PostgreSQL Releases
Track every PostgreSQL major release. EOL dates, upgrade paths, feature comparisons, and migration guidance for database administrators.
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Total Versions
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Supported
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Latest
Version Timeline
All tracked releases with lifecycle status and EOL dates.
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Lifecycle Timeline
Visual overview of active support and maintenance windows.
Upgrade Paths
Migration guidance between major versions — breaking changes, effort estimates, and tips.
Breaking Changes
- ICU collation now default (affects sorting/indexing)
- Removed postmaster symlink
- Changes to identity column behavior
Migration Notes
pg_upgrade works for direct 14→16 jumps. The ICU collation change is the most significant if you relied on libc collation ordering. Plan for index rebuilds if collation sensitivity matters. Test query plans after upgrade.
Breaking Changes
- Incremental backup support changes
- New SQL/JSON functions
- Vacuum improvements may change autovacuum behavior
Migration Notes
Smooth upgrade via pg_upgrade. SQL/JSON support is additive. Incremental backup is a new capability. Test autovacuum-sensitive workloads.
Breaking Changes
- Virtual generated columns
- Async I/O improvements
- Enhanced partitioning
Migration Notes
Standard pg_upgrade path. PostgreSQL 18 is the latest release (Sep 2025). New features are mostly additive. Virtual generated columns may affect schema design choices.
Version Risk Assessment
Evaluate risk factors before choosing a version for production.
| Version | EOL Risk | CVE Risk | Ecosystem | Cloud Support | Overall | Recommended Action |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PostgreSQL 13 | Critical | High | EOL | Dropping | Critical | EOL Nov 2025. Upgrade immediately. |
| PostgreSQL 14 | High | Medium | Maintenance | Supported | High | EOL Nov 2026. Plan upgrade to 16+. |
| PostgreSQL 15 | Medium | Low | Active | Full | Medium | Supported until Nov 2027. |
| PostgreSQL 16 | Low | Low | Active | Full | Low | Recommended for production. |
| PostgreSQL 17 | None | Low | Active | Full | Low | Latest LTS-equivalent. |
| PostgreSQL 18 | None | Low | Growing | Partial | Low | Latest release. Await full cloud adoption. |
PostgreSQL versions are supported for 5 years. Running an EOL version means no security patches for a database holding your production data. Cloud providers (AWS RDS, Azure, GCP) also drop support for EOL versions, forcing auto-upgrades.
PostgreSQL Major Version Feature Comparison
Side-by-side feature differences across major versions.
| Feature | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Logical replication | Basic | Row filters | Parallel apply | Failover slots | Enhanced |
| JSON support | jsonb | JSON_TABLE (preview) | SQL/JSON constructor | SQL/JSON query | Full SQL/JSON |
| Partitioning | Improved | Improved | MERGE support | Split/merge | Enhanced |
| Parallel query | Basic | Expanded | Full outer join | More operators | Async I/O |
| Compression | LZ4 TOAST | Gzip backups | LZ4+Zstd | Zstd default | Zstd native |
| ICU collation | Optional | Optional | Default | Default | Default |
| pg_upgrade speed | Standard | Faster | Much faster | Incremental | Incremental |
| Monitoring | pg_stat | pg_stat_io | wait events | More metrics | Extended |
| Performance vs 14 | Baseline | +5-10% | +10-20% | +15-25% | +20-30% |
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Health Status
Overall support health
EOL Countdown
Next end-of-life date
Latest Version
Current stable release
CVE Status
Known vulnerabilities
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about PostgreSQL releases and lifecycle.