I've been using Sequel Pro for a few years for all my database needs. But lately my relation with Sequel Pro got troubled. This is due to a nasty bug in the latest version: If you close a tab, the program crashes. You can download a nightly build, but i still had weird problems.
Cons:
- filterbar gone (huh?)
- switching monitors messes everything up, the menu becomes huge.— Michiel Gerritsen (@mbdgerritsen) December 17, 2018
So i decided to look for another program. I finally settled on TablePlus as i liked i during the trial. Here is my comparison of the 2.
tl;dr
Pros:
Regular updates (The last release of Sequel Pro is from 2016 😧).
Shortcuts: Command + P to open any database and/or table.
Lock connections: Get a warning when you change something of force yourself to enter your password before continuing.
You get to stage changes: Delete rows for deletion, but only commit this after entering a Cmd + S.
Support multiple database types (Mysql 5 and 8, Redis, SQLite, PostreSQL and more).
Table autocomplete
Changing table structure... actually works!
Cons:
Exporting and importing is meh. For example: When importing a file of 100mb, it only updates the process every table i think. With Sequel Pro you see a constant progress.
I can't import gz files, you have to unpack them first. (since 20 januari you can)
No process viewer which auto updates. Great to view what's going on on your server.
You can't stop imports or queries.
Overall review
So i've been using TablePlus for well over a month now, and i'm liking it more and more. The only thing i'm missing from Sequel Pro is the processlist which automatically updates. I still can view them by running show full processlist; in an sql window, but it doesn't auto refresh. Just Cmd + Enter when i need to update the result.
Plus for well over a month now, and i'm liking it more and more. The only thing i'm missing from Sequel Pro is the processlist which automatically updates. I still can view them by running show full processlist; in an sql window, but it doesn't auto refresh. Just Cmd + Enter when i need to update the result.
So first go over the cons.
Con: Exporting and importing
Here is a lot of room for improvements, but with every update it feels like this part is improved. For example: Importing and export .gz files was not supported, but is now. Also: it was not possible to change the exported file name, but now is.
But it still can be way better. When you export the default format is .csv, which is a bit weird. Also in Sequel Pro the export is more grannular, you can choose per table if you want the structure, data or both.
Con: You can't stop imports or queries.
Actually you can, but when running a big import it takes some time before it actually finishes. The same goes for running a long query: It feels like when you cancel a running query it only actually stops the query when it's finished.
Pro: Regular updates
If the program is good it doesn't need much updates, but the last release of Sequel Pro contains a nasty bug which an update can easily fix. That said: TablePlus updates pretty quick, which i think is awesome.
Pro: Command + P to open any database and/or table
You can switch to the correct database and/or table using Cmd + P.
Pro: Lock connections
This is a feature that i was missing in Sequel Pro. You can lock a connection so you can't make changes to your production environment on accident. There are 2 modes:
Enter a password before changing anything.
Get a notification.
Pro: Stage changes
When you delete or change a row, truncate a table, etc, the change is staged. It is not yet sent to the server, only when you commit everything with Cmd + S. This takes some time to get used to, but i actually like it. I also like that you can delete data using shortcuts, something i was missing in Sequel Pro.
Pro: Multiple database types support
This is also a big pro: I can check what is happening in Redis. I looked for a Sequel Pro/PhpMyadmin for Redis before. There is phpRedisAdmin, but it doesn't work over SSH for example. TablePlus has support for: PostgreSQL - MySQL - Microsoft SQL Server - Cassandra - Snowflake - Redis - SQLite - Oracle - Cockroach - Vertica.
Big pro: Autocomplete
Sequel Pro has also autcomplete, but that's too slow. TablePlus has an almost instant autcomplete which works great.
Pro/Con: Pricing
I'm happy to pay for tools i use everyday. If there was a paid version of Sequel Pro i would have purchased it in a heart beat. TablePlus is quite affordable though: $ 50 dollar for a lifetime license with a year of upgrades. That's fine for me, but i can image that that's a bit too steep for people.
Conclusion
Sequel Pro was super great when i discovered it, it worked so much better than PhpMyAdmin which i used before. I have used it a lot the last few years, but due to the more recent bugs i decided to switch to TablePlus. And the experience is great, so i decided to don't look back and only move on.
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