PostgreSQL is an enterprise-grade open-source relational database system that supports both relational and non-relational querying (the former is done via SQL, the latter via JSON). This system is renowned for being highly stable, scalable, and resilient, with more than 20 years of community development behind its back. Currently, it's one of the most popular database systems alongside MySQL, SQL Server, and Oracle Database, and it's a proven solution for countless applications from nearly every imaginable business domain.
The feature set of PostgreSQL includes multi-version concurrency control, point-in-time recovery, granular access controls, asynchronous replication, nested transactions, hot backups, tablespaces, a refined query planner/optimizer, and write-ahead logging. It is also known to provide extensive support for advanced data types, international character sets and multi-byte character encodings. Additionally, PostgreSQL is no stranger to effective performance optimization, not any worse than that of its commercial counterparts.
Now here are a few words about Apple macOS, an operating system with probably the most loyal following one can get. Behind the fact that it's sleek and stylish, we shouldn't forget the exceptional levels of convenience in daily work, reliability, high performance, perfect integration with the native Apple hardware, and some of the richest capabilities an operating system can possibly offer.
That said, macOS is one of the most vital platforms for software development (and database development as well). Without further ado, let us show you the two ways of installing PostgreSQL on your Mac, show you how to connect to it, how to create your first database, how to fill it with data, and much more.
There are two ways to install PostgreSQL on your Mac. The first one is just your usual way of installing a program, when you download an installer file, open it, and follow the wizard's instructions. The second way is to install PostgreSQL on your Mac via Homebrew, a specialized package manager. The guide below will thoroughly cover both of these ways.
Your first step is to download the PostgreSQL installer for macOS. Once you are on the Download PostgreSQL page, select the preferred version.
Open the downloaded .dmg file. Double-click the installer file within and click Open. If your Mac is locked with a password, you will be prompted to enter it.
The wizard opens. Click Next.
Specify the directory on your Mac where PostgreSQL will be installed and click Next.
Keep the components you want to install selected and click Next.
Specify the directory where your data will be stored and click Next.
Provide a new password for the database superuser. Later on, you will use it to connect to PostgreSQL. After that, click Next.
Change the default port, if necessary, and click Next.
Select the locale that will be used by PostgreSQL. By default, it will use the locale of your current operating system.
Review the pre-installation summary. Once you make sure everything is correct, click Next.
Now PostgreSQL is ready for installation. Click Next.
Give the installer a few minutes to conduct the installation.
Once the installation is complete, you will receive a notification. If you have previously selected Stack Builder to be installed, you will be prompted to launch it at exit. Afterwards, click Finish to exit the wizard. You have installed PostgreSQL on your Mac.
Next, you start installing PostgreSQL by running the following command:
brew install postgresql
The installation will commence. If something doesn't run smooth, Terminal will prompt you for additional actions.
Then give it a little time to be completed. What is great about this method is that Homebrew will automatically manage the dependencies required by PostgreSQL, and you won't have to install anything separately.
Once the installation is completed, you will see a message similar to the following:
After you install PostgreSQL on your Mac, you will be able to start it via Terminal using the following command:
brew services start postgresql
The result will be similar to this:
brew services stop postgresql command.
Once your PostgreSQL is up and running, you can start configuring it by creating a root user with administrator privileges. To do that, run the following command:
psql postgres
The result will be as follows:
But what if we suggest an alternative to Terminal that will make it all far easier and way faster? We believe that what you really need at this step is a multifunctional PostgreSQL GUI client that will help you create and manage databases. And we've got one for you! It's called dbForge Studio for PostgreSQL, and it delivers multiple tools for the development and management of your databases.
Although dbForge Studio is a classic Windows application, you can run it on macOS using a compatibility solution called CrossOver. You will find a detailed installation guide and a handy video tutorial on the Installation on Linux & macOS: Overview page of our documentation.
Open dbForge Studio for PostgreSQL. In the Database menu, click New Connection.
In the Database Connection Properties window that opens, specify the connection properties: Host, Port, User, and Password. Then select the required Database from the dropdown menu. After that, you can click Test Connection to verify that you have entered everything correctly. Finally, click Connect.
Creating a new user is just as easy. Click New SQL and enter the CREATE ROLE <username>; command. Run it with the Execute button. Once the Studio finishes the process, you will see the following notification: Query executed successfully.
Now let us show you a few options to diversify this command. The simplest way is to create a user with no password:
CREATE USER <username>;
And this is how you create a user with a password:
CREATE USER <username> WITH PASSWORD '<password>';
This is how you create a user with a password that is valid until a specified date:
CREATE USER <username> WITH PASSWORD '<password>' VALID UNTIL 'YYYY-MM-DD';
And this is how you create an account where the user can create databases:
CREATE USER <username> WITH PASSWORD '<password>' CREATEDB;
Similarly, you can configure users with the ALTER USER command. For instance, you can provide a user with the ability to create new users and databases:
ALTER USER <username> CREATEUSER CREATEDB;
Finally, this is how you delete a user:
DROP USER <username>
To create a new database, first, click New SQL.
In a new SQL document, enter the CREATE DATABASE <database name>; command with the name of your new database. Then click Execute.
In Database Explorer, click the Refresh button. Your new database will appear there under your connection. If you want to drop it, simply use the DROP DATABASE <database name>; command. Never easier!
Now let's see how to import PostgreSQL data into your new database. You have a whopping 10 formats to choose from, including TXT, XLS, XLSX, Google Sheets, MDB, XML, JSON, CSV, ODBC, and DBF. Go to the Database menu and click Import Data to open the wizard.
After you select a format, follow the wizard to configure the import settings. Note that the wizard tabs and available settings may vary depending on the format. After you configure everything as required, click Import, and wait a while for the process to be completed. Note that you can save your import settings as a template using the Save Template button.
Similarly, in the Database menu, click Export Data to get the export wizard ready. Here, you have even more formats to choose from, additionally including HTML, RTF, PDF, and SQL.
To uninstall PostgreSQL from your Mac, open Terminal and run the following command: open /Library/PostgreSQL/15/uninstall-postgresql.app (the path is the same as the one you have specified during the installation). You will be prompted to enter your admin password. Once you do it, the wizard will open. Select the required option and click Next to launch the uninstallation.
The rest is extremely easy. Simply wait a few moments until PostgreSQL is uninstalled, and that's it!
And if you installed PostgreSQL on your Mac via Homebrew, you might as well use it for uninstallation. To do that, stop the server (if it's running) and execute the brew uninstall postgresql command.
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