Point-in-time recovery on Neon is built into the storage layer, not bolted on as a backup product. Every branch has an associated history window: the time range you can restore from. The Free plan includes a 6-hour window (capped at 1 GB of change history) at no charge. Paid plans bill the change history storage at $0.20/GB-month, only on root branches.
How the history window works
When you write to a Neon branch, the storage layer keeps the older versions of the changed pages for the duration of the history window. To restore, Neon reconstructs the database state at the timestamp you choose. There's no separate WAL archive to manage and no backup bucket to provision.
| Plan | Default history window | Maximum | Change history pricing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free | 6 hours (1 GB cap) | 6 hours | Included |
| Launch | 1 day | 7 days | $0.20/GB-month |
| Scale | 1 day | 30 days | $0.20/GB-month |
Restoring a branch
From the CLI, restore to a specific timestamp:
neon branches restore main ^self@2026-05-17T14:30:00Z \
--preserve-under-name main-pre-restoreThis rewinds main to the chosen timestamp and keeps the pre-restore state under a new branch name in case you need it. See instant restore for the full workflow.
Why child branches don't add to the bill
Change history is billed only on root branches. Creating a child branch from a point in time doesn't duplicate the history, it points back to the same change log. So branching at noon yesterday to recover a deleted row costs nothing extra in retention storage. You only pay for the compute that runs the branch and any new writes you make on it.
Don't over-extend the history window
Longer windows mean more change history stored, which means more $0.20/GB-month. If you only need to recover from accidents in the last day, keep the window at 1 day and use snapshots for longer retention. Snapshots are billed at $0.09/GB-month.
How PITR works on other providers
| Provider | PITR included? | Retention | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Neon | Yes, on every plan | 6 hours (Free) up to 30 days (Scale) | Built into storage; change history billed at $0.20/GB-month on paid plans |
| RDS for PostgreSQL | Yes, automated backups | 0–35 days | Configurable per instance; default 1 day via API, 7 days via console |
| Aurora PostgreSQL | Yes, automated backups | 1–35 days | Continuous backup to S3; restore creates a new cluster |
| Supabase | Paid add-on (Pro plan and above) | 7, 14, or 28 days | $100/month for 7-day retention; Pro plan daily backups (7 days) are included |
A few specifics:
- RDS for PostgreSQL automated backups are free up to the size of your DB storage, and PITR restores create a new DB instance (not an in-place restore). Backup retention is configurable from 0 (disabled) to 35 days. See RDS backup retention period.
- Supabase PITR is a per-project paid add-on. Pricing is $100/month for 7-day retention, $200/month for 14 days, and $400/month for 28 days. Daily backups are included on Pro and above. See Supabase backups.
On Neon, restoring rewinds an existing branch (or creates a new branch from a past point in time) without provisioning a new instance, which is what makes the workflow different from RDS or Aurora.
See how instant restore works on Neon.