers. Nothing is converted at checkout.

## Docs

- [Getting started](https://yesterbackup.com/docs/getting-started): Install Yester, sign in, give it access, save your recovery key and let the first backup run.
- [How backups work](https://yesterbackup.com/docs/how-backups-work): Hourly snapshots of your whole Mac, what is included, what is left out, and how versions are kept.
- [Restoring a file or version](https://yesterbackup.com/docs/restoring-a-file): One restore screen, go back to a day you remember, pick the version that looks right, restore it or save a copy.
- [Restoring a whole Mac](https://yesterbackup.com/docs/restoring-a-whole-mac): Bring everything back to a new or wiped Mac, with an external drive and Migration Assistant, or by signing in and using it after ten minutes.
- [External drives](https://yesterbackup.com/docs/external-drives): Archival backup for drives at £6.99 per TB a month — backed up daily, kept while paid, recent files instant and older ones in up to 12 hours.
- [Security and the recovery key](https://yesterbackup.com/docs/security-and-recovery-key): Everything is encrypted on your Mac with a key only you hold. What the recovery key is, where to keep it, and what happens if it is lost.
- [Plans and history windows](https://yesterbackup.com/docs/plans-and-history): Yester, Yester Pro and Yester Max differ only in how far back you can go — 90 days, 1 year or 5 years. Priced per Mac by built-in storage.
- [Billing and refunds](https://yesterbackup.com/docs/billing-and-refunds): One subscription per device, card at signup, full refund within 60 days, 90-day grace after cancelling or a failed payment.
- [FAQ](https://yesterbackup.com/docs/faq): Short answers to the questions people ask before, and just after, they install Yester.

## Blog

Articles about backing up a Mac, written by the people who make Yester. Competitor facts link to the vendors’ own pages.

- [iCloud is not a backup: what it protects and what it doesn’t](https://yesterbackup.com/blog/icloud-is-not-a-backup): Sync versus backup on a Mac: how deletions and overwrites spread through iCloud Drive, what Recently Deleted and version history cover, and what to add.
- [The best Mac backup software in 2026](https://yesterbackup.com/blog/best-mac-backup-software-2026): Yester, Time Machine, Backblaze, Arq, Carbon Copy Cloner, IDrive and iCloud Drive compared on what matters when a Mac is lost, stolen or replaced.
- [Time Machine vs cloud backup: why a drive at home isn’t enough](https://yesterbackup.com/blog/time-machine-vs-cloud-backup): What Time Machine does well, the disasters it can’t protect you from, the 3-2-1 rule, and how Yester adds an off-site copy with nothing to remember.
- [Yester vs Backblaze: back up your files, or your whole Mac?](https://yesterbackup.com/blog/yester-vs-backblaze): Backblaze backs up your files. Yester backs up the whole Mac, apps and settings included, and puts it back on a new one. What that means, point by point.

## Pages

- [Home](https://yesterbackup.com/): what Yester does, with screenshots of the app and a short FAQ.
- [Pricing](https://yesterbackup.com/pricing): every Mac size and plan, external drives, worked examples and the small print.
- [Download](https://yesterbackup.com/download): Yester.dmg, requirements and the five setup steps.
- [Support](https://yesterbackup.com/support): how to get help (support@yesterbackup.com) and support levels by plan.
- [Status](https://yesterbackup.com/status): live status of backups and restores.
- [Blog](https://yesterbackup.com/blog): every article, newest first (RSS: https://yesterbackup.com/blog/rss.xml).

## Optional

- [All docs in one file](https://yesterbackup.com/llms-full.txt): every docs page and blog article above, concatenated as Markdown.
- [Terms of service](https://yesterbackup.com/legal/terms)
- [Privacy policy](https://yesterbackup.com/legal/privacy)
- [Refund policy](https://yesterbackup.com/legal/refunds)