What pgAdmin is used for

What is pgAdmin?

pgAdmin is the most popular graphical administration and management tool for PostgreSQL. It provides a visual interface that allows developers and database administrators to manage, monitor, and interact with PostgreSQL databases efficiently.

🐘 pgAdmin is a graphical administration and management tool for PostgreSQL.

In simple words:

pgAdmin is a GUI application that lets you manage PostgreSQL visually instead of using only terminal commands.

What pgAdmin is used for#

With pgAdmin, you can:

  • Connect to PostgreSQL servers

  • Create and manage databases

  • Manage users (roles) and permissions

  • Write and run SQL queries

  • View tables, indexes, views, functions

  • Monitor activity and performance

  • Inspect server statistics and logs

All without memorizing every SQL command.

pgAdmin vs PostgreSQL (very important)#

Many beginners confuse these two.

PostgreSQL

pgAdmin

Database server (engine)

Management tool

Stores data

Does NOT store data

Runs as a service

Runs as an application

Can work without pgAdmin

Requires PostgreSQL

pgAdmin cannot exist without PostgreSQL

PostgreSQL works fine without pgAdmin

Analogy (easy to remember)#

Think of:

  • PostgreSQL = Engine of a car 🚗

  • pgAdmin = Dashboard & control panel 🧭

You can drive without the dashboard, but the dashboard makes life easier.

🖥️ Types of pgAdmin#

1️⃣ pgAdmin Desktop

  • Installed on your computer

    • Uses browser-based UI internally

    • Common for developers

2️⃣ pgAdmin Web

  • Runs on a server

  • Accessed via browser

  • Used by teams / enterprises

Both do the same job.

🔌 What pgAdmin connects to#

pgAdmin can connect to:

  • Local PostgreSQL (localhost)

  • Remote PostgreSQL servers

  • Cloud PostgreSQL (AWS RDS, Azure, GCP)

  • Multiple servers at once

That’s why you see:

Servers (1)

📁 What pgAdmin manages (high-level)#

PostgreSQL Server
├── Databases
│   ├── Schemas
│   │   ├── Tables
│   │   ├── Views
│   │   └── Functions
├── Roles (Users & Groups)
└── Tablespaces

pgAdmin simply shows and controls this hierarchy.

🔐 Is pgAdmin required?#

❌ No — PostgreSQL works with:

  • psql

  • Application code

  • ORMs

✅ But pgAdmin is highly recommended for:

  • Learning

  • Debugging

  • Visualization

  • Administration tasks

Note

Summary

pgAdmin is a graphical administration tool that allows users to manage, monitor, and interact with PostgreSQL databases through a visual interface. Besides pgAdmin, several graphical administration and management tools—such as DBeaver, DataGrip, and TablePlus—are available to manage PostgreSQL databases, each offering different features and user experiences.

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