Extensions

Postgres · Reference cheat sheet

📋 Overview

Extensions add types, functions, and index methods packaged with Postgres or from contrib/third parties. Enable per database with CREATE EXTENSION.

🔧 Core concepts

💡 Examples

Enable trigram:

CREATE EXTENSION IF NOT EXISTS pg_trgm;
CREATE INDEX users_name_trgm ON users USING GIN (name gin_trgm_ops);

List:

\dx

SELECT * FROM pg_available_extensions ORDER BY name;

UUID:

CREATE EXTENSION IF NOT EXISTS pgcrypto;
SELECT gen_random_uuid();

⚠️ Pitfalls

• Extension availability differs on managed hosts — check provider allowlists.
• Dump/restore may require extensions created before data load.
• Superuser is often required to create extensions.

🔗 Related

• indexes.md
• json_jsonb.md
• roles_privileges.md
• getting_started.md