TL;DR: There are many database GUI tools available, but only a few of them have been designed specifically for PostgreSQL. If you want to manage your PostgreSQL databases effortlessly, you must adopt an advanced PostgreSQL GUI tool. Here, you can find a list of the four best PostgreSQL applications for you.
When the first version of PostgreSQL was released, the only way to access data was to run queries from the command line. As you can imagine, interacting with a database via the command line is something that only skilled users can do. This is because you need to know the PostgreSQL language in depth.
Over time, the needs of end users have evolved for developers, data scientists, and data analysts alike. As a result, several PostgreSQL GUI tools have entered the market, and you can now choose between many PostgreSQL clients.
If you've ever felt limited by your PostgreSQL GUI tool or never used one, this article might shed some light on which one to choose. This article will dig into the four best PostgreSQL GUI tools for developers. But first, let's take a look at why you should be using one and which criteria were considered while making the list.
Why You Need a PostgreSQL GUI Tool
Adopting a PostgreSQL GUI tool can bring many advantages to your data management process:
Visual feedback: Managing data visually in the tool makes everything easier and opens the databases to non-technical members of your team.
Better data management: A GUI tool specifically designed to handle PostgreSQL databases makes data management easier.
Scalability: You can use the same tools to connect to several PostgreSQL databases and manage them all.
Elements of a Good PostgreSQL GUI Tool
There are several aspects to consider when selecting and evaluating PostgreSQL GUI tools:
Most commonly used: The more people who adopt the tool, the more documentation there will be online. After all, it's easier to get support if a tool is backed by a large community. This is more likely to happen if the tool is available on all major operating systems.
Easy to use and learn: PostgreSQL is a complex technology, and this is why a GUI tool should make everything easier. A good PostgreSQL GUI tool should be easy to learn and should not require several hours of training.
Plugin support: The ability to extend the PostgreSQL GUI tool with plugins developed by the community makes it future-ready, as new features can be introduced into the tool at any time.
Customizable user interface: You should be able to customize the tool to fit your particular needs. The more customizable the user interface of a PostgreSQL GUI tool is, the better the resulting user experience will be.
Fast and reliable: The tool should be free of major bugs and ensure good performance without using too many resources. Non-technical team members may not be able to run a PostgreSQL GUI tool that requires several GB of RAM because they typically don't have hardware as powerful as technical team members.
Top Four PostgreSQL GUI Tools
Here is a list of four PostgreSQL GUI tools that meet the criteria presented earlier, in alphabetical order:
DbVisualizer
OmniDB
pgAdmin
TablePlus
DbVisualizer
DbVisualizer is one of the most reliable database GUI tools on the market. The first version was released in 1999, and it now supports all major databases, including PostgreSQL. DbVisualizer is the database GUI tool with the highest user satisfaction on G2 and has even been adopted by NASA.
DbVisualizer can be installed on Windows, macOS, and Linux; all it needs to run is Java. Its Java nature makes it a bit slower than other tools, but performance is not the main goal of DbVisualizer.
Instead, DbVisualizer aims for completeness and reliability. It therefore provides a wide range of features for writing SQL queries, visualizing data, and designing and developing databases, tables, relations, indexes, and triggers. DbVisualizer also offers in-depth help when it comes to PostgreSQL and supports all its unique features.
Even though the DbVisualizer UI may appear a bit outdated compared to the other tools, you can configure it in several ways, like using a dark theme.
As opposed to OmniDB and TablePlus, DbVisualizer is a proprietary tool that does not support plugins. On the other hand, it offers several advanced features. One of the most important ones is the ability to visually build queries, which allows even non-technical people to perform SQL queries. DbVisualizer also comes with a query optimization feature that explains to you how and why you can improve your SQL query. It shows you how your query will be processed by the database, telling you whether or not an index will be used.
OmniDB
OmniDB is a GUI tool that supports several databases, such as MySQL, PostgreSQL, Oracle, and MariaDB. However, its main focus is PostgreSQL. OmniDB is an open source project developed mainly by 2ndQuadrant, one of the leading companies in the world when it comes to PostgreSQL.
With OmniDB, you can add, edit, manage, and monitor data in a PostgreSQL database through a simple GUI interface. Even though its UI isn't fully customizable, OmniDB supports both a light and dark theme. You can also configure several shortcuts for accessing OmniDB features more easily, such as running a query.
OmniDB supports Windows, Linux, and macOS and allows developers to add and share new features via plugins, so it can be extended by the community. On the other hand, the OmniDB community is still small compared to those of the other tools, which means there may be limited support for issues.
Its main strength is the ability to visualize queries to help you find bottlenecks. It also comes with a smart and advanced SQL editor with autocomplete and syntax highlighting features that help you write SQL queries.
At the time of writing, the latest version of OmniDB is still in beta. This means that it may have some bugs and performance issues. In other words, OmniDB may look incomplete or unreliable compared to more mature tools such as DbVisualizer.
pgAdmin
pgAdmin is one of the most popular, most used, and most reliable PostgreSQL GUI tools available. This is because pgAdmin was developed by part of the PostgreSQL team and directly comes in the PostgreSQL installation pack. However, compared to the other tools, it is the sole GUI application that supports only PostgreSQL.
pgAdmin is an open source project that supports all PostgreSQL features, from performing simple SQL queries to building complex databases. As with DbVisualizer, though, pgAdmin does not support plugins and cannot be extended by the community. At the same time, it's open source, so community extensions and plugins are not impossible.
You can install pgAdmin on Windows, Linux, and macOS, and it runs as a web application that can be deployed to any server. This makes it also available from the cloud, so pgAdmin is a tool you can use anywhere.
The pgAdmin user interface is simple for beginners, but it also offers several shortcuts for experienced users. This makes it an easy-to-learn yet advanced tool that can be used by any member of the team. However, the UI isn't highly customizable and might look a bit outdated when compared to TablePlus, for example.
TablePlus
TablePlus is a database GUI app for relational databases. In detail, it supports MySQL, PostgreSQL, SQLite, and more. So, just like OmniDB and DbVisualizer, you can also use it for non-PostgreSQL scenarios. TablePlus has been adopted by companies such as Spotify and Intel, making it one of the more interesting PostgreSQL GUI tools on the market. This makes it a reliable tool that's directly comparable with DbVisualizer.
TablePlus is a fast and native GUI tool that comes with a simple-to-use UI. You can run TablePlus almost everywhere, considering it supports iOS, macOS, and Windows. Plus, there is also an alpha version for Linux.
The TablePlus user interface is nice and simple but also highly configurable. This makes it a versatile tool that can be easily adapted to the needs of several users. On the other hand, finding the right UI configuration for you may take a lot of time.
TablePlus also supports several shortcuts for more skilled users. The tool has been developed with performance and security in mind. TablePlus is very lightweight, supports built-in SSH connections, and ensures that your credentials are stored securely. This makes it the best-performing tool of the four. Moreover, just like OmniDB, TablePlus can be easily extended by plugins developed by the community.
Conclusion
A PostgreSQL client is an essential tool when it comes to data management. PostgreSQL clients are particularly important because they make databases simpler for non-engineer members of your team. Data is easier to use and understand, allowing your engineers to save time while supporting the team.
This article explained why you need a PostgreSQL GUI tool and how to identify a good one. You learned about four of the best PostgreSQL GUI tools on the market. TablePlus, OmniDB, and DbVisualizer support other database technologies and have excellent features to support PostgreSQL-based data management processes, while pgAdmin is the only tool officially supported by PostgreSQL developers. Keep in mind that the tool that suits you the best depends on your use cases. So, there is no real winner.
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