Is Backblaze really unlimited?
Yes, genuinely: Backblaze Personal Backup has no storage cap, no file-count limit, and no throttling tiers, and users with 100+ TB backed up exist. The real limits are structural: one license covers one computer (plus attached external drives), it is backup-only (no sync or sharing), and version history defaults to 30 days unless you pay slightly more for longer retention.
Skepticism about "unlimited" is healthy (this industry trained you well), so Backblaze deserves its specific credit: the unlimited claim has held since 2007. The company stores exabytes, publishes its infrastructure economics openly in its Hard Drive Stats reports, and has never introduced soft caps or fair-use clawbacks on the personal backup product. People back up entire video-production archives; it holds.
The boundaries are design choices rather than fine print. One license, one machine: a second computer needs a second subscription (multi-device households often fit IDrive better). Attached external drives are included, but a drive must reconnect at least every 30 days or its backup ages out. Network drives and NAS are excluded from the personal product. And it is strictly backup: no folder syncing, no link sharing, no mobile backup; your phone needs its own arrangement.
The one setting worth paying attention to: version history. The default 30 days is a thin window if ransomware or silent file corruption goes unnoticed for a quarter. The extension to one year costs a couple of dollars a month and "forever" versions a little more, and we consider the one-year tier the correct configuration for almost everyone. With that toggled, Backblaze remains what it has been for nearly two decades: the simplest honest answer in backup, and the rare unlimited that means it.