Software Alternatives & Reviews

FreeFileSync VS WinMerge

Compare FreeFileSync VS WinMerge and see what are their differences

FreeFileSync logo FreeFileSync

FreeFileSync is a free open source data backup software that helps you synchronize files and folders on Windows, Linux and macOS.

WinMerge logo WinMerge

WinMerge is an open source differencing and merging tool for Windows.
  • FreeFileSync Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-09-24
  • WinMerge Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-03-28

FreeFileSync videos

Simple, Fast, Automated File Backup [FREE] | 2020 [FreeFileSync]

More videos:

  • Review - FreeFileSync: Tips and Tricks
  • Review - FreeFileSync: RealTimeSync
  • Review - FreeFileSync: Folder Comparison and Synchronization

WinMerge videos

How to Use WinMerge

More videos:

  • Review - Migrate Marlin to 1.1.9 with WinMerge
  • Tutorial - how to use winmerge

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to FreeFileSync and WinMerge)
File Sharing And Backup
100 100%
0% 0
File Management
0 0%
100% 100
Backup And Disaster Recovery
Merge Tools
0 0%
100% 100

User comments

Share your experience with using FreeFileSync and WinMerge. For example, how are they different and which one is better?
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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare FreeFileSync and WinMerge

FreeFileSync Reviews

15 Best Rclone Alternatives 2022
As a result, FreeFileSync helps speed up backup procedures by comparing source and target folders and just copying what is needed rather than copying everything. Additional synchronization options are available via the command line just like with rclone.
The 5 Best File Syncing Apps
FreeFileSync is useful for individuals and businesses for comparing multiple folders and synchronizing folders. It provides a robust backup solution. Choose to sync folders in real time, sync on a schedule, or run the sync program at startup.
Review of the File Synchronization Tools
FreeFileSync is a folder comparison and synchronization software, which can create and manage backup copies of all important files. FreeFileSync does not need to copy every file every time but determines the difference between the source folder and the destination folder and transfers only the minimum amount of data required. FreeFileSync is open source software, which can...
8 best Windows 10 file sync software
User feedback: “After wasting $40+ dollars on a competitor’s product, I tried out Freefilesync. FreefileSync was able to compare hundreds of thousands of files […] in 10 minutes, which was taking the competitor’s product over 3 hours.”
12 Free File and Folder Synchronization Tools for windows
Enhanced for maximum performance, FreeFileSync is an open source tool that assists you to sync files and folders for different operating systems like, Windows, Mac OS X and Linux. It comes with a simplified interface and offers an optimized usability. Using this tool you can compare data by date, size or content. You simply need to drag and drop the folders you want to...
Source: thegeekpage.com

WinMerge Reviews

11 Diff and Merge Tools to Simplify Your File Inspection
WinMerge is a diff and merge tool for Windows OS, which is free and open-source. It lets users analyze, compare and combine multiple versions of files and directories. Thus, users can easily differentiate the changes via text format and merge the required changes. It can be utilized as an external differencing and merging app or a standalone app.
Source: geekflare.com
7 WinMerge Alternatives
WinMerge alternatives mentioned below are your options in case you wish to try out other differencing and merging tools. As the name suggests, the program is meant for the Windows environment, but users who are looking for similar software for Mac OS X and Linux platforms will also find substitutes in our lineup. The flexible editor in question has been loaded with some...
15 Best Alternatives to WinMerge for 2021
Data comparison between files and folders can be a tiresome and time-consuming task. There are tools available that make the task much easier. WinMerge is one such tool. We share with you, brief details of WinMerge alternatives. You can compare data and then merge text files using WinMerge. It helps you locate the changes between the versions of a file or folder. After...
12 Best Free File Comparison Tools for Windows 10
Winmerge is a free and open source file comparison tool designed for Windows. It helps you compare both files and folders, that generate differences in a visual text format which is easy to manage and understand. It’s extremely handy in identifying the changes that took place between different project versions, and accordingly blending the changes between different versions.
Source: thegeekpage.com

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, FreeFileSync should be more popular than WinMerge. It has been mentiond 203 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

FreeFileSync mentions (203)

  • Ask HN: What Underrated Open Source Project Deserves More Recognition?
    FreeFileSync https://freefilesync.org/ I have been a happy user for years and have made a donation too. - Source: Hacker News / about 2 months ago
  • Which synchronization tool are you using together with the pCloud Crypto Folder?
    FreeFileSync messed up my pCloud database a couple times at first (causing disappearing files in the Crypto Folder, mirroring of the same files over and over again). Pcloud support provided an easy way to fix the database. To fix the root cause, one needs to exclude FreeFileSync's temporary files from the backup: pCloud Drive > Settings > Backup/Sync Exclusions, exclude sync.ffs_lock and *.ffs_tmp. Source: 5 months ago
  • Why are file backups so slow on Windows 11?
    As per Apprehensive_Arm_754 answer below, https://freefilesync.org is the solution to my particular problem, since it allows all kind of simple rules and logic to apply, so I can make sure that the copy only happens in one direction, and only ever by file date etc. Much appreciated. Source: 5 months ago
  • Why are file backups so slow on Windows 11?
    I use this one: https://freefilesync.org. Source: 5 months ago
  • Is it possible to sync Calibre configuration between Mac and Windows continuously?
    It was me, I'd probably play around with setting up shared folders of preferences and plug-ins and whatnot on something like dropbox or Google Drive. There are various folder sinking tools on both platforms such as free file sync on Windows. Since they are two completely different platforms, I don't know how interchangeable some of the preferences or plugins would be. I haven't used a Mac in a 100 years. Source: 6 months ago
View more

WinMerge mentions (28)

  • Windows NT on 600MHz machine opens apps instantly. What happened?
    I use WinMerge[1] a lot, and it's always impressed me how it immediately opens to a useable state. So it's absolutely still possible to write Windows software that can open instantly. I think the biggest issue, which multiple other comments have identified, is that people just don't care. Apps open fast enough these days, and no one is pushing back on developers to improve their app's startup performance. [1]:... - Source: Hacker News / 10 months ago
  • Two HDDs that should have identical data on them have a 50GB discrepancy, can't figure out where the files are
    I’ve used winmerge before and had good results comparing drives. Source: about 1 year ago
  • Program that deletes files that match an MD5 hash?
    However, if you're looking to compare files that already exist, you can use something like WinMerge. Source: about 1 year ago
  • Mirroring my 12 TB Drive. What do I need to check to ensure all data is transferred without corruption?
    I use Robocopy to preserve the original timestamps (using the /COPY:DAT and /DCOPY:DAT arguments) and WinMerge for doing a subsequent binary compare of the source/destination (sorting the results column by which files are different). Source: about 1 year ago
  • Compare two Salesforce exports
    I haven't used this one but for example https://winmerge.org. Source: about 1 year ago
View more

What are some alternatives?

When comparing FreeFileSync and WinMerge, you can also consider the following products

rsync - rsync is a file transfer program for Unix systems. rsync uses the "rsync algorithm" which provides a very fast method for bringing remote files into sync.

Beyond Compare - Beyond Compare allows you to compare files and folders.

Syncthing - Syncthing replaces proprietary sync and cloud services with something open, trustworthy and...

Meld - What is Meld? Meld is a visual diff and merge tool targeted at developers.

GoodSync - GoodSync provides highly reliable file backup and synchronization for both individuals and businesses.

kdiff3 - KDiff3 is a file and directory diff and merge tool which compares and merges two or three text...