Adminer Looks Like 2005
Adminer works, but the UI is painful. No dark mode, no AI, no modern features. Just a PHP script from another era.
Adminer is ugly. pgAdmin is heavy. QueryGlow is the modern, lightweight container that completes your dev stack—with AI, Safe Mode, and beautiful UI.
You've got a beautiful containerized stack... and then Adminer from 2005.
Adminer works, but the UI is painful. No dark mode, no AI, no modern features. Just a PHP script from another era.
pgAdmin in Docker consumes 1-2GB of RAM. Your laptop fan spins up. Your other containers starve for resources.
Need to switch between Postgres and MySQL? You need two different tools. QueryGlow handles 6 databases in one UI.
Run DROP TABLE in Adminer? It just... runs it. QueryGlow has Safe Mode that blocks destructive queries.
Clone, add to compose, build, done.
services:
# Your existing database
postgres:
image: postgres:16
environment:
POSTGRES_PASSWORD: ${DB_PASSWORD}
volumes:
- postgres-data:/var/lib/postgresql/data
# Add QueryGlow - the modern GUI
queryglow:
build: ./queryglow # Path to cloned repo
ports:
- "3000:3000"
environment:
- SESSION_SECRET=${SESSION_SECRET}
- DATA_DIR=/app/data
volumes:
- queryglow-data:/app/data
depends_on:
- postgres
volumes:
postgres-data:
queryglow-data:Step 1
git clone queryglow
Step 2
Add to docker-compose.yml
Step 3
docker compose up --build
| Feature | Adminer | pgAdmin | QueryGlow |
|---|---|---|---|
| UI Design | Early 2000s PHP | Functional but dated | Modern, Supabase-grade ✨ |
| Memory Usage | ~50MB ✓ | 1-2GB | 512MB-1GB ✨ |
| Database Support | Many databases ✓ | PostgreSQL only | 6 databases ✨ |
| AI SQL Generation | None | None | OpenAI, Claude, Gemini ✨ |
| Safe Mode | None | None | Blocks DROP, limits queries ✨ |
| Dark Mode | No | Yes | Yes ✨ |
| SSH Tunnels | No (needs external) | Yes | Yes (paste private key) ✨ |
| CSV Import | Basic | Yes | INSERT/UPSERT/REPLACE ✨ |
| Credential Encryption | None | Optional | AES-256-GCM always ✨ |
| Price | Free ✓ | Free ✓ | $79 once |
Adminer
Early 2000s PHP
pgAdmin
Functional but dated
QueryGlow
Modern, Supabase-grade ✨
Adminer
~50MB ✓
pgAdmin
1-2GB
QueryGlow
512MB-1GB ✨
Adminer
Many databases ✓
pgAdmin
PostgreSQL only
QueryGlow
6 databases ✨
Adminer
None
pgAdmin
None
QueryGlow
OpenAI, Claude, Gemini ✨
Adminer
None
pgAdmin
None
QueryGlow
Blocks DROP, limits queries ✨
Adminer
No
pgAdmin
Yes
QueryGlow
Yes ✨
Adminer
No (needs external)
pgAdmin
Yes
QueryGlow
Yes (paste private key) ✨
Adminer
Basic
pgAdmin
Yes
QueryGlow
INSERT/UPSERT/REPLACE ✨
Adminer
None
pgAdmin
Optional
QueryGlow
AES-256-GCM always ✨
Adminer
Free ✓
pgAdmin
Free ✓
QueryGlow
$79 once
Honest note: Adminer and pgAdmin are free. QueryGlow is $79. If you just need basic access and don't care about UI, Safe Mode, or AI—the free tools work fine. QueryGlow is for developers who value a great experience.
512MB RAM minimum. No Java, no bloat. Starts instantly. Your laptop fan stays quiet.
Connect to other containers by service name. Use host.docker.internal for host databases.
Run dev, staging, and production on the same server. Deploy script auto-finds available ports.
Describe what you want in English. Get working SQL. Supports OpenAI, Claude, and Gemini.
Blocks DROP DATABASE, prevents DELETE without WHERE, auto-limits SELECT. On by default.
All saved connections encrypted with AES-256-GCM. Even if someone reads your volume, passwords are safe.
Use the Docker service name as the hostname.
Host: postgresPort: 5432For databases running on your host machine (not in Docker).
Host: host.docker.internalPort: 5432$79 once. Beautiful UI. AI-powered. Safe Mode included.