I'm using it for probably 1.5 years and never had any problems with it. I can highly recommend it. It's really stable and I reported 2 (small, cosmetic) bugs which both got fixed within a few days.
There are annoying show-stopper bugs that the developer refuses to fix, like this one for not being able to set options for null/empty values when importing data from csv ( https://github.com/jakob/Postico/issues/406). Or issues importing CSVs exported by Postico itself, that seems like a pretty basic requirement.
On the other hand, even though DBeaver has an annoying and ugly UX (as any other 90s Java software) and is full of warts (eg not showing a unique key constraint in a postgres table, which was visible in Postico), it somehow feels more substantial.
It's not an empty string bug report. It's not being able to import CSVs with blank values, because postico interprets them as null, and no way to remap the values. Depending on your workflow, this could be a serious hinderance.
It's feature complete, and a few thousand people are already using it. It's probably the better choice for most users. But there are still a few issues with the file editor that I want to fix before I officially release it, because I have a lot of corporate users who presumably prefer to have fewer features but more stability.
Using both, both are very good. Sticking to postico most of the time due to better UX (totally IMO of course). Also, try v2 https://eggerapps.at/postico2/
Really hard to differentiate for PostgreSQL usage, both are great options. The main difference is that TablePlus supports a lot of other databases. I slightly prefer how Postico does things, also it has better PostgreSQL support (TablePlus is good but not great with arrays, hstore etc). I think the only thing that puts TablePlus ahead for my usage is being able to filter columns when viewing a row. I have some tables with maybe 40-50 columns and many similar column names so browsing with Postico can be a bit tedious.
I used to use Postico (paid version) but switched to TablePlus free and then paid for it. I switched so long back that I don't remember exactly why I switched but TablePlus has been amazing.
Some parts of the UI in Table Plus have been inspired by Postico, which is probably why it looks similar at a first glance. But the apps are different, and they have a very different focus. As far as I can tell Table Plus tries be the best client for everybody (every platform + every databases), while Postico tries to be the best client just for PostgreSQL on the Mac.
As the developer of Postico I'm probably biased, and I'm not really up to date where Table Plus is right now, so take my thoughts with a grain of salt. You probably have to try both to see which of the two clicks with you.
Thanks for your work on Postico. Was looking for a Mac based GUI when I made the switch from MySQL to Postgresql almost 10 years ago. Sequel Pro was my go to interface for understanding my database tables in MySQL and I wanted something similar for Postgresql. I bought a license years ago and it is part of my daily workflow. Didn't know about v2, will have to check that out!
Thanks so much for your work on Postico. I use it every day and recommend it highly. It’s fast, stable, and a Mac app through and through (increasingly a rarity).
What does it mean to be modern in this context? Are you trying to differentiate from some other client in a meaningful way? The description says modern design language but it looks pretty plain, which is a good thing, but I wouldn't use 'modern' to describe it.
When I started working on Postico, the other PostgreSQL client apps all had a really dated Windows 95 / Java UI style, with hundreds of toolbar icons, assistants for everything, and lots of modal dialogs. They were such a kludge that many people just used psql on the command line instead.
I wanted to make a modern database app for PostgreSQL, like Sequel Pro or Base. I also took a lot of inspiration from other modern Mac apps, like Transmit from Panic, or all the Omni Group apps.
One of the features that best showcases what I consider "modern" is the table structure editor, where I spent a lot time on the interaction design. I'm pretty proud of how it turned out (even though there are issues with it and I never finished all the features I would like to have in there).
In the last 10 years, a few other "modern" database apps for PostgreSQL have been developed, like PSequel, SQLPro Studio, and as other people have commented here, Table Plus, so Postico is probably no longer unique in trying to be modern.
At some level, Postico is even starting to look a bit dated, since I haven't been keen on the direction Apple has been going in the last few years. So maybe it's not entirely accurate to call Postico modern any more, but I do keep looking at what other Mac apps are doing, and what Apple is doing with their apps, and use that as a guiding post to keep Postico a "modern" app that feels at home on the Mac.
Thanks so much for your work on Postico. I had been using Sequel Pro working with MySQL and was looking for something as good, when i switched to a company that uses Postgres. Postico has fit that bill entirely and then some, and has been one of the few tools i've been wiling to pay money for, along with Sublime Text.
I suggest using more descriptive words than 'modern'. Simple, uncluttered, native, and interactive seem like better words to describe the effort you've put into the application.
pgAdmin4 is so good. And so simple to setup with new projects. I have a template with Docker with the server credentials that gets loaded in so all my new projects have a pgAdmin4 container baked in. Nice that it translates to any sort of cloud or remote environment when you do it that way.
I think the point is that the integrated SQL client is good enough for GP's needs, so no need to switch apps. Even if it's from the same editor, DataGrip still is a different application that requires switching back and forth.
What's so different about the UI except that the different query windows are now visible in the top left corner? I'd hardly call that a "big step back".
I used to use separate apps for things like this and now I just use the one built into IDEA and it totally does the job. Bonus, I don't have to leave my IDE.
My biggest issue with using IDEA for DB work is that DB connections are saved to the project or workspace (not sure about the IDEA lingo). We have many projects and so I have to add the DB connections again and again. Is there a nice solution for that?
In Jetbrains IDEs, when you define a data source, there is a button to make the source global. If you do that, it will be accessible across all projects.
When I run into questions like this with IDEA, there is usually an answer. If not, file an issue in their issue tracker. Seriously. They fix stuff nonstop. Sometimes it even takes years, but they eventually do it if it is a good one. They are very responsive in their tracker.
Is there any way to visualize the relationships between entities? I'm currently using DBeaver and previously used DataGrip for this. In a databae with complex models, being able to see a diagram is a massive time saver.
I looked into that too a few weeks ago and the nicest looking one I could find is the one in DataGrip. I don't think that it's that great though. I found navigating in the generated view to be cumbersome.
Postico is a really solid piece of software. Very user friendly and approachable, it's a tool I use every day for working with databases. Solidly recommended.
It looks great, but as much as I like mac-native apps, I use Mac for work, and Linux at home. TablePlus is cross platform, and much better for my needs.
I use it, other than being a bit heavy weight, I love it. Same types of features but to me looks better in a few ways - supports any database, beautiful auto-generated ER diagrams, personally I like the interface better, and to the extent that you don't hate Eclipse it's an advantage that you can install it into a regular Eclipse instance and use any other language / plugin that Eclipse supports (for example editing SQL with vim keybindings). It's actually really cool, for example, working with Django, debugging your code and in the same window having auto-refresh running to show the rows getting added in the DBeaver interface.
I once somehow managed to get dbeaver keep a table locked on our prod db, just by having the program open. I thought I was long done doing the things i needed to do, i just hadn't closed the program.
Then we shipped a release which included a migration. The lock prevented the migration from happening and it took us 30 minutes (of downtime!) to figure out that it was my DBeaver client holding a table hostage. I closed the app and a few seconds later the migration was done and we were up.
Now, obviously this was noobness on my part, somehow, but iirc there was no clear indication in the UI that there was an uncommitted transaction going on or anything like that. I'm sure the problem was between keyboard and chair, but I never dared touch DBeaver after that.
It's big, complex and heavyweight (it's basically an eclipse skin), but if you do a lot of data work with different sources it's definitely your best bet.
It has nice viewer interfaces even for uncommon data types (like geospatial data), and it's well-suited for both infra work and querying.
It's not pretty but it's one of the most useful pieces of software I interact with.
I tried several clients for Mac a few years ago (including Postico) and DBeaver was the only one not lacking basic features (views & materialized views, triggers, functions, partitions, extensions…). So I've been using it since then.
In addition, I like that the main sidebar shows everything properly categorized and as a tree with collapsing nodes, i.e. servers > databases > schemas > tables, views, materialized views, functions, etc… > columns, constraints, foreign keys, indexes, triggers, partitions, dependencies, references, etc.
Finally, the support is great. I reported some bugs on GitHub and they all have been fixed on the next release, like 1 or 2 weeks after the report.
It was slow on my old Mac, but since I switched to a M1 I have no complaints.
Use it and love it. I believe that table plus (or similar ones) are nice and cool, but for me, DBeaver is very powerful and useful piece of software. It may not look cool sometimes, but it gets the job done. And it has a lot of connectors. Plus it is free! I can't expect more.
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[ 0.18 ms ] story [ 175 ms ] threadSee for yourself → https://eggerapps.at/postico2/
As the developer of Postico I'm probably biased, and I'm not really up to date where Table Plus is right now, so take my thoughts with a grain of salt. You probably have to try both to see which of the two clicks with you.
The tools are the face of the database and while I didn’t love MySQL, sequel pro made working with it really nice.
And all the postgres guis at the time were really ugly.
When Postico came around I could finally have a smooth experience running queries and I’ve never looked back.
Now if redgate added PG support to sql data compare I’d be in Heaven.
The only feature I miss is some sort of schema designer.
I wanted to make a modern database app for PostgreSQL, like Sequel Pro or Base. I also took a lot of inspiration from other modern Mac apps, like Transmit from Panic, or all the Omni Group apps.
One of the features that best showcases what I consider "modern" is the table structure editor, where I spent a lot time on the interaction design. I'm pretty proud of how it turned out (even though there are issues with it and I never finished all the features I would like to have in there).
In the last 10 years, a few other "modern" database apps for PostgreSQL have been developed, like PSequel, SQLPro Studio, and as other people have commented here, Table Plus, so Postico is probably no longer unique in trying to be modern.
At some level, Postico is even starting to look a bit dated, since I haven't been keen on the direction Apple has been going in the last few years. So maybe it's not entirely accurate to call Postico modern any more, but I do keep looking at what other Mac apps are doing, and what Apple is doing with their apps, and use that as a guiding post to keep Postico a "modern" app that feels at home on the Mac.
It sounds like there is a lot of the sentiment on this thread too, although it doesn't go into specifics.
Then we shipped a release which included a migration. The lock prevented the migration from happening and it took us 30 minutes (of downtime!) to figure out that it was my DBeaver client holding a table hostage. I closed the app and a few seconds later the migration was done and we were up.
Now, obviously this was noobness on my part, somehow, but iirc there was no clear indication in the UI that there was an uncommitted transaction going on or anything like that. I'm sure the problem was between keyboard and chair, but I never dared touch DBeaver after that.
In addition, I like that the main sidebar shows everything properly categorized and as a tree with collapsing nodes, i.e. servers > databases > schemas > tables, views, materialized views, functions, etc… > columns, constraints, foreign keys, indexes, triggers, partitions, dependencies, references, etc.
Finally, the support is great. I reported some bugs on GitHub and they all have been fixed on the next release, like 1 or 2 weeks after the report.
It was slow on my old Mac, but since I switched to a M1 I have no complaints.