diff --git a/qa/smoke-test-http/src/javaRestTest/java/org/elasticsearch/http/snapshots/RestGetSnapshotsIT.java b/qa/smoke-test-http/src/javaRestTest/java/org/elasticsearch/http/snapshots/RestGetSnapshotsIT.java
index e9f410643377..59e07581499e 100644
--- a/qa/smoke-test-http/src/javaRestTest/java/org/elasticsearch/http/snapshots/RestGetSnapshotsIT.java
+++ b/qa/smoke-test-http/src/javaRestTest/java/org/elasticsearch/http/snapshots/RestGetSnapshotsIT.java
@@ -14,6 +14,7 @@ import org.elasticsearch.action.ActionFuture;
 import org.elasticsearch.action.admin.cluster.snapshots.create.CreateSnapshotResponse;
 import org.elasticsearch.action.admin.cluster.snapshots.get.GetSnapshotsRequest;
 import org.elasticsearch.action.admin.cluster.snapshots.get.GetSnapshotsResponse;
+import org.elasticsearch.action.admin.cluster.snapshots.get.SnapshotSortKey;
 import org.elasticsearch.client.Request;
 import org.elasticsearch.client.Response;
 import org.elasticsearch.cluster.SnapshotsInProgress;
@@ -101,38 +102,38 @@ public class RestGetSnapshotsIT extends AbstractSnapshotRestTestCase {
             .getSnapshots();
         assertSnapshotListSorted(defaultSorting, null, order);
         assertSnapshotListSorted(
-            allSnapshotsSorted(allSnapshotNames, repoName, GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.NAME, order, includeIndexNames),
-            GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.NAME,
+            allSnapshotsSorted(allSnapshotNames, repoName, SnapshotSortKey.NAME, order, includeIndexNames),
+            SnapshotSortKey.NAME,
             order
         );
         assertSnapshotListSorted(
-            allSnapshotsSorted(allSnapshotNames, repoName, GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.DURATION, order, includeIndexNames),
-            GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.DURATION,
+            allSnapshotsSorted(allSnapshotNames, repoName, SnapshotSortKey.DURATION, order, includeIndexNames),
+            SnapshotSortKey.DURATION,
             order
         );
         assertSnapshotListSorted(
-            allSnapshotsSorted(allSnapshotNames, repoName, GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.INDICES, order, includeIndexNames),
-            GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.INDICES,
+            allSnapshotsSorted(allSnapshotNames, repoName, SnapshotSortKey.INDICES, order, includeIndexNames),
+            SnapshotSortKey.INDICES,
             order
         );
         assertSnapshotListSorted(
-            allSnapshotsSorted(allSnapshotNames, repoName, GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.START_TIME, order, includeIndexNames),
-            GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.START_TIME,
+            allSnapshotsSorted(allSnapshotNames, repoName, SnapshotSortKey.START_TIME, order, includeIndexNames),
+            SnapshotSortKey.START_TIME,
             order
         );
         assertSnapshotListSorted(
-            allSnapshotsSorted(allSnapshotNames, repoName, GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.SHARDS, order, includeIndexNames),
-            GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.SHARDS,
+            allSnapshotsSorted(allSnapshotNames, repoName, SnapshotSortKey.SHARDS, order, includeIndexNames),
+            SnapshotSortKey.SHARDS,
             order
         );
         assertSnapshotListSorted(
-            allSnapshotsSorted(allSnapshotNames, repoName, GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.FAILED_SHARDS, order, includeIndexNames),
-            GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.FAILED_SHARDS,
+            allSnapshotsSorted(allSnapshotNames, repoName, SnapshotSortKey.FAILED_SHARDS, order, includeIndexNames),
+            SnapshotSortKey.FAILED_SHARDS,
             order
         );
         assertSnapshotListSorted(
-            allSnapshotsSorted(allSnapshotNames, repoName, GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.REPOSITORY, order, includeIndexNames),
-            GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.REPOSITORY,
+            allSnapshotsSorted(allSnapshotNames, repoName, SnapshotSortKey.REPOSITORY, order, includeIndexNames),
+            SnapshotSortKey.REPOSITORY,
             order
         );
     }
@@ -141,7 +142,7 @@ public class RestGetSnapshotsIT extends AbstractSnapshotRestTestCase {
         final String repoName = "test-repo";
         AbstractSnapshotIntegTestCase.createRepository(logger, repoName, "fs");
         final List<String> names = AbstractSnapshotIntegTestCase.createNSnapshots(logger, repoName, randomIntBetween(6, 20));
-        for (GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy sort : GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.values()) {
+        for (SnapshotSortKey sort : SnapshotSortKey.values()) {
             for (SortOrder order : SortOrder.values()) {
                 logger.info("--> testing pagination for [{}] [{}]", sort, order);
                 doTestPagination(repoName, names, sort, order);
@@ -149,8 +150,7 @@ public class RestGetSnapshotsIT extends AbstractSnapshotRestTestCase {
         }
     }
 
-    private void doTestPagination(String repoName, List<String> names, GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy sort, SortOrder order)
-        throws IOException {
+    private void doTestPagination(String repoName, List<String> names, SnapshotSortKey sort, SortOrder order) throws IOException {
         final boolean includeIndexNames = randomBoolean();
         final List<SnapshotInfo> allSnapshotsSorted = allSnapshotsSorted(names, repoName, sort, order, includeIndexNames);
         final GetSnapshotsResponse batch1 = sortedWithLimit(repoName, sort, null, 2, order, includeIndexNames);
@@ -220,18 +220,18 @@ public class RestGetSnapshotsIT extends AbstractSnapshotRestTestCase {
                 .equals(Map.of(SnapshotsInProgress.ShardState.INIT, 1L, SnapshotsInProgress.ShardState.QUEUED, (long) inProgressCount - 1));
             return firstIndexSuccessfullySnapshot && secondIndexIsBlocked;
         });
-        assertStablePagination(repoName, allSnapshotNames, GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.START_TIME);
-        assertStablePagination(repoName, allSnapshotNames, GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.NAME);
-        assertStablePagination(repoName, allSnapshotNames, GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.INDICES);
+        assertStablePagination(repoName, allSnapshotNames, SnapshotSortKey.START_TIME);
+        assertStablePagination(repoName, allSnapshotNames, SnapshotSortKey.NAME);
+        assertStablePagination(repoName, allSnapshotNames, SnapshotSortKey.INDICES);
 
         AbstractSnapshotIntegTestCase.unblockAllDataNodes(repoName);
         for (ActionFuture<CreateSnapshotResponse> inProgressSnapshot : inProgressSnapshots) {
             AbstractSnapshotIntegTestCase.assertSuccessful(logger, inProgressSnapshot);
         }
 
-        assertStablePagination(repoName, allSnapshotNames, GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.START_TIME);
-        assertStablePagination(repoName, allSnapshotNames, GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.NAME);
-        assertStablePagination(repoName, allSnapshotNames, GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.INDICES);
+        assertStablePagination(repoName, allSnapshotNames, SnapshotSortKey.START_TIME);
+        assertStablePagination(repoName, allSnapshotNames, SnapshotSortKey.NAME);
+        assertStablePagination(repoName, allSnapshotNames, SnapshotSortKey.INDICES);
     }
 
     public void testFilterBySLMPolicy() throws Exception {
@@ -240,7 +240,7 @@ public class RestGetSnapshotsIT extends AbstractSnapshotRestTestCase {
         AbstractSnapshotIntegTestCase.createNSnapshots(logger, repoName, randomIntBetween(1, 5));
         final List<SnapshotInfo> snapshotsWithoutPolicy = clusterAdmin().prepareGetSnapshots("*")
             .setSnapshots("*")
-            .setSort(GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.NAME)
+            .setSort(SnapshotSortKey.NAME)
             .get()
             .getSnapshots();
         final String snapshotWithPolicy = "snapshot-with-policy";
@@ -277,7 +277,7 @@ public class RestGetSnapshotsIT extends AbstractSnapshotRestTestCase {
         assertThat(getAllSnapshotsForPolicies(policyName, otherPolicyName, "no-such-policy*"), is(List.of(withOtherPolicy, withPolicy)));
         final List<SnapshotInfo> allSnapshots = clusterAdmin().prepareGetSnapshots("*")
             .setSnapshots("*")
-            .setSort(GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.NAME)
+            .setSort(SnapshotSortKey.NAME)
             .get()
             .getSnapshots();
         assertThat(getAllSnapshotsForPolicies(GetSnapshotsRequest.NO_POLICY_PATTERN, policyName, otherPolicyName), is(allSnapshots));
@@ -294,7 +294,7 @@ public class RestGetSnapshotsIT extends AbstractSnapshotRestTestCase {
 
         final List<SnapshotInfo> allSnapshotInfo = clusterAdmin().prepareGetSnapshots(matchAllPattern())
             .setSnapshots(matchAllPattern())
-            .setSort(GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.START_TIME)
+            .setSort(SnapshotSortKey.START_TIME)
             .get()
             .getSnapshots();
         assertThat(allSnapshotInfo, is(List.of(snapshot1, snapshot2, snapshot3)));
@@ -311,7 +311,7 @@ public class RestGetSnapshotsIT extends AbstractSnapshotRestTestCase {
 
         final List<SnapshotInfo> allSnapshotInfoDesc = clusterAdmin().prepareGetSnapshots(matchAllPattern())
             .setSnapshots(matchAllPattern())
-            .setSort(GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.START_TIME)
+            .setSort(SnapshotSortKey.START_TIME)
             .setOrder(SortOrder.DESC)
             .get()
             .getSnapshots();
@@ -340,7 +340,7 @@ public class RestGetSnapshotsIT extends AbstractSnapshotRestTestCase {
 
     private List<SnapshotInfo> allAfterStartTimeAscending(long timestamp) throws IOException {
         final Request request = baseGetSnapshotsRequest("*");
-        request.addParameter("sort", GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.START_TIME.toString());
+        request.addParameter("sort", SnapshotSortKey.START_TIME.toString());
         request.addParameter("from_sort_value", String.valueOf(timestamp));
         final Response response = getRestClient().performRequest(request);
         return readSnapshotInfos(response).getSnapshots();
@@ -348,7 +348,7 @@ public class RestGetSnapshotsIT extends AbstractSnapshotRestTestCase {
 
     private List<SnapshotInfo> allBeforeStartTimeDescending(long timestamp) throws IOException {
         final Request request = baseGetSnapshotsRequest("*");
-        request.addParameter("sort", GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.START_TIME.toString());
+        request.addParameter("sort", SnapshotSortKey.START_TIME.toString());
         request.addParameter("from_sort_value", String.valueOf(timestamp));
         request.addParameter("order", SortOrder.DESC.toString());
         final Response response = getRestClient().performRequest(request);
@@ -358,7 +358,7 @@ public class RestGetSnapshotsIT extends AbstractSnapshotRestTestCase {
     private static List<SnapshotInfo> getAllSnapshotsForPolicies(String... policies) throws IOException {
         final Request requestWithPolicy = new Request(HttpGet.METHOD_NAME, "/_snapshot/*/*");
         requestWithPolicy.addParameter("slm_policy_filter", Strings.arrayToCommaDelimitedString(policies));
-        requestWithPolicy.addParameter("sort", GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.NAME.toString());
+        requestWithPolicy.addParameter("sort", SnapshotSortKey.NAME.toString());
         return readSnapshotInfos(getRestClient().performRequest(requestWithPolicy)).getSnapshots();
     }
 
@@ -369,10 +369,10 @@ public class RestGetSnapshotsIT extends AbstractSnapshotRestTestCase {
         indexDoc(indexName, "some_id", "foo", "bar");
     }
 
-    private static void assertStablePagination(String repoName, Collection<String> allSnapshotNames, GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy sort)
+    private static void assertStablePagination(String repoName, Collection<String> allSnapshotNames, SnapshotSortKey sort)
         throws IOException {
         final SortOrder order = randomFrom(SortOrder.values());
-        final boolean includeIndexNames = sort == GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.INDICES || randomBoolean();
+        final boolean includeIndexNames = sort == SnapshotSortKey.INDICES || randomBoolean();
         final List<SnapshotInfo> allSorted = allSnapshotsSorted(allSnapshotNames, repoName, sort, order, includeIndexNames);
 
         for (int i = 1; i <= allSnapshotNames.size(); i++) {
@@ -413,7 +413,7 @@ public class RestGetSnapshotsIT extends AbstractSnapshotRestTestCase {
     private static List<SnapshotInfo> allSnapshotsSorted(
         Collection<String> allSnapshotNames,
         String repoName,
-        GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy sortBy,
+        SnapshotSortKey sortBy,
         SortOrder order,
         boolean includeIndices
     ) throws IOException {
@@ -454,7 +454,7 @@ public class RestGetSnapshotsIT extends AbstractSnapshotRestTestCase {
 
     private static GetSnapshotsResponse sortedWithLimit(
         String repoName,
-        GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy sortBy,
+        SnapshotSortKey sortBy,
         String after,
         int size,
         SortOrder order,
@@ -486,7 +486,7 @@ public class RestGetSnapshotsIT extends AbstractSnapshotRestTestCase {
 
     private static GetSnapshotsResponse sortedWithLimit(
         String repoName,
-        GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy sortBy,
+        SnapshotSortKey sortBy,
         int offset,
         int size,
         SortOrder order,
diff --git a/server/src/internalClusterTest/java/org/elasticsearch/snapshots/GetSnapshotsIT.java b/server/src/internalClusterTest/java/org/elasticsearch/snapshots/GetSnapshotsIT.java
index 6b5b3826272c..d01064b9fb8b 100644
--- a/server/src/internalClusterTest/java/org/elasticsearch/snapshots/GetSnapshotsIT.java
+++ b/server/src/internalClusterTest/java/org/elasticsearch/snapshots/GetSnapshotsIT.java
@@ -14,6 +14,7 @@ import org.elasticsearch.action.admin.cluster.snapshots.create.CreateSnapshotRes
 import org.elasticsearch.action.admin.cluster.snapshots.get.GetSnapshotsRequest;
 import org.elasticsearch.action.admin.cluster.snapshots.get.GetSnapshotsRequestBuilder;
 import org.elasticsearch.action.admin.cluster.snapshots.get.GetSnapshotsResponse;
+import org.elasticsearch.action.admin.cluster.snapshots.get.SnapshotSortKey;
 import org.elasticsearch.cluster.SnapshotsInProgress;
 import org.elasticsearch.common.settings.Settings;
 import org.elasticsearch.repositories.RepositoryMissingException;
@@ -84,39 +85,31 @@ public class GetSnapshotsIT extends AbstractSnapshotIntegTestCase {
         final List<SnapshotInfo> defaultSorting = clusterAdmin().prepareGetSnapshots(repoName).setOrder(order).get().getSnapshots();
         assertSnapshotListSorted(defaultSorting, null, order);
         final String[] repos = { repoName };
+        assertSnapshotListSorted(allSnapshotsSorted(allSnapshotNames, repos, SnapshotSortKey.NAME, order), SnapshotSortKey.NAME, order);
         assertSnapshotListSorted(
-            allSnapshotsSorted(allSnapshotNames, repos, GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.NAME, order),
-            GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.NAME,
+            allSnapshotsSorted(allSnapshotNames, repos, SnapshotSortKey.DURATION, order),
+            SnapshotSortKey.DURATION,
             order
         );
         assertSnapshotListSorted(
-            allSnapshotsSorted(allSnapshotNames, repos, GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.DURATION, order),
-            GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.DURATION,
+            allSnapshotsSorted(allSnapshotNames, repos, SnapshotSortKey.INDICES, order),
+            SnapshotSortKey.INDICES,
             order
         );
         assertSnapshotListSorted(
-            allSnapshotsSorted(allSnapshotNames, repos, GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.INDICES, order),
-            GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.INDICES,
+            allSnapshotsSorted(allSnapshotNames, repos, SnapshotSortKey.START_TIME, order),
+            SnapshotSortKey.START_TIME,
+            order
+        );
+        assertSnapshotListSorted(allSnapshotsSorted(allSnapshotNames, repos, SnapshotSortKey.SHARDS, order), SnapshotSortKey.SHARDS, order);
+        assertSnapshotListSorted(
+            allSnapshotsSorted(allSnapshotNames, repos, SnapshotSortKey.FAILED_SHARDS, order),
+            SnapshotSortKey.FAILED_SHARDS,
             order
         );
         assertSnapshotListSorted(
-            allSnapshotsSorted(allSnapshotNames, repos, GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.START_TIME, order),
-            GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.START_TIME,
-            order
-        );
-        assertSnapshotListSorted(
-            allSnapshotsSorted(allSnapshotNames, repos, GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.SHARDS, order),
-            GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.SHARDS,
-            order
-        );
-        assertSnapshotListSorted(
-            allSnapshotsSorted(allSnapshotNames, repos, GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.FAILED_SHARDS, order),
-            GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.FAILED_SHARDS,
-            order
-        );
-        assertSnapshotListSorted(
-            allSnapshotsSorted(allSnapshotNames, repos, GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.REPOSITORY, order),
-            GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.REPOSITORY,
+            allSnapshotsSorted(allSnapshotNames, repos, SnapshotSortKey.REPOSITORY, order),
+            SnapshotSortKey.REPOSITORY,
             order
         );
     }
@@ -127,7 +120,7 @@ public class GetSnapshotsIT extends AbstractSnapshotIntegTestCase {
         createRepository(repoName, "fs", repoPath);
         maybeInitWithOldSnapshotVersion(repoName, repoPath);
         final List<String> names = createNSnapshots(repoName, randomIntBetween(6, 20));
-        for (GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy sort : GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.values()) {
+        for (SnapshotSortKey sort : SnapshotSortKey.values()) {
             for (SortOrder order : SortOrder.values()) {
                 logger.info("--> testing pagination for [{}] [{}]", sort, order);
                 doTestPagination(repoName, names, sort, order);
@@ -135,7 +128,7 @@ public class GetSnapshotsIT extends AbstractSnapshotIntegTestCase {
         }
     }
 
-    private void doTestPagination(String repoName, List<String> names, GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy sort, SortOrder order) {
+    private void doTestPagination(String repoName, List<String> names, SnapshotSortKey sort, SortOrder order) {
         final String[] repos = { repoName };
         final List<SnapshotInfo> allSnapshotsSorted = allSnapshotsSorted(names, repos, sort, order);
         final GetSnapshotsResponse batch1 = sortedWithLimit(repos, sort, null, 2, order);
@@ -191,9 +184,9 @@ public class GetSnapshotsIT extends AbstractSnapshotIntegTestCase {
                 )
         );
         final String[] repos = { repoName };
-        assertStablePagination(repos, allSnapshotNames, GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.START_TIME);
-        assertStablePagination(repos, allSnapshotNames, GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.NAME);
-        assertStablePagination(repos, allSnapshotNames, GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.INDICES);
+        assertStablePagination(repos, allSnapshotNames, SnapshotSortKey.START_TIME);
+        assertStablePagination(repos, allSnapshotNames, SnapshotSortKey.NAME);
+        assertStablePagination(repos, allSnapshotNames, SnapshotSortKey.INDICES);
         final List<SnapshotInfo> currentSnapshots = clusterAdmin().prepareGetSnapshots(matchAllPattern())
             .setSnapshots(GetSnapshotsRequest.CURRENT_SNAPSHOT)
             .get()
@@ -215,9 +208,9 @@ public class GetSnapshotsIT extends AbstractSnapshotIntegTestCase {
             assertSuccessful(inProgressSnapshot);
         }
 
-        assertStablePagination(repos, allSnapshotNames, GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.START_TIME);
-        assertStablePagination(repos, allSnapshotNames, GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.NAME);
-        assertStablePagination(repos, allSnapshotNames, GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.INDICES);
+        assertStablePagination(repos, allSnapshotNames, SnapshotSortKey.START_TIME);
+        assertStablePagination(repos, allSnapshotNames, SnapshotSortKey.NAME);
+        assertStablePagination(repos, allSnapshotNames, SnapshotSortKey.INDICES);
     }
 
     public void testPaginationRequiresVerboseListing() throws Exception {
@@ -228,14 +221,14 @@ public class GetSnapshotsIT extends AbstractSnapshotIntegTestCase {
             ActionRequestValidationException.class,
             clusterAdmin().prepareGetSnapshots(repoName)
                 .setVerbose(false)
-                .setSort(GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.DURATION)
+                .setSort(SnapshotSortKey.DURATION)
                 .setSize(GetSnapshotsRequest.NO_LIMIT)
         );
         expectThrows(
             ActionRequestValidationException.class,
             clusterAdmin().prepareGetSnapshots(repoName)
                 .setVerbose(false)
-                .setSort(GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.START_TIME)
+                .setSort(SnapshotSortKey.START_TIME)
                 .setSize(randomIntBetween(1, 100))
         );
     }
@@ -258,16 +251,11 @@ public class GetSnapshotsIT extends AbstractSnapshotIntegTestCase {
         allSnapshotNames.addAll(namesOtherRepo);
 
         final SortOrder order = SortOrder.DESC;
-        final List<SnapshotInfo> allSorted = allSnapshotsSorted(
-            allSnapshotNames,
-            new String[] { "*" },
-            GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.REPOSITORY,
-            order
-        );
+        final List<SnapshotInfo> allSorted = allSnapshotsSorted(allSnapshotNames, new String[] { "*" }, SnapshotSortKey.REPOSITORY, order);
         final List<SnapshotInfo> allSortedWithoutOther = allSnapshotsSorted(
             allSnapshotNamesWithoutOther,
             new String[] { "*", "-" + otherRepo },
-            GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.REPOSITORY,
+            SnapshotSortKey.REPOSITORY,
             order
         );
         assertThat(allSortedWithoutOther, is(allSorted.subList(0, allSnapshotNamesWithoutOther.size())));
@@ -275,7 +263,7 @@ public class GetSnapshotsIT extends AbstractSnapshotIntegTestCase {
         final List<SnapshotInfo> allInOther = allSnapshotsSorted(
             namesOtherRepo,
             new String[] { "*", "-test-repo-*" },
-            GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.REPOSITORY,
+            SnapshotSortKey.REPOSITORY,
             order
         );
         assertThat(allInOther, is(allSorted.subList(allSnapshotNamesWithoutOther.size(), allSorted.size())));
@@ -289,7 +277,7 @@ public class GetSnapshotsIT extends AbstractSnapshotIntegTestCase {
         final List<SnapshotInfo> allInOtherWithoutOtherPrefix = allSnapshotsSorted(
             namesOtherRepo,
             patternOtherRepo,
-            GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.REPOSITORY,
+            SnapshotSortKey.REPOSITORY,
             order,
             "-other*"
         );
@@ -298,7 +286,7 @@ public class GetSnapshotsIT extends AbstractSnapshotIntegTestCase {
         final List<SnapshotInfo> allInOtherWithoutOtherExplicit = allSnapshotsSorted(
             namesOtherRepo,
             patternOtherRepo,
-            GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.REPOSITORY,
+            SnapshotSortKey.REPOSITORY,
             order,
             "-" + otherPrefixSnapshot1,
             "-" + otherPrefixSnapshot2
@@ -345,7 +333,7 @@ public class GetSnapshotsIT extends AbstractSnapshotIntegTestCase {
         final SnapshotInfo weirdSnapshot2InWeird2 = createFullSnapshot(weirdRepo2, weirdSnapshot2);
 
         final List<SnapshotInfo> allSnapshots = clusterAdmin().prepareGetSnapshots(matchAllPattern())
-            .setSort(GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.REPOSITORY)
+            .setSort(SnapshotSortKey.REPOSITORY)
             .get()
             .getSnapshots();
         assertThat(allSnapshots, hasSize(9));
@@ -407,11 +395,7 @@ public class GetSnapshotsIT extends AbstractSnapshotIntegTestCase {
     }
 
     private List<SnapshotInfo> getAllByPatterns(String[] repos, String[] snapshots) {
-        return clusterAdmin().prepareGetSnapshots(repos)
-            .setSnapshots(snapshots)
-            .setSort(GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.REPOSITORY)
-            .get()
-            .getSnapshots();
+        return clusterAdmin().prepareGetSnapshots(repos).setSnapshots(snapshots).setSort(SnapshotSortKey.REPOSITORY).get().getSnapshots();
     }
 
     public void testFilterBySLMPolicy() throws Exception {
@@ -420,7 +404,7 @@ public class GetSnapshotsIT extends AbstractSnapshotIntegTestCase {
         createNSnapshots(repoName, randomIntBetween(1, 5));
         final List<SnapshotInfo> snapshotsWithoutPolicy = clusterAdmin().prepareGetSnapshots(matchAllPattern())
             .setSnapshots(matchAllPattern())
-            .setSort(GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.NAME)
+            .setSort(SnapshotSortKey.NAME)
             .get()
             .getSnapshots();
         final String snapshotWithPolicy = "snapshot-with-policy";
@@ -456,7 +440,7 @@ public class GetSnapshotsIT extends AbstractSnapshotIntegTestCase {
 
         final List<SnapshotInfo> allSnapshots = clusterAdmin().prepareGetSnapshots(matchAllPattern())
             .setSnapshots(matchAllPattern())
-            .setSort(GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.NAME)
+            .setSort(SnapshotSortKey.NAME)
             .get()
             .getSnapshots();
         assertThat(getAllSnapshotsForPolicies(GetSnapshotsRequest.NO_POLICY_PATTERN, policyName, otherPolicyName), is(allSnapshots));
@@ -477,7 +461,7 @@ public class GetSnapshotsIT extends AbstractSnapshotIntegTestCase {
 
         final List<SnapshotInfo> allSnapshotInfo = clusterAdmin().prepareGetSnapshots(matchAllPattern())
             .setSnapshots(matchAllPattern())
-            .setSort(GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.START_TIME)
+            .setSort(SnapshotSortKey.START_TIME)
             .get()
             .getSnapshots();
         assertThat(allSnapshotInfo, is(List.of(snapshot1, snapshot2, snapshot3)));
@@ -504,7 +488,7 @@ public class GetSnapshotsIT extends AbstractSnapshotIntegTestCase {
 
         final List<SnapshotInfo> allSnapshotInfoDesc = clusterAdmin().prepareGetSnapshots(matchAllPattern())
             .setSnapshots(matchAllPattern())
-            .setSort(GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.START_TIME)
+            .setSort(SnapshotSortKey.START_TIME)
             .setOrder(SortOrder.DESC)
             .get()
             .getSnapshots();
@@ -525,7 +509,7 @@ public class GetSnapshotsIT extends AbstractSnapshotIntegTestCase {
 
         final List<SnapshotInfo> allSnapshotInfoByDuration = clusterAdmin().prepareGetSnapshots(matchAllPattern())
             .setSnapshots(matchAllPattern())
-            .setSort(GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.DURATION)
+            .setSort(SnapshotSortKey.DURATION)
             .get()
             .getSnapshots();
 
@@ -541,7 +525,7 @@ public class GetSnapshotsIT extends AbstractSnapshotIntegTestCase {
 
         final List<SnapshotInfo> allSnapshotInfoByDurationDesc = clusterAdmin().prepareGetSnapshots(matchAllPattern())
             .setSnapshots(matchAllPattern())
-            .setSort(GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.DURATION)
+            .setSort(SnapshotSortKey.DURATION)
             .setOrder(SortOrder.DESC)
             .get()
             .getSnapshots();
@@ -554,12 +538,12 @@ public class GetSnapshotsIT extends AbstractSnapshotIntegTestCase {
 
         final SnapshotInfo otherSnapshot = createFullSnapshot(repoName, "other-snapshot");
 
-        assertThat(allSnapshots(new String[] { "snap*" }, GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.NAME, SortOrder.ASC, "a"), is(allSnapshotInfo));
-        assertThat(allSnapshots(new String[] { "o*" }, GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.NAME, SortOrder.ASC, "a"), is(List.of(otherSnapshot)));
+        assertThat(allSnapshots(new String[] { "snap*" }, SnapshotSortKey.NAME, SortOrder.ASC, "a"), is(allSnapshotInfo));
+        assertThat(allSnapshots(new String[] { "o*" }, SnapshotSortKey.NAME, SortOrder.ASC, "a"), is(List.of(otherSnapshot)));
 
         final GetSnapshotsResponse paginatedResponse = clusterAdmin().prepareGetSnapshots(matchAllPattern())
             .setSnapshots("snap*")
-            .setSort(GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.NAME)
+            .setSort(SnapshotSortKey.NAME)
             .setFromSortValue("a")
             .setOffset(1)
             .setSize(1)
@@ -568,7 +552,7 @@ public class GetSnapshotsIT extends AbstractSnapshotIntegTestCase {
         assertThat(paginatedResponse.totalCount(), is(3));
         final GetSnapshotsResponse paginatedResponse2 = clusterAdmin().prepareGetSnapshots(matchAllPattern())
             .setSnapshots("snap*")
-            .setSort(GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.NAME)
+            .setSort(SnapshotSortKey.NAME)
             .setFromSortValue("a")
             .setOffset(0)
             .setSize(2)
@@ -587,7 +571,7 @@ public class GetSnapshotsIT extends AbstractSnapshotIntegTestCase {
         snapshotNames.sort(String::compareTo);
 
         final GetSnapshotsResponse response = clusterAdmin().prepareGetSnapshots(repoName, missingRepoName)
-            .setSort(GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.NAME)
+            .setSort(SnapshotSortKey.NAME)
             .get();
         assertThat(response.getSnapshots().stream().map(info -> info.snapshotId().getName()).toList(), equalTo(snapshotNames));
         assertTrue(response.getFailures().containsKey(missingRepoName));
@@ -618,35 +602,30 @@ public class GetSnapshotsIT extends AbstractSnapshotIntegTestCase {
     }
 
     private List<SnapshotInfo> allAfterStartTimeAscending(long timestamp) {
-        return allSnapshots(matchAllPattern(), GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.START_TIME, SortOrder.ASC, timestamp);
+        return allSnapshots(matchAllPattern(), SnapshotSortKey.START_TIME, SortOrder.ASC, timestamp);
     }
 
     private List<SnapshotInfo> allBeforeStartTimeDescending(long timestamp) {
-        return allSnapshots(matchAllPattern(), GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.START_TIME, SortOrder.DESC, timestamp);
+        return allSnapshots(matchAllPattern(), SnapshotSortKey.START_TIME, SortOrder.DESC, timestamp);
     }
 
     private List<SnapshotInfo> allAfterNameAscending(String name) {
-        return allSnapshots(matchAllPattern(), GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.NAME, SortOrder.ASC, name);
+        return allSnapshots(matchAllPattern(), SnapshotSortKey.NAME, SortOrder.ASC, name);
     }
 
     private List<SnapshotInfo> allBeforeNameDescending(String name) {
-        return allSnapshots(matchAllPattern(), GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.NAME, SortOrder.DESC, name);
+        return allSnapshots(matchAllPattern(), SnapshotSortKey.NAME, SortOrder.DESC, name);
     }
 
     private List<SnapshotInfo> allAfterDurationAscending(long duration) {
-        return allSnapshots(matchAllPattern(), GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.DURATION, SortOrder.ASC, duration);
+        return allSnapshots(matchAllPattern(), SnapshotSortKey.DURATION, SortOrder.ASC, duration);
     }
 
     private List<SnapshotInfo> allBeforeDurationDescending(long duration) {
-        return allSnapshots(matchAllPattern(), GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.DURATION, SortOrder.DESC, duration);
+        return allSnapshots(matchAllPattern(), SnapshotSortKey.DURATION, SortOrder.DESC, duration);
     }
 
-    private static List<SnapshotInfo> allSnapshots(
-        String[] snapshotNames,
-        GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy sortBy,
-        SortOrder order,
-        Object fromSortValue
-    ) {
+    private static List<SnapshotInfo> allSnapshots(String[] snapshotNames, SnapshotSortKey sortBy, SortOrder order, Object fromSortValue) {
         return clusterAdmin().prepareGetSnapshots(matchAllPattern())
             .setSnapshots(snapshotNames)
             .setSort(sortBy)
@@ -660,12 +639,12 @@ public class GetSnapshotsIT extends AbstractSnapshotIntegTestCase {
         return clusterAdmin().prepareGetSnapshots(matchAllPattern())
             .setSnapshots(matchAllPattern())
             .setPolicies(policies)
-            .setSort(GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.NAME)
+            .setSort(SnapshotSortKey.NAME)
             .get()
             .getSnapshots();
     }
 
-    private static void assertStablePagination(String[] repoNames, Collection<String> allSnapshotNames, GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy sort) {
+    private static void assertStablePagination(String[] repoNames, Collection<String> allSnapshotNames, SnapshotSortKey sort) {
         final SortOrder order = randomFrom(SortOrder.values());
         final List<SnapshotInfo> allSorted = allSnapshotsSorted(allSnapshotNames, repoNames, sort, order);
 
@@ -700,7 +679,7 @@ public class GetSnapshotsIT extends AbstractSnapshotIntegTestCase {
     private static List<SnapshotInfo> allSnapshotsSorted(
         Collection<String> allSnapshotNames,
         String[] repoNames,
-        GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy sortBy,
+        SnapshotSortKey sortBy,
         SortOrder order,
         String... namePatterns
     ) {
@@ -724,7 +703,7 @@ public class GetSnapshotsIT extends AbstractSnapshotIntegTestCase {
 
     private static GetSnapshotsResponse sortedWithLimit(
         String[] repoNames,
-        GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy sortBy,
+        SnapshotSortKey sortBy,
         String after,
         int size,
         SortOrder order,
@@ -738,13 +717,7 @@ public class GetSnapshotsIT extends AbstractSnapshotIntegTestCase {
             .get();
     }
 
-    private static GetSnapshotsResponse sortedWithLimit(
-        String[] repoNames,
-        GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy sortBy,
-        int offset,
-        int size,
-        SortOrder order
-    ) {
+    private static GetSnapshotsResponse sortedWithLimit(String[] repoNames, SnapshotSortKey sortBy, int offset, int size, SortOrder order) {
         return baseGetSnapshotsRequest(repoNames).setOffset(offset).setSort(sortBy).setSize(size).setOrder(order).get();
     }
 
diff --git a/server/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/action/admin/cluster/snapshots/get/GetSnapshotsRequest.java b/server/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/action/admin/cluster/snapshots/get/GetSnapshotsRequest.java
index fda371f9364f..25373178e2b8 100644
--- a/server/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/action/admin/cluster/snapshots/get/GetSnapshotsRequest.java
+++ b/server/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/action/admin/cluster/snapshots/get/GetSnapshotsRequest.java
@@ -61,7 +61,7 @@ public class GetSnapshotsRequest extends MasterNodeRequest<GetSnapshotsRequest>
     @Nullable
     private String fromSortValue;
 
-    private SortBy sort = SortBy.START_TIME;
+    private SnapshotSortKey sort = SnapshotSortKey.START_TIME;
 
     private SortOrder order = SortOrder.ASC;
 
@@ -106,7 +106,7 @@ public class GetSnapshotsRequest extends MasterNodeRequest<GetSnapshotsRequest>
         ignoreUnavailable = in.readBoolean();
         verbose = in.readBoolean();
         after = in.readOptionalWriteable(After::new);
-        sort = in.readEnum(SortBy.class);
+        sort = in.readEnum(SnapshotSortKey.class);
         size = in.readVInt();
         order = SortOrder.readFromStream(in);
         offset = in.readVInt();
@@ -146,7 +146,7 @@ public class GetSnapshotsRequest extends MasterNodeRequest<GetSnapshotsRequest>
             validationException = addValidationError("size must be -1 or greater than 0", validationException);
         }
         if (verbose == false) {
-            if (sort != SortBy.START_TIME) {
+            if (sort != SnapshotSortKey.START_TIME) {
                 validationException = addValidationError("can't use non-default sort with verbose=false", validationException);
             }
             if (size > 0) {
@@ -287,7 +287,7 @@ public class GetSnapshotsRequest extends MasterNodeRequest<GetSnapshotsRequest>
         return after;
     }
 
-    public SortBy sort() {
+    public SnapshotSortKey sort() {
         return sort;
     }
 
@@ -306,7 +306,7 @@ public class GetSnapshotsRequest extends MasterNodeRequest<GetSnapshotsRequest>
         return fromSortValue;
     }
 
-    public GetSnapshotsRequest sort(SortBy sort) {
+    public GetSnapshotsRequest sort(SnapshotSortKey sort) {
         this.sort = sort;
         return this;
     }
@@ -350,40 +350,6 @@ public class GetSnapshotsRequest extends MasterNodeRequest<GetSnapshotsRequest>
         return new CancellableTask(id, type, action, getDescription(), parentTaskId, headers);
     }
 
-    public enum SortBy {
-        START_TIME("start_time"),
-        NAME("name"),
-        DURATION("duration"),
-        INDICES("index_count"),
-        SHARDS("shard_count"),
-        FAILED_SHARDS("failed_shard_count"),
-        REPOSITORY("repository");
-
-        private final String param;
-
-        SortBy(String param) {
-            this.param = param;
-        }
-
-        @Override
-        public String toString() {
-            return param;
-        }
-
-        public static SortBy of(String value) {
-            return switch (value) {
-                case "start_time" -> START_TIME;
-                case "name" -> NAME;
-                case "duration" -> DURATION;
-                case "index_count" -> INDICES;
-                case "shard_count" -> SHARDS;
-                case "failed_shard_count" -> FAILED_SHARDS;
-                case "repository" -> REPOSITORY;
-                default -> throw new IllegalArgumentException("unknown sort order [" + value + "]");
-            };
-        }
-    }
-
     public static final class After implements Writeable {
 
         private final String value;
@@ -405,7 +371,7 @@ public class GetSnapshotsRequest extends MasterNodeRequest<GetSnapshotsRequest>
         }
 
         @Nullable
-        public static After from(@Nullable SnapshotInfo snapshotInfo, SortBy sortBy) {
+        public static After from(@Nullable SnapshotInfo snapshotInfo, SnapshotSortKey sortBy) {
             if (snapshotInfo == null) {
                 return null;
             }
diff --git a/server/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/action/admin/cluster/snapshots/get/GetSnapshotsRequestBuilder.java b/server/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/action/admin/cluster/snapshots/get/GetSnapshotsRequestBuilder.java
index eadbaa8aa095..25e8a433bf24 100644
--- a/server/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/action/admin/cluster/snapshots/get/GetSnapshotsRequestBuilder.java
+++ b/server/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/action/admin/cluster/snapshots/get/GetSnapshotsRequestBuilder.java
@@ -122,7 +122,7 @@ public class GetSnapshotsRequestBuilder extends MasterNodeOperationRequestBuilde
         return this;
     }
 
-    public GetSnapshotsRequestBuilder setSort(GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy sort) {
+    public GetSnapshotsRequestBuilder setSort(SnapshotSortKey sort) {
         request.sort(sort);
         return this;
     }
diff --git a/server/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/action/admin/cluster/snapshots/get/SnapshotSortKey.java b/server/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/action/admin/cluster/snapshots/get/SnapshotSortKey.java
new file mode 100644
index 000000000000..599f41e8615d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/server/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/action/admin/cluster/snapshots/get/SnapshotSortKey.java
@@ -0,0 +1,83 @@
+/*
+ * Copyright Elasticsearch B.V. and/or licensed to Elasticsearch B.V. under one
+ * or more contributor license agreements. Licensed under the Elastic License
+ * 2.0 and the Server Side Public License, v 1; you may not use this file except
+ * in compliance with, at your election, the Elastic License 2.0 or the Server
+ * Side Public License, v 1.
+ */
+
+package org.elasticsearch.action.admin.cluster.snapshots.get;
+
+import org.elasticsearch.snapshots.SnapshotInfo;
+
+import java.util.Comparator;
+
+/**
+ * Sort key for snapshots e.g. returned from the get-snapshots API. All values break ties using {@link SnapshotInfo#snapshotId} (i.e. by
+ * name).
+ */
+public enum SnapshotSortKey {
+    /**
+     * Sort by snapshot start time.
+     */
+    START_TIME("start_time", Comparator.comparingLong(SnapshotInfo::startTime)),
+
+    /**
+     * Sort by snapshot name.
+     */
+    NAME("name", Comparator.comparing(sni -> sni.snapshotId().getName())),
+
+    /**
+     * Sort by snapshot duration (end time minus start time).
+     */
+    DURATION("duration", Comparator.comparingLong(sni -> sni.endTime() - sni.startTime())),
+    /**
+     * Sort by number of indices in the snapshot.
+     */
+    INDICES("index_count", Comparator.comparingInt(sni -> sni.indices().size())),
+
+    /**
+     * Sort by number of shards in the snapshot.
+     */
+    SHARDS("shard_count", Comparator.comparingInt(SnapshotInfo::totalShards)),
+
+    /**
+     * Sort by number of failed shards in the snapshot.
+     */
+    FAILED_SHARDS("failed_shard_count", Comparator.comparingInt(SnapshotInfo::failedShards)),
+
+    /**
+     * Sort by repository name.
+     */
+    REPOSITORY("repository", Comparator.comparing(SnapshotInfo::repository));
+
+    private final String name;
+    private final Comparator<SnapshotInfo> snapshotInfoComparator;
+
+    SnapshotSortKey(String name, Comparator<SnapshotInfo> snapshotInfoComparator) {
+        this.name = name;
+        this.snapshotInfoComparator = snapshotInfoComparator.thenComparing(SnapshotInfo::snapshotId);
+    }
+
+    @Override
+    public String toString() {
+        return name;
+    }
+
+    public final Comparator<SnapshotInfo> getSnapshotInfoComparator() {
+        return snapshotInfoComparator;
+    }
+
+    public static SnapshotSortKey of(String name) {
+        return switch (name) {
+            case "start_time" -> START_TIME;
+            case "name" -> NAME;
+            case "duration" -> DURATION;
+            case "index_count" -> INDICES;
+            case "shard_count" -> SHARDS;
+            case "failed_shard_count" -> FAILED_SHARDS;
+            case "repository" -> REPOSITORY;
+            default -> throw new IllegalArgumentException("unknown sort key [" + name + "]");
+        };
+    }
+}
diff --git a/server/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/action/admin/cluster/snapshots/get/TransportGetSnapshotsAction.java b/server/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/action/admin/cluster/snapshots/get/TransportGetSnapshotsAction.java
index ce3446317400..c664e51a6845 100644
--- a/server/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/action/admin/cluster/snapshots/get/TransportGetSnapshotsAction.java
+++ b/server/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/action/admin/cluster/snapshots/get/TransportGetSnapshotsAction.java
@@ -148,7 +148,7 @@ public class TransportGetSnapshotsAction extends TransportMasterNodeAction<GetSn
         private final SnapshotPredicates predicates;
 
         // snapshot ordering/pagination
-        private final GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy sortBy;
+        private final SnapshotSortKey sortBy;
         private final SortOrder order;
         @Nullable
         private final String fromSortValue;
@@ -177,7 +177,7 @@ public class TransportGetSnapshotsAction extends TransportMasterNodeAction<GetSn
             String[] snapshots,
             boolean ignoreUnavailable,
             SnapshotPredicates predicates,
-            GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy sortBy,
+            SnapshotSortKey sortBy,
             SortOrder order,
             String fromSortValue,
             int offset,
@@ -214,7 +214,7 @@ public class TransportGetSnapshotsAction extends TransportMasterNodeAction<GetSn
          * the sort value range if possible.
          */
         private List<RepositoryMetadata> maybeFilterRepositories() {
-            if (sortBy != GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.REPOSITORY || fromSortValue == null) {
+            if (sortBy != SnapshotSortKey.REPOSITORY || fromSortValue == null) {
                 return repositories;
             }
             final Predicate<RepositoryMetadata> predicate = order == SortOrder.ASC
@@ -486,27 +486,6 @@ public class TransportGetSnapshotsAction extends TransportMasterNodeAction<GetSn
             return sortSnapshotsWithNoOffsetOrLimit(snapshotInfos);
         }
 
-        private static final Comparator<SnapshotInfo> BY_START_TIME = Comparator.comparingLong(SnapshotInfo::startTime)
-            .thenComparing(SnapshotInfo::snapshotId);
-
-        private static final Comparator<SnapshotInfo> BY_DURATION = Comparator.<SnapshotInfo>comparingLong(
-            sni -> sni.endTime() - sni.startTime()
-        ).thenComparing(SnapshotInfo::snapshotId);
-
-        private static final Comparator<SnapshotInfo> BY_INDICES_COUNT = Comparator.<SnapshotInfo>comparingInt(sni -> sni.indices().size())
-            .thenComparing(SnapshotInfo::snapshotId);
-
-        private static final Comparator<SnapshotInfo> BY_SHARDS_COUNT = Comparator.comparingInt(SnapshotInfo::totalShards)
-            .thenComparing(SnapshotInfo::snapshotId);
-
-        private static final Comparator<SnapshotInfo> BY_FAILED_SHARDS_COUNT = Comparator.comparingInt(SnapshotInfo::failedShards)
-            .thenComparing(SnapshotInfo::snapshotId);
-
-        private static final Comparator<SnapshotInfo> BY_NAME = Comparator.comparing(sni -> sni.snapshotId().getName());
-
-        private static final Comparator<SnapshotInfo> BY_REPOSITORY = Comparator.comparing(SnapshotInfo::repository)
-            .thenComparing(SnapshotInfo::snapshotId);
-
         private SnapshotsInRepo sortSnapshotsWithNoOffsetOrLimit(List<SnapshotInfo> snapshotInfos) {
             return sortSnapshots(snapshotInfos.stream(), snapshotInfos.size(), 0, GetSnapshotsRequest.NO_LIMIT);
         }
@@ -532,15 +511,7 @@ public class TransportGetSnapshotsAction extends TransportMasterNodeAction<GetSn
         }
 
         private Comparator<SnapshotInfo> buildComparator() {
-            final Comparator<SnapshotInfo> comparator = switch (sortBy) {
-                case START_TIME -> BY_START_TIME;
-                case NAME -> BY_NAME;
-                case DURATION -> BY_DURATION;
-                case INDICES -> BY_INDICES_COUNT;
-                case SHARDS -> BY_SHARDS_COUNT;
-                case FAILED_SHARDS -> BY_FAILED_SHARDS_COUNT;
-                case REPOSITORY -> BY_REPOSITORY;
-            };
+            final var comparator = sortBy.getSnapshotInfoComparator();
             return order == SortOrder.DESC ? comparator.reversed() : comparator;
         }
 
@@ -732,7 +703,7 @@ public class TransportGetSnapshotsAction extends TransportMasterNodeAction<GetSn
             return excludes.length == 0 || Regex.simpleMatch(excludes, policy) == false;
         }
 
-        private static SnapshotPredicates getSortValuePredicate(String fromSortValue, GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy sortBy, SortOrder order) {
+        private static SnapshotPredicates getSortValuePredicate(String fromSortValue, SnapshotSortKey sortBy, SortOrder order) {
             if (fromSortValue == null) {
                 return MATCH_ALL;
             }
diff --git a/server/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/rest/action/admin/cluster/RestGetSnapshotsAction.java b/server/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/rest/action/admin/cluster/RestGetSnapshotsAction.java
index 5cc77d3d50a0..7a66c6d7c435 100644
--- a/server/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/rest/action/admin/cluster/RestGetSnapshotsAction.java
+++ b/server/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/rest/action/admin/cluster/RestGetSnapshotsAction.java
@@ -9,6 +9,7 @@
 package org.elasticsearch.rest.action.admin.cluster;
 
 import org.elasticsearch.action.admin.cluster.snapshots.get.GetSnapshotsRequest;
+import org.elasticsearch.action.admin.cluster.snapshots.get.SnapshotSortKey;
 import org.elasticsearch.client.internal.node.NodeClient;
 import org.elasticsearch.common.Strings;
 import org.elasticsearch.rest.BaseRestHandler;
@@ -59,7 +60,7 @@ public class RestGetSnapshotsAction extends BaseRestHandler {
         GetSnapshotsRequest getSnapshotsRequest = new GetSnapshotsRequest(repositories).snapshots(snapshots);
         getSnapshotsRequest.ignoreUnavailable(request.paramAsBoolean("ignore_unavailable", getSnapshotsRequest.ignoreUnavailable()));
         getSnapshotsRequest.verbose(request.paramAsBoolean("verbose", getSnapshotsRequest.verbose()));
-        final GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy sort = GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.of(request.param("sort", getSnapshotsRequest.sort().toString()));
+        final SnapshotSortKey sort = SnapshotSortKey.of(request.param("sort", getSnapshotsRequest.sort().toString()));
         getSnapshotsRequest.sort(sort);
         final int size = request.paramAsInt("size", getSnapshotsRequest.size());
         getSnapshotsRequest.size(size);
diff --git a/server/src/test/java/org/elasticsearch/action/admin/cluster/snapshots/get/GetSnapshotsRequestTests.java b/server/src/test/java/org/elasticsearch/action/admin/cluster/snapshots/get/GetSnapshotsRequestTests.java
index 965654266e1c..14db6bdf8426 100644
--- a/server/src/test/java/org/elasticsearch/action/admin/cluster/snapshots/get/GetSnapshotsRequestTests.java
+++ b/server/src/test/java/org/elasticsearch/action/admin/cluster/snapshots/get/GetSnapshotsRequestTests.java
@@ -39,8 +39,7 @@ public class GetSnapshotsRequestTests extends ESTestCase {
             assertThat(e.getMessage(), containsString("can't use offset with verbose=false"));
         }
         {
-            final GetSnapshotsRequest request = new GetSnapshotsRequest("repo", "snapshot").verbose(false)
-                .sort(GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy.INDICES);
+            final GetSnapshotsRequest request = new GetSnapshotsRequest("repo", "snapshot").verbose(false).sort(SnapshotSortKey.INDICES);
             final ActionRequestValidationException e = request.validate();
             assertThat(e.getMessage(), containsString("can't use non-default sort with verbose=false"));
         }
diff --git a/test/framework/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/snapshots/AbstractSnapshotIntegTestCase.java b/test/framework/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/snapshots/AbstractSnapshotIntegTestCase.java
index 46b18887241d..2e7ce0400d78 100644
--- a/test/framework/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/snapshots/AbstractSnapshotIntegTestCase.java
+++ b/test/framework/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/snapshots/AbstractSnapshotIntegTestCase.java
@@ -13,7 +13,7 @@ import org.elasticsearch.action.ActionFuture;
 import org.elasticsearch.action.ActionListener;
 import org.elasticsearch.action.ActionRunnable;
 import org.elasticsearch.action.admin.cluster.snapshots.create.CreateSnapshotResponse;
-import org.elasticsearch.action.admin.cluster.snapshots.get.GetSnapshotsRequest;
+import org.elasticsearch.action.admin.cluster.snapshots.get.SnapshotSortKey;
 import org.elasticsearch.action.index.IndexRequestBuilder;
 import org.elasticsearch.action.support.GroupedActionListener;
 import org.elasticsearch.action.support.PlainActionFuture;
@@ -734,11 +734,7 @@ public abstract class AbstractSnapshotIntegTestCase extends ESIntegTestCase {
         });
     }
 
-    public static void assertSnapshotListSorted(
-        List<SnapshotInfo> snapshotInfos,
-        @Nullable GetSnapshotsRequest.SortBy sort,
-        SortOrder sortOrder
-    ) {
+    public static void assertSnapshotListSorted(List<SnapshotInfo> snapshotInfos, @Nullable SnapshotSortKey sort, SortOrder sortOrder) {
         final BiConsumer<SnapshotInfo, SnapshotInfo> assertion;
         if (sort == null) {
             assertion = (s1, s2) -> assertThat(s2, greaterThanOrEqualTo(s1));