TrueNAS vs NovaNAS

TrueNAS9.2Visit NovaNAS6.4Visit

Higher score TrueNAS #1 in NAS Software 9.2/10 Free plan Free plan✓ 7 of 7 features Visit TrueNAS

vs

NovaNAS #17 in NAS Software 6.4/10 Free plan Free plan✓ 4 of 7 features Visit NovaNAS

• TrueNAS fits best

  Free, full-featured ZFS NAS

• NovaNAS fits best

  Free Linux ZFS or EXT4 NAS

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Side by side

Feature	TrueNAS 9.2/10 Visit ↗	NovaNAS 6.4/10 Visit ↗
At a glance
Editor score	9.2	6.4
Ranking	#1 in NAS Software	#17 in NAS Software
Best for	Free, full-featured ZFS NAS	Free Linux ZFS or EXT4 NAS
Pricing model	Free plan + paid	Free
Starting price	Free plan	Free plan
Free plan	✓	✓
Free trial	—	—
Deployment	Cloud, Self-hosted	Self-hosted, Browser extension
Platforms	Web, Linux	Web, Linux
Support	Email, Phone, Tickets, Community, Docs	Docs, Community
Integrations	9 integrations	8 integrations
Built for	Solo, Small business, Mid-market, Enterprise	Solo, Small business
Features TrueNAS 7/7 · NovaNAS 4/7
Storage pools	✓	✓
User management	✓	✓
Snapshots	✓ (best)	Not checked yet
App catalog	✓	✓
Container support	✓	✓
Virtual machines	✓ (best)	—
Cloud sync	✓ (best)	Not checked yet
Our review
Pros	Free Community Edition with OpenZFS storage pools Supports file, block, and object storage services Includes snapshots, replication, apps, containers, and VMs	Free and open source with ZFS and EXT4 support Combines storage pools, file sharing, permissions, and monitoring Docker management and a community application store are included
Cons	Requires compatible hardware or a virtualized or cloud deployment Community Edition includes community support Open core rather than fully open source	Virtualization is listed as coming soon Role-based user management is still in progress No verified snapshot or cloud-sync support
Our verdict	TrueNAS is a self-hosted storage platform built on OpenZFS for home labs, businesses, and enterprise environments. Community Edition is available as a free software download and provides storage pools, file, block, and object storage… Read the review →	NovaNAS is a free, open-source NAS operating system for DIY hardware, home users, and small businesses. It runs on self-hosted Linux systems and provides a browser-based desktop interface for managing storage, files, networking, users,… Read the review →

Strengths and trade-offs

• TrueNAS — where it wins

  • Free Community Edition with OpenZFS storage pools
  • Supports file, block, and object storage services
  • Includes snapshots, replication, apps, containers, and VMs

  Where it doesn't

  • Requires compatible hardware or a virtualized or cloud deployment
  • Community Edition includes community support
  • Open core rather than fully open source

• NovaNAS — where it wins

  • Free and open source with ZFS and EXT4 support
  • Combines storage pools, file sharing, permissions, and monitoring
  • Docker management and a community application store are included

  Where it doesn't

  • Virtualization is listed as coming soon
  • Role-based user management is still in progress
  • No verified snapshot or cloud-sync support

• TrueNAS9.2/10 · Free plan

  A free, full-featured ZFS NAS for labs, businesses, and enterprise environments.

  Visit TrueNASFull verdict →
• NovaNAS6.4/10 · Free plan

  A free, capable Linux NAS for storage, file sharing, Docker, and community apps.

  Visit NovaNASFull verdict →