Best PostgreSQL Hosting Providers for 2026

PostgreSQL support on shared hosting is less universal than MySQL support — not all shared hosts include it. InMotion Hosting and SiteGround both provide PostgreSQL on their shared hosting plans, which sets them apart from many budget hosts that only offer MySQL. On shared PostgreSQL hosting, you get a PostgreSQL database with a dedicated user, connection via standard PostgreSQL client libraries (psycopg2 for Python, pg for Node.js, the pdo_pgsql extension for PHP), and access via phpPgAdmin or Adminer for web-based management. What you don’t get on shared hosting is control over postgresql.conf server settings — parameters like shared_buffers, max_connections, and work_mem are set by the host and shared across all accounts. For applications that need custom PostgreSQL configuration, a VPS with a dedicated PostgreSQL installation is necessary.

The connection process on shared hosting follows the same pattern as MySQL: create a database and user through the hosting control panel (cPanel on InMotion, Site Tools on SiteGround), then use the provided credentials in your application’s database configuration. For Python/Django, set DATABASES ENGINE to ‘django.db.backends.postgresql’, with NAME, USER, PASSWORD, HOST (usually ‘localhost’), and PORT (usually 5432). For Node.js with pg or Sequelize, use the same parameters in your connection string or configuration object. For PHP applications using PDO, the DSN format is pgsql:host=localhost;port=5432;dbname=your_database. For command-line access via psql over SSH, connect to your server via SSH first, then run psql -U username -d database_name — the psql client is available on both hosts’ servers. Verify the pdo_pgsql PHP extension is enabled if using PHP; both providers include it, but it may need to be activated in the PHP configuration panel.

Extension availability on shared hosting depends entirely on which extensions the host has pre-installed at the server level. Standard extensions that are bundled with PostgreSQL and commonly available on shared hosting include pg_trgm (trigram text search), uuid-ossp (UUID generation), hstore (key-value storage), and citext (case-insensitive text). Extensions requiring separate installation — like PostGIS (geospatial), pg_partman (partition management), or TimescaleDB (time-series) — are generally not available on shared hosting because they require superuser privileges to install and may have system-level dependencies. For applications that need PostGIS or other non-bundled extensions, a VPS with a self-managed or managed PostgreSQL installation where you have superuser access is required. Both InMotion and SiteGround offer VPS plans where you can install any PostgreSQL extension. Contact their support teams to confirm which extensions are available on their shared PostgreSQL environments before committing to a plan if your application depends on a specific extension.

The standard PostgreSQL migration workflow uses pg_dump and pg_restore. On the source server, export your database: pg_dump -Fc -U username -h hostname database_name > database_backup.dump (use -Fc for custom format, which is compressed and supports parallel restore). Transfer the dump file to your new host — via scp over SSH, SFTP, or download/upload if the file is small enough. On the destination server, create the target database and user through the control panel, then restore: pg_restore -U username -d database_name -h localhost database_backup.dump. For large databases, the -j flag enables parallel restore jobs: pg_restore -j 4 will use 4 parallel workers. If you’re migrating to SiteGround, their support team can assist with large database imports. For InMotion, SSH access makes direct psql import straightforward. After migration, verify row counts in key tables match the source, and run ANALYZE on the new database to update query planner statistics before pointing your application at the new connection string.

Both providers work well for Django and Python applications using PostgreSQL, but they suit different workflows. SiteGround is the stronger choice for teams that want staging environments for testing Django migrations before applying them to production — their included staging feature is particularly valuable because Django database migrations are irreversible and testing them on a production-identical environment before deploying reduces risk significantly. SiteGround’s Git integration also supports Python deployment workflows. InMotion is the stronger choice for Python applications where NVMe storage performance matters — faster disk I/O benefits Django applications with heavy database read/write patterns, particularly those using Django ORM queries that involve large querysets or complex aggregations. Both include Python support (via WSGI on Apache/Nginx), psycopg2 compatibility, and SSH access for running Django management commands. For production Django deployments beyond shared hosting, both providers’ VPS plans give you full control over PostgreSQL configuration, which is important for applications that benefit from tuning shared_buffers and connection pooling.

On shared hosting, the PostgreSQL version is managed by the provider and updated on their maintenance schedule — you typically don’t choose or switch it as you would with PHP versions. Both InMotion and SiteGround run current or recent-stable PostgreSQL versions (PostgreSQL 14, 15, or 16 as of 2026). PostgreSQL’s major version releases occur approximately annually, and each major version is supported for five years. The current PostgreSQL 16 release (2023) is supported until November 2028; PostgreSQL 15 until November 2027. Unlike PHP, where running an older version has significant security implications, PostgreSQL minor version updates (e.g., 15.4 → 15.6) are primarily bug fixes and security patches that providers apply automatically. Major version upgrades (15 → 16) are managed by the provider on shared hosting. If your application depends on a specific PostgreSQL version — for example, if you’re using a feature introduced in a particular version — contact the provider to confirm what version is currently deployed before purchasing.