MariaDB vs PostgreSQL comparison

MariaDB and PostgreSQL are both solutions in the Open Source Databases category. MariaDB is ranked #4 with an average rating of 7.9, while PostgreSQL is ranked #2 with an average rating of 8.4. MariaDB holds a 6.5% mindshare in OSD, compared to PostgreSQL’s 18.2% mindshare. Additionally, 96% of MariaDB users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 96% of PostgreSQL users who would recommend it.

MariaDB

Read 59 MariaDB reviews

4,149 Views
3,815 Comparison Views

96% willing to recommend

PostgreSQL

Read 125 PostgreSQL reviews

8,785 Views
7,651 Comparison Views

96% willing to recommend

MariaDB

PostgreSQL

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Apr 20, 2025

PostgreSQL and MariaDB are leading contenders in the open-source database category, enhancing database management with their unique strengths and features. PostgreSQL appears to have the upper hand due to its advanced features which cater to complex corporate needs, although MariaDB holds a niche for users transitioning from MySQL with its simplicity and performance.

Features: PostgreSQL is recognized for its advanced SQL standards support, scalability, and concurrency which make it ideal for complex corporate environments. Its open-source nature and diverse extensions boost adaptability. MariaDB, known for its simplicity and efficiency, may not have the feature depth of PostgreSQL but excels particularly in aiding MySQL users switching to open-source.

Room for Improvement: PostgreSQL could improve performance on read-only queries and support for certain SQL functions. Additionally, its setup complexity and limited replication features could be enhanced. MariaDB might benefit from improved scalability and robustness for large-scale environments, especially with extensive clustering and replication needs.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: PostgreSQL supports a range of deployments including cloud solutions but often requires technical expertise. While community support is strong, centralized tech support is lacking without third-party options. MariaDB offers seamless deployment in similar environments and eases transitions for MySQL users. While it enjoys community-driven support, paid services are available for quick issue resolution.

Pricing and ROI: Both PostgreSQL and MariaDB offer cost-effective solutions being open-source with no licensing fees. PostgreSQL’s rich features may incur higher implementation costs due to the expertise required, whereas MariaDB is more economical in setup and operation thanks to its user-friendly interface and compatibility with existing MySQL installations.

To learn more, read our detailed MariaDB vs. PostgreSQL Report (Updated: April 2025).

Buyer's Guide

MariaDB vs. PostgreSQL

April 2025

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Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Categories and Ranking

MariaDB

Ranking in Open Source Databases

4th

Average Rating

8.2

Reviews Sentiment

7.1

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Relational Databases Tools (5th)

PostgreSQL

Ranking in Open Source Databases

2nd

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

7.7

Number of Reviews

125

Ranking in other categories

Vector Databases (9th)

Mindshare comparison

As of April 2025, in the Open Source Databases category, the mindshare of MariaDB is 6.5%, down from 12.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of PostgreSQL is 18.2%, down from 21.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Open Source Databases

Featured Reviews

KumarManish

Senior Technical Manager at Johnson Controls, Inc.

Easy to deploy, cost-effective, and integrates seamlessly with other products

We had planned for an RDBMS version and not NoSQL. We use MariaDB Galera Cluster. It's a good product. It is cheap, scalable, performs well, and is efficient. We use GCP’s BigQuery for machine learning. We must follow the best practices of the tool. We missed some best practices like the storage engine and InnoDB. It was very difficult to identify why we were having performance issues. Then, we realized that some of our tables were still on MyISAM, the default storage engine. When we switched it back to the InnoDB, it was very smooth. InnoDB is the recommended one. We must follow the best practices given in the documentation during the initial setup. Overall, I rate the product a nine out of ten.

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AdityaSharma3

Vice President Business at Techmagnate: Digital Marketing Agency

Transaction processes are fast and good replication capability

Use cases include querying data warehouses and databases to fetch data for clients already working on PostgreSQL. We also use Postgres for building reports It's a transactional database, so we use Postgres for most of our reporting. That's where it's helping. The query speed is fast, and the…

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Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Pros

"The most valuable feature of the solution is a relational database, which is fairly reliable...It is a stable solution."

"MariaDB is scalable."

"What I like best about MariaDB is that it is open-source and reliable."

"The integration with other products is seamless."

"The solution's features have effectively met our operational requirements as a standard SQL database."

"MariaDB is easy to install and is stable and scalable."

"It is a scalable solution. It easily scales up and scales down."

"The solution's high availability is its most valuable aspect."

More MariaDB pros

"We use the solution to store tables. It is stable and performs well."

"One of the most valuable features is real-time data capture; it optimizes database performance. I think using real-time data capture reduces job running time and the amount of data sent at once with batch loads."

"It has completely met our needs. It works, and it is robust. We haven't had any problems with what PostgreSQL does for us and the way it does it. That's why we've been using it for so long. We understand it, and it does the job."

"The product is quite flexible."

"It's a transactional database, so we use Postgres for most of our reporting. That's where it's helping."

"The PostgreSQL database is similar to the SQL Server but has a slightly different technology that has similar resources as well. If the customer has the confidence using SQL Server, they will be fairly comfortable using this solution."

"The product's deployment is easy."

"What I like is that it's quite powerful in terms of performance."

Cons

"MariaDB could be improved by adding more automation."

"MariaDB doesn't handle long or complex SQL queries quite as well as Oracle Database."

"The price could be less expensive."

"Master-master replication is something that needs to be simplified."

"With respect to clustering and the master-slave configuration, sometimes the slave goes out of synch."

"The maintenance and performance could be a bit better."

"Lacks time series data and additional driving support would be helpful."

"One feedback I can quickly provide is the need for a robust IDE for MongoDB. The existing PHP admin console doesn't meet the client's requirements effectively."

More MariaDB cons

"As PostgreSQL is an open-source product, you do have to do a bit more configuration and management yourself."

"The search option is not very good."

"Instead of the installation agent downloading all the packages for the install, it should allow the user to download the packages separately on their own to do the install."

"PostgreSQL could improve by being more user-friendly. In SQL Server they have a studio where you can easily do management but not in this solution."

"PostgreSQL could improve by adding data warehousing tools."

"It would be great if the solution offered even more integration capabilities."

"The solution needs to improve the query, documentation, and JSON data functionality."

"The user interface for the clients could be easier to use as they are small businesses. From a technical support perspective, the documentation could be improved."

Pricing and Cost Advice

"This is an open-source product, which can be used free of charge."

"The product is not expensive."

"MariaDB is open-source and self-hosted."

"It is free of charge."

"We use the solution's free version."

"We pay for a yearly license."

"MariaDB is an open-source software, meaning I don't need to pay for the product."

"The solution is free, but if you want the enterprise version you will need to pay for some licenses but the cost is less than other solutions, such as Oracle."

More MariaDB pricing and cost advice

"The need for our customers to pay for licences is contingent on their projects and budgets."

"There is an annual license."

"We do not pay for licensing."

"It could be much cheaper. If you would like to build an application on Amazon today, PostgreSQL is the standard database with Redshift. If you want other databases, you can add them, but PostgreSQL is the basis of everything. It's a question of money, that's it."

"It is free. In terms of operating costs, it basically needs the same platform on which Oracle runs."

"It is also open-source so it is free."

"Affordable solution."

"It is an open-source platform."

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

17%

Financial Services Firm

11%

Educational Organization

Comms Service Provider

Computer Software Company

16%

Financial Services Firm

12%

Comms Service Provider

Manufacturing Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about MariaDB?

The integration with other products is seamless.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for MariaDB?

I have found the price of commercial MariaDB to be pretty steep, although not as high as Oracle. Customers often prefer the Community Edition because it's free.

See all answers

What needs improvement with MariaDB?

The only potential area for improvement could be the pricing model, which might benefit from being more flexible or a bit cheaper.

See all answers

How does Firebird SQL compare with PostgreSQL?

PostgreSQL was designed in a way that provides you with not only a high degree of flexibility but also offers you a cheap and easy-to-use solution. It gives you the ability to redesign and audit yo...

See all answers

What do you like most about PostgreSQL?

It's a transactional database, so we use Postgres for most of our reporting. That's where it's helping.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for PostgreSQL?

The tool is free of cost. For now, it's not about making money. But once we perfect it, we can offer it to customers willing to pay for support and other services. Most of my deployments are free.

See all answers

Comparisons

SQL Server vs MariaDB

Compared 25% of the time

Firebird SQL vs MariaDB

Compared 22% of the time

Oracle Database vs MariaDB

Compared 10% of the time

MySQL vs MariaDB

Compared 9% of the time

Percona Server vs MariaDB

Compared 5% of the time

More MariaDB Competitors

Firebird SQL vs PostgreSQL

Compared 37% of the time

MySQL vs PostgreSQL

Compared 13% of the time

EDB Postgres Advanced Server vs PostgreSQL

Compared 11% of the time

Chroma vs PostgreSQL

Compared 7% of the time

LanceDB vs PostgreSQL

Compared 4% of the time

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

MariaDB

April 2025

Download MariaDB product report

Buyer's Guide

PostgreSQL

April 2025

Download PostgreSQL product report

Overview

MariaDB is an open source relational database created by the original founders of MySQL. It is considered one of the most popular and trusted database servers throughout the world. MariaDB is a valued component found in most cloud offerings and is the default in many Linux tools. It is also widely used by Wikipedia, WordPress, and Google, among other well-known sites. Maria DB easily melds data into concise information from a vast array of applications, such as banking, online shopping, websites, and more.

MariaDB was originally created to improve MySQL performance. It is the most widely chosen database server due to the solution being super fast, robust, user-friendly, and easily scalable. MariaDB also offers a substantial ecosystem of plugins, storage engines, and numerous other valuable tools that make it very attractive for a significant offering of use cases.

The solution’s newest functionalities include compatibility with Oracle Database and Temporal Data Tables, and advanced clustering with Galera Cluster 4, which make it easier for users to research data history from any point in the past. Additionally, the most recent versions include JSON and GIS features. MariaDB is committed to staying an open source solution.

MariaDB Features

More storage: MariaDB works with more storage engines than MySQL and most other database servers available. Some storage options include, but are not limited to ARCHIVE, MERGE, CSV, MEMORY, BLACKHOLE, MyISAM, ColumnStore, MyRocks, and Cassandra.
Super fast: MariaDB offers faster authentication checks. The FlushSSL permits SSL certificates to be reloaded without a server restart, resulting in huge time savings.
Improved testing: MariaDB offers an extending testing suite that runs faster and can test more than ever before. Bugs can be easily fixed and invalid tests removed.
Genuinely open source: Every code in MariaDB is GPL, LGPL, or BSD. Client libraries [for Windows (ODBC), Java (JDBC), or C] allow linking to closed source software. All fixed bug cases and development plans are completely public. MariaDB is a community-developed solution representing the true spirit of open source products.

Reviews from Real Users

Faustine C., Engineering Supervisor- Corporate Data Solutions and Services at TZ Telecoms Corporation, shares, “The software provides a lot of information on what is happening inside the database. For most performance parameters it is easy to know if something is not right in the configuration or optimization which helps engineers take remedial fine-tuning measures. For example, if the database is underperforming it is easy to know which performance parameter can be adjusted to handle the workload. It is difficult to troubleshoot database issues if many performance parameters can not be monitored or debugged which is the case with some database management systems. It provides great monitoring of data storage, processing, and performance stability which is really important for real-time data storage and processing. It's a user-friendly product.”

A PeerSpot user who is a Senior Engineer at a tech services company relates, “ The solution's high availability is its most valuable aspect. We have found the product to be stable and the initial setup is pretty simple. I'd rate the solution at a ten out of ten. I'm very happy with it overall. I would recommend the solution to others. It's easy to find details about the product online and to learn about it.”

MariaDB

PostgreSQL is a versatile and reliable database management system commonly used for web development, data analysis, and building scalable databases.

It offers advanced features like indexing, replication, and transaction management. Users appreciate its flexibility, performance, and ability to handle large amounts of data efficiently. Its robustness, scalability, and support for complex queries make it highly valuable.

Additionally, PostgreSQL's extensibility, flexibility, community support, and frequent updates contribute to its ongoing improvement and stability.

PostgreSQL

Sample Customers

Google, Wikipedia, Tencent, Verizon, DBS Bank, Deutsche Bank, Telefónica, Huatai Securities

1. Apple 2. Cisco 3. Fujitsu 4. Instagram 5. Netflix 6. Red Hat 7. Sony 8. Uber 9. Cisco Systems 10. Skype 11. LinkedIn 12. Etsy 13. Yelp 14. Reddit 15. Dropbox 16. Slack 17. Twitch 18. WhatsApp 19. Snapchat 20. Shazam 21. SoundCloud 22. The New York Times 23. Cisco WebEx 24. Atlassian 25. Cisco Meraki 26. Heroku 27. GitLab 28. Zalando 29. OpenTable 30. Trello 31. Square Enix 32. Bloomberg

Buyer's Guide

MariaDB vs. PostgreSQL

April 2025

Free Report: MariaDB vs. PostgreSQL

Find out what your peers are saying about MariaDB vs. PostgreSQL and other solutions. Updated: April 2025.

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