Aiven for PostgreSQL
Aiven for PostgreSQL is a managed, hosted relational database service based on open-source PostgreSQL.
What Aiven for PostgreSQL is
Aiven for PostgreSQL is a managed, hosted relational database service based on open-source PostgreSQL. It automates setup, maintenance, patching and scaling, with automatic failover and point-in-time recovery. The cloud service can run across providers including AWS, Google Cloud and Azure. Aiven lists more than 50 PostgreSQL extensions, including PostGIS, pgvector, TimescaleDB and pg_cron, and describes use for vector search and AI applications. The free tier has one CPU, 1 GB RAM and 1 GB storage in a single-node setup; it has no integrations or connection pooling and a max_connections limit of 20. This tier is excluded from the advertised 99.99% uptime SLA. Paid services include Basic support, while customers using only free services are directed to documentation and do not receive support services. Aiven states that data is encrypted in transit and at rest and that service virtual machines are dedicated to a single customer.
Good
- Automates setup, maintenance, patching and scaling.
- Includes automatic failover and point-in-time recovery.
- Lists more than 50 PostgreSQL extensions.
- Deployable across AWS, Google Cloud and Azure.
- Data is encrypted in transit and at rest.
Watch out
- Free tier has only 1 GB storage.
- Free tier has no integrations or connection pooling.
- Free-tier users do not receive support services.
- Free tier is excluded from the 99.99% uptime SLA.
Who it suits
The free tier is positioned for learning and prototypes, while Developer is aimed at test and personal projects. Startup and Business are positioned for higher-performance testing and production workloads, respectively.
Verdict
Aiven for PostgreSQL combines managed operations with PostgreSQL extensions and deployment across major cloud providers. The free tier is constrained and lacks support, so assess its limits against the workload before choosing it.
Plans and prices
From Aiven for PostgreSQL's own pricing page, checked 15 Oct 2026.
| Plan | Price | What it gives you |
|---|---|---|
| Free | Free | 1 VM · 1 CPU · 1 GB RAM · 1 GB storage · no integrations or connection pooling · $0/month |
| Developer | $5 a month | 1 VM · 1 CPU · 1 GB RAM · 8 GB storage · no integrations or connection pooling · $5/month |
| Hobbyist | $12 a month | 1 VM · 1 CPU · 1 GB RAM · 8 GB storage · DigitalOcean, Google Cloud or OVH · starting from $12/month · $0.02/hour |
| Startup | $75 a month | 1 VM · 2-32 CPUs · 4-192 GB RAM · 80 GB-11 TB storage · 99.99% SLA · starting from $75/month · $0.10/hour |
| Business | $180 a month | 2 VMs · 2-32 CPUs · 4-192 GB RAM · 80 GB-11 TB storage · high availability · starting from $180/month · $0.25/hour |
| Premium | $270 a month | 3 VMs · 2-32 CPUs · 4-192 GB RAM · 80 GB-11 TB storage · second standby node · starting from $270/month · $0.37/hour |
The facts
Each one read from Aiven for PostgreSQL's own pages, with the date it was checked.
What it does
- Administration
- Aiven automates setup, maintenance, patching, scaling and version upgrades.checked 15 Oct 2026
- AI and vector search
- Aiven lists pgvector and pgvectorscale among supported extensions and describes PostgreSQL use for vector search and AI applications.checked 30 Sep 2026
- Automated operations
- Aiven automates setup, maintenance, patching, and scaling, and provides automatic failover and point-in-time recovery.checked 30 Sep 2026
- Availability
- Aiven advertises a 99.99% uptime SLA with automatic failover and point-in-time recovery.checked 15 Oct 2026
- Cloud availability
- The product is deployable across major cloud providers, including AWS, Google Cloud, and Azure.checked 30 Sep 2026
- Compliance
- Aiven lists ISO 27001-series, ISAE 3000 SOC 2 Type II, GDPR, CCPA, HIPAA and PCI DSS coverage.checked 15 Oct 2026
- Connection limit
- Default max_connections is 20 on Free, 15 on Developer, 25 on Hobbyist, 100 on Startup/Business/Premium-4 and up to 1,000 on Premium-64 and larger.checked 15 Oct 2026
- Database license
- PostgreSQL itself is open source under the PostgreSQL License, while Aiven provides the managed hosting service.checked 15 Oct 2026
- Developer tooling
- The platform supports its Console, Terraform provider, CLI and Kubernetes Operator through the REST API.checked 15 Oct 2026
- Documentation depth
- The PostgreSQL documentation covers connections, querying, service and database management, scaling, maintenance, high availability, backups, monitoring, integrations and extensions.checked 15 Oct 2026
- Extensions
- The product advertises more than 50 PostgreSQL extensions, including PostGIS, pgvector and TimescaleDB-related options.checked 15 Oct 2026
- Funding
- Aiven announced a $210 million Series D in 2022 at a reported $3 billion pre-money valuation.checked 15 Oct 2026
- Integrations
- PostgreSQL can integrate with Aiven for Grafana for visualization and can send metrics to external endpoints such as Datadog.checked 30 Sep 2026
- Intended users
- Aiven positions the free tier for learning and prototypes, Developer for test and personal projects, Startup for high-performance test environments, and Business for production workloads.checked 30 Sep 2026
- Limit: automation and configuration
- Reviews mention incomplete Terraform feature parity, weak Pulumi support, limited static-IP/configuration customization and automatic upgrades that caused errors for some users.checked 15 Oct 2026
- Limit: observability
- Reviewers report limited monitoring, performance-analysis and optimization tooling, including missing slow-query views in some reviews.checked 15 Oct 2026
The company
- Company founding and headquarters
- Aiven says it was founded in 2016 in Helsinki, Finland, where its headquarters remain.checked 15 Oct 2026
- Company history
- Aiven Oy was founded in 2016 in Helsinki, Finland.checked 30 Sep 2026
- Company size
- Aiven's website states it has more than 400 employees, while LinkedIn lists a 201-500 employee range.checked 15 Oct 2026
- Founded
- 2016checked 23 Sep 2026
- Headquarters
- Helsinki, Finlandchecked 23 Sep 2026
Money
- Free-tier limits
- The free tier is single-node with 1 CPU, 1 GB RAM, and 1 GB storage; it has no integrations or connection pooling and a max_connections limit of 20.checked 30 Sep 2026
- Free-tier restrictions
- The indefinite free tier has one node, 1 CPU, 1 GB RAM and 1 GB disk, with no VPC, static IP, integrations, connection pooling, support or SLA coverage.checked 15 Oct 2026
- Limit: price
- Reviewers repeatedly describe Aiven as expensive compared with hyperscaler-managed PostgreSQL or self-hosting, especially as usage grows.checked 15 Oct 2026
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