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PostgreSQL

Free, open-source object-relational database known for reliability, standards support and extensions.

Open sourceSelf-hostableDatabase management systems
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About PostgreSQL

PostgreSQL, often just Postgres, is an open-source object-relational database that grew out of the POSTGRES project at UC Berkeley in 1986. It is a default choice for many new web apps and the engine behind hosted services such as Supabase and Neon. It is fully ACID-compliant and supports advanced SQL: all standard isolation levels including serializable, table partitioning, parallel queries and a sophisticated planner. Beyond plain tables it stores JSON/JSONB, arrays, ranges, UUIDs and geometric types, and add-ons like PostGIS turn it into a geospatial database. You can define your own types and functions in several languages. PostgreSQL is developed by a volunteer global community rather than one company and released under the permissive PostgreSQL Licence, with packages for Linux, macOS, Windows and the BSDs. It's free to run anywhere, but tuning, replication and upgrades take more hands-on admin work than a managed database.

Best for: Developers and teams who want a free, standards-minded relational database that scales with their app..

Pros and cons

What works

  • Strong SQL standards support and full ACID transactions
  • Rich types: JSONB, arrays, ranges, plus PostGIS for maps
  • Highly extensible with custom types and functions
  • Permissive licence and community governance, not one vendor

Why people leave

  • Running replication, failover and major upgrades yourself takes expertise
  • Connection handling often needs a pooler under heavy load
  • No official GUI; you pick a separate client

Top PostgreSQL alternatives

See all 5
  1. 1MySQL logo
    MySQL

    The other big open-source relational database, with huge hosting support and a simpler admin story.

    66.5
  2. 2MariaDB logo
    MariaDB

    Community fork of MySQL under a foundation, for an open SQL server with no single corporate owner.

    62.6
  3. 3CockroachDB logo
    CockroachDB

    Speaks the Postgres wire protocol but distributes data across nodes for built-in horizontal scale.

    52.6
  4. 4Supabase logo
    Supabase

    Managed Postgres with auth, storage and APIs on top, if you'd rather not run the server yourself.

    51.2
  5. 5Neon logo
    Neon

    Serverless hosted Postgres with branching and scale-to-zero, for skipping server admin entirely.

    50.0

Why people left PostgreSQL

In reviewers' own words, from reviews of the apps they moved to. These are their opinions, not ours.

No switching stories yet. If you moved away from PostgreSQL, review the app you switched to and tell us why.

Reviews

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PostgreSQL: common questions

Is PostgreSQL free?

Yes. PostgreSQL is free, open-source software that you can host yourself.

Is PostgreSQL open source?

Yes. You can also run it on your own server.

What platforms does PostgreSQL run on?

PostgreSQL is available for Linux, macOS, Windows and Self-hosted.

What are the best alternatives to PostgreSQL?

The highest-ranked PostgreSQL alternatives right now are MySQL, MariaDB and CockroachDB. See the full ranked list for pricing, platforms and verified facts.

See all 5 PostgreSQL alternatives