Reliable Roots, Realtime Reach
Postgres is a proven database, trusted for decades to store and query data. It has powered countless applications and is supported by a broad extension ecosystem.
Modern applications, however, need more than storage and queries. They demand realtime updates, shared state, and seamless collaboration. Postgres can approximate these needs with Kafka, Redis, or polling, but only at the cost of added complexity.
Spacetime takes a different approach. It combines database, sync engine, and application runtime in a single system. Developers get ACID-compliant transactions and schema-driven data integrity like Postgres, but optimized from the ground up for the realtime era.
LLMs Build It Better on Spacetime
We had Claude build the same chat app on both stacks. Postgres shipped with 3.5× more bugs and cost 40% more.
Key Differences
Realtime Built-In
Spacetime streams changes to clients automatically, eliminating the need for polling, external messaging systems, or caches. Applications stay in sync without additional layers, reducing both latency and complexity.
Postgres can approximate realtime through LISTEN/NOTIFY, logical replication, or external systems like Kafka. These solutions work, but they add operational overhead and slow down the path to responsive, collaborative applications.
Application Logic Next to Data
In Spacetime, application logic runs as reducers inside the engine, ensuring consistent state transitions and predictable low latency.
Postgres supports stored procedures, but in practice most application logic runs in external services, introducing network hops and the risk of mismatched state.
Always-Fresh Queries
With subscription queries, Spacetime keeps client caches automatically updated as state changes, so data stays fresh without extra work.
Postgres queries return static results. To keep applications current, developers often rely on polling, caching, or messaging systems layered on top.
Performance Model
Spacetime keeps state in memory with durability ensured by a write-ahead log. Data and logic share the same engine, and mirrored client caches deliver fast, consistent responses at scale.
Postgres is a highly optimized general-purpose database, but achieving interactive performance typically requires additional indexes, caching layers, and careful tuning.
Ecosystem Focus
Spacetime provides SDKs for TypeScript, Rust, and C#, giving developers the tools to build realtime, stateful applications with less infrastructure.
Postgres offers a vast extension ecosystem that adds flexibility and has kept it a popular choice for many traditional workloads.
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Spacetime | Postgres |
|---|---|---|
| ACID transactions with relational tables | ✓ | ✓ |
| Built-in realtime sync | ✓ | ✗ |
| Application logic inside the engine | Normal server code | Stored procedures |
| Auto-updating subscription queries | ✓ | ✗ |
| SDKs for realtime apps | ✓ | ✗ |
| Type Safe APIs & Table Access | ✓ | ✗ |
| In-memory with client mirroring | ✓ | ✗ |
| Interactive performance without extra caches | ✓ | ✗ |
Why Choose Spacetime? Build fast, interactive, multiplayer apps effortlessly, free from the complexity of external tools like Kafka or Redis. Get started with Spacetime →