# Backups

> Understand how automatic backups work for your managed databases.

Backups
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Managed databases include automatic daily backups at no extra cost. Backups cover all logical databases and users within your instance.

### How Backups Work

- Backups are taken automatically every day
- Backups are stored in a separate location from your database
- Backup retention depends on your plan
- Backups are encrypted at rest

### Viewing Backups

To view your database backups:

1. Navigate to your database
2. Go to the **Backups** tab

You'll see a list of available backups with their timestamps and sizes.

### Backup Retention

Backup retention varies by plan tier. Check your specific plan details for the exact retention period. Most plans retain backups for at least 7 days.

### Important Notes

- Backups include all logical databases in the instance
- Backup operations have minimal impact on database performance
- Backups are taken automatically — no manual configuration is needed

### Best Practices

- **Monitor backup status** - Regularly check that backups are completing successfully
- **Test your recovery process** - Don't wait for an emergency to learn how restores work
- **Consider additional backups** - For critical data, supplement automatic backups with application-level exports (e.g., `mysqldump` or `pg_dump`)

### Next Steps

- [Monitoring](/documentation/managed-databases/monitoring) - Monitor database health and performance
- [IP filtering](/documentation/managed-databases/ip-filtering) - Secure access to your database