MyDBA.dev vs Percona PMM: Deep PostgreSQL Intelligence vs Multi-Database Monitoring

Percona Monitoring and Management (PMM) is one of the most established open-source database monitoring tools available. It is free, actively maintained, and covers MySQL, MongoDB, and PostgreSQL in a single platform. If you run a polyglot database environment, PMM is a strong choice. This article compares PMM with MyDBA.dev to help you decide which tool fits your PostgreSQL monitoring needs.

Quick Comparison

Capability	Percona PMM	MyDBA.dev
Pricing	Free (open source, self-hosted)	Free tier (hosted) / Pro from GBP 19/mo
Database support	MySQL, MongoDB, PostgreSQL	PostgreSQL only
Deployment	Self-hosted server + agents on every host	SaaS with lightweight collector
Query analytics	QAN with fingerprinting, EXPLAIN	Fingerprinting, EXPLAIN + EXPLAIN ANALYZE, plan regression detection
Health checks	Percona Advisors (security, config, perf)	75+ checks with scored domains and fix scripts
Index advisor	No	Yes -- missing index detection with CREATE INDEX
XID wraparound	Basic metric exposure	Dedicated monitoring with blocker detection
Extension monitoring	No	TimescaleDB, pgvector, PostGIS
Lock visualization	Standard lock metrics	Interactive dependency graphs
Schema comparison	No	Cross-instance schema diff

Where PMM Excels

PMM deserves genuine credit.

It is fully free and open source. Not freemium with paywalled features -- everything is available. As of 2026, all Percona Advisors (security, configuration, and performance checks) are included without any subscription.

Multi-database support is real. If you run MySQL, MongoDB, and PostgreSQL together, PMM gives you one monitoring platform. The MySQL coverage in particular is excellent -- PMM was built on Percona's deep MySQL expertise.

Grafana dashboards are flexible. PMM ships with dozens of pre-built dashboards and you can build your own. If your team already knows Grafana, you are immediately productive.

Advisors catch real issues. The framework checks for default passwords, SSL misconfigurations, memory settings, checkpoint tuning, replication lag, and more. These run automatically and surface findings in the UI.

Backup integration. PMM integrates with Percona's backup tools for MySQL and MongoDB -- useful if backup monitoring is part of your workflow.

Where MyDBA.dev Goes Further

The core difference is specialization. PMM is a multi-database monitoring platform adapted to support PostgreSQL. MyDBA.dev is built exclusively for PostgreSQL.

Health Checks with Fix Scripts

PMM's Advisors cover a solid set of checks. MyDBA.dev runs 75+ checks across 10 scored domains -- Vacuum, Indexes, Storage, Performance, Schema, Security, WAL & Backup, Connections, Replication, and Extensions. Every finding includes a fix script: not just "this index is missing" but the exact CREATE INDEX statement. Domain scores (0-100) let you track improvement over time.

Index Advisor

PMM has no index recommendation engine. MyDBA.dev analyzes query patterns, sequential scan frequency, and table access statistics to recommend missing indexes. Each recommendation includes the CREATE INDEX statement, estimated impact, and the queries that would benefit.

XID Wraparound Protection

XID wraparound is a PostgreSQL-specific risk that can force emergency autovacuum or database shutdown. PMM exposes basic XID age metrics. MyDBA.dev provides dedicated monitoring with age tracking, blocker detection (long-running transactions, prepared transactions, replication slots), trend analysis, and recovery scripts.

Extension Monitoring

TimescaleDB, pgvector, PostGIS -- these extensions have their own performance characteristics and failure modes. MyDBA.dev monitors TimescaleDB (chunk health, compression ratios, continuous aggregate freshness), pgvector (index selection, distance functions, filtered search), and PostGIS (spatial index efficiency, SRID consistency, geometry quality). PMM has no extension awareness.

No Infrastructure to Manage

PMM requires deploying and maintaining PMM Server (Docker/VM) plus agents on every monitored host. You manage storage, upgrades, availability, and resources. MyDBA.dev is SaaS -- install a lightweight collector binary and the monitoring infrastructure is handled for you. No Grafana to upgrade, no Prometheus storage to manage.

Lock Chain Visualization and Schema Diff

MyDBA.dev renders interactive lock chain dependency graphs showing the full blocking tree -- which session holds the lock, which are waiting, what queries are involved. PMM provides standard lock metrics without the visual dependency mapping. MyDBA.dev also includes cross-instance schema comparison for staging vs production or pre/post migration diffs. PMM does not offer schema comparison.

Pricing

PMM: Free (open source). You provide infrastructure for PMM Server and agents. The real cost is your team's time.

MyDBA.dev: Free tier (one connection, 7-day retention). Pro from GBP 19/month (30-day retention, all features). No infrastructure to manage.

When to Choose Which

Choose PMM when: You run MySQL + MongoDB + PostgreSQL together, you are already in the Percona ecosystem, your team has ops capacity for self-hosting, you need backup integration, or budget is the primary constraint.

Choose MyDBA.dev when: Your environment is PostgreSQL-only or PostgreSQL-primary, you want health checks with fix scripts and index recommendations, you use PostgreSQL extensions, you want to avoid managing monitoring infrastructure, or you value remediation guidance alongside detection.

The Honest Take

PMM is a mature, genuinely free monitoring platform with excellent multi-database support. If you run MySQL alongside PostgreSQL, it is hard to beat.

The trade-off is PostgreSQL depth. PMM was built on MySQL heritage and adapted to PostgreSQL. MyDBA.dev was built for PostgreSQL from the ground up. The difference shows in extension monitoring, index recommendations, XID wraparound tooling, lock chain visualization, and the 75+ health checks with fix scripts. If PostgreSQL is your primary database, that specialization matters.

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Originally published at mydba.dev/blog/mydba-vs-pmm