MariaDB MaxScale vs PgDog
MariaDB MaxScale
mariadb.comPgDog
pgdog.devSide by side
| Figure | MariaDB MaxScale | PgDog |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | — | Free |
| Free plan | — | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Web | Yes | — |
| Windows | — | Yes |
| macOS | — | Yes |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hosted | — | Yes |
| Plans published | 0 | 2 |
| Spec score · Database Proxy Software | 5.8 (#30) | 7.7 (#12) |
Plans
In their own words
MariaDB MaxScale
MariaDB MaxScale has no write-up on Specifiction yet; its figures are above.
PgDog
PgDog is a PostgreSQL connection pooler, load balancer, and database sharder designed to scale databases without application changes. It multiplexes many application connections across fewer PostgreSQL server connections and supports SET, LISTEN/NOTIFY, and advisory locks. Read queries can be distributed across replicas while writes go to the primary, with health checks and failover detection. Sharding keys guide query routing; queries without a key can run across databases in parallel. Cross-shard transactions use PostgreSQL prepared transactions and two-phase commit, with automatic rollback on errors. PgDog can copy data and stream row changes to another database without pausing query traffic. Deployment options include Kubernetes Helm, Docker, AWS ECS Terraform, pre-built binaries, and source. Releases include Linux arm64 and amd64, Apple Silicon Mac, and Debian packages; the macOS binary is unsigned. The project is free and open source under AGPL-3.0, and documentation says internal use does not require sharing source code. Enterprise support includes architecture reviews, a dedicated Slack channel, and an SLA promising a response within 15 minutes.