The rise of PostgreSQL and MySQL is fueled by cloud adoption, boosting deployment ease. PostgreSQL dominates in 2023, yet MySQL still appeals to learners. In 2024, PostgreSQL aims to improve sharding, logical replication, while MySQL focuses on availability, security, and analytics.

The surge in PostgreSQL and MySQL popularity owes much to its adoption by major cloud providers. Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud now offer managed PostgreSQL and MySQL services, streamlining database deployment and management. AWS highlighted the rapid growth of its Amazon Aurora PostgreSQL-compatible service in 2021.

The acquisition of MySQL by Oracle in 2010 triggered concerns among open-source database users about the future of MySQL. Many feared that Oracle might prioritize commercial interests over MySQL’s open-source ethos. This uncertainty led some users to explore alternative options, particularly PostgreSQL, known for its robust features and open-source solid community support.

DB-Engines winners

PostgreSQL secured its position as the Database Management System of the Year 2023, as recognized by DB-Engines. PostgreSQL has been the most frequent winner of the DB-Engines DBMS of the Year Award over the past ten years, showcasing its sustained excellence and popularity in the database community.

In comparing PostgreSQL and MySQL, the guide MySQL vs PostgreSQL in 2023 from last year analyzes the fundamental similarities, performance, flexibility, scale, and ease of use between these two popular relational database management systems (RDBMS).

The table comparing MySQL with PostgreSQL can be found at db-engines.com

Key Survey Insights from Stack Overflow.

Popularity Shift: 2022 vs 2023: In 2023, PostgreSQL managed to overtake MySQL, signaling a shift in preferences among Professional Developers

Overall Preference: PostgreSQL is now the top choice for Professional Developers, reflecting its growing popularity in the developer community

Learning Developers: While PostgreSQL dominates among Professional Developers, those in the learning phase still lean towards MySQL, with 45% using it compared to PostgreSQL

Hacker News discussion.

We’ve summarized the Hacker News (Y Combinator) discussion about choosing between MySQL and PostgreSQL in 2023. The discussion includes five key points:

1. License: MySQL Community Edition is licensed under the GPL, while PostgreSQL is released under the PostgreSQL license, a free open-source license similar to BSD or MIT.
2. Performance: For most workloads, the performance of Postgres and MySQL is comparable, with at most a 30% difference. MySQL has an advantage over Postgres for extremely write-intensive workloads, while PostgreSQL is faster when handling massive datasets, complicated queries, and read-write operations.
3. Features and Data Types: PostgreSQL offers a more extensive set of built-in data types and high SQL standards compliance. It provides more features, flexibility in data types, scalability, concurrency, and data integrity compared to MySQL. On the other hand, MySQL has a more limited set of data types but offers spatial extensions for geographic information system (GIS) data.
4. Community Support: MySQL boasts a more extensive user base and community, making finding support and answers easier than PostgreSQL.
5. Use Cases: MySQL is best suited for simple operations like read and write, making it a good choice for web-based projects requiring only simple data transactions. Conversely, PostgreSQL is well-suited for systems that execute large and complex queries and store and analyze data.

Reddit thread.

Here are some more key points from a summarized post from the Reddit thread: “Why do you choose MySQL over Postgres?”:

1. MySQL’s popularity and availability of commercial support are highlighted as benefits over PostgreSQL.
2. MySQL is the most popular SQL database, but Postgres has more features and better support for SQL standards.
3. One feature of Postgres is that database migrations can be wrapped into a transaction, so if one query in migration fails, the whole migration fails.
4. Postgres is faster in benchmarks and has better support for SQL standards.
5. MySQL is not officially supported for many Linux distros, and some articles suggest that MariaDB is a recommended drop-in replacement for MySQL. Still, it’s not a drop-in replacement.
6. A complete comparison between Postgres and MySQL in 2023 concludes that Postgres has more features and a more thriving community and ecosystem, while MySQL has an easier learning curve and a larger user base.

In 2024, a complete comparison between Postgres and MySQL notes that Postgres has taken over as the first desired database, but choosing between the two databases is still hard and often causes heated debate.

PostgreSQL Expectations for 2024:

1. Enhanced Sharding: PostgreSQL is anticipated to continue improving sharding capabilities, making it easier to implement and manage sharding setups.
2. Logical Replication: The focus will likely remain on expanding logical replication capabilities to offer users more flexibility in architecting their database workloads.
3. Performance Improvements: Postgres’ performance will be further enhanced by optimizing CPU acceleration using SIMD (Single Instruction, Multiple Data) and bulk loading improvements.
4. Direct I/O Support: PostgreSQL could explore direct I/O support to bypass the operating system, potentially providing significant speedups.

MySQL Anticipations for 2024:

1. High Availability and Security: Development efforts are likely to prioritize improving high availability, security, and performance, addressing the evolving demands of modern applications.
2. Performance Optimization: MySQL may introduce features to optimize performance for specific use cases and enhancements for managing changing workloads.
3. Support for Analytics and Machine Learning: Expectations include continued evolution in support for analytics, machine learning, and high-performance data processing.
4. Innovation and LTS Releases: MySQL’s versioning model transitioned to Innovation and Long-Term Support (LTS) releases, providing access to the latest features and improvements.

Frequently Asked Questions: PostgreSQL vs MySQL.

Q: What are the key differences between PostgreSQL and MySQL?

A: PostgreSQL offers a more extensive set of built-in data types, high SQL standards compliance, more features, flexibility in data types, scalability, concurrency, and data integrity compared to MySQL. On the other hand, MySQL has a more limited set of data types but offers spatial extensions for geographic information system (GIS) data.

Q: What are the key insights from the Stack Overflow Survey 2022 and 2023?

A: In 2023, PostgreSQL overtook MySQL in popularity among professional developers. PostgreSQL is now the top choice for professional developers, while those in the learning phase still lean towards MySQL.

Q: What are the benefits of using MySQL over PostgreSQL?

A: MySQL’s popularity and availability of commercial support are highlighted as benefits over PostgreSQL. MySQL is also easier to learn and has a larger user base.

Q: What are the benefits of using PostgreSQL over MySQL?

A: PostgreSQL has more features, better support for SQL standards, and a thriving community and ecosystem. It is also faster in benchmarks and has better support for complex transactions and queries.

Q: Which Database Is Best for Large Data?

A: Generally, PostgreSQL is considered superior for handling large data sets due to its robust scalability, advanced indexing techniques, and optimized query processing. However, MySQL also effectively manages large data sets, especially in scenarios with predominantly read-heavy workloads.

Q: Which Is better, PostgreSQL or MySQL?

A: The choice between PostgreSQL and MySQL depends on your requirements and use case. PostgreSQL excels in data integrity, advanced features, and scalability, making it suitable for complex scenarios. Meanwhile, MySQL is often preferred for its simplicity and effectiveness in read-heavy workloads.

Q: Is PostgreSQL Easier Than MySQL?

A: The ease of use between PostgreSQL and MySQL is subjective and depends on your experience with SQL and RDBMS. Some users may find MySQL easier due to its more straightforward design, while others may appreciate PostgreSQL’s strict adherence to SQL standards. Both databases have strong community support to assist in your learning journey.

Q: Should I learn PostgreSQL or MySQL?

A: The decision to learn PostgreSQL or MySQL depends on your specific needs. MySQL is a good choice for simplicity, while PostgreSQL is ideal if you require advanced features, data integrity, and scalability. Both databases are widely used, so your choice should align with the demands of your projects.

Q: What are the anticipations for PostgreSQL and MySQL in 2024?

A: PostgreSQL is expected to focus on enhancing sharding, logical replication, and performance enhancements, among other features. MySQL is expected to focus on further improving high availability, security, and performance and may continue to evolve its support for analytics, machine learning, and high-performance data processing.

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