In this post, we are going to compare three MySQL administration tools: phpMyAdmin, MySQL Workbench, and TablePlus, with pros and cons of each tool.

1. phpMyAdmin

With a web-based build, phpMyAdmin offers a handy tool to handle the administration of MySQL database in a web browser.

  • Supported platforms: phpMyAdmin is a web-based administration tool, so you can get it run from any platforms with a web browser.

  • Supported Drivers: phpMyAdmin supports MySQL 5.5 and newer.

  • Pricing: phpMyAdmin is free and open source. It’s available on almost every hosting service.

phpMyAdmin

Pros:

  • It’s available right out of the box in most web hosting service providers.
  • It’s portable. It can run on any computer and on any OS as long as it has a web browser installed.
  • Easy installation. You need to have PHP and MySQL installed on your server, extract the files to a specified directory and run the install script.
  • Stable and flexible due to its maturity.
  • Comprehensive management of user accounts and permissions

Cons:

  • It’s web-based, so it runs slow and depends too much on the browser. Sometimes the defaults can cause conflicts with web servers.
  • Confusing and outdated interface. It may take some time to get used to it.
  • No schema visualization
  • Does not have smart code highlighting or auto-completion capabilities.

2. MySQL Workbench

MySQL WorkBench offers a full-featured administration tool for MySQL on multiple operating systems.

  • Supported platforms: MySQL Workbench is cross-platform. It’s available on Mac, Windows, Linux.

  • Supported Drivers: MySQL Workbench supports all versions of MySQL because it’s built by the MySQL at Oracle.

  • Pricing: MySQL Workbench also has a community version which is free and open source. The other two commercial versions for enterprises are subscription based with enterprise features and support.

MySQL Workbench

Pros:

  • It’s cross-platform. In case you work on more than one operating system, you don’t have to use a different tool and the experiences will be consistent.
  • It includes everything a data modeler needs for creating complex ER models
  • It has a Visual Performance Dashboard
  • A complete and easy to use tools for database migration.
  • Ability to cancel long queries without hanging.
  • It provides fast access to server status and other information.
  • It shows multiple result sets.
  • It’s easy to create and edit views, procedures & functions.

Cons:

  • It only supports MySQL and MariaDB. If you work with more database other than MySQL and MariaDB, it’s a huge drawback.
  • The UI is unintuitive. It is packed with a lot of features. It’s definitely not a tool for beginners.
  • It complicated and overkill to perform simple tasks.
  • It’s resource intensive.
  • It crashes a lot too.

3. TablePlus

With a native build and a lightweight size, TablePlus is a very handy tool for managing MySQL and many other databases.

  • Supported platforms: TablePlus is built native for each platform. It started out with a native version for Mac, then another version for Windows, and a version for Linux was introduced recently as an alpha release. It also has an iOS version.

  • Supported Drivers: TablePlus supports a handful of relational databases: MySQL, PostgreSQL, SQLite, Microsoft SQL Server, Amazon Redshift, MariaDB, CockroachDB, Vertica, Oracle; and two popular NoSQL databases: Cassandra and Redis.

  • Pricing: TablePlus has a free version with full set of features which you can download and use forever, but there are some usage limitations. If you use it heavily, the license costs $59 to remove all those limitations.

TablePlus

Pros:

  • Native build for each platform so it’s fast, lightweight, and stable.
  • Clean and simple interface.
  • Multiple drivers support
  • Multiple conditions data filter
  • Queries history and keyword binding favorite.
  • Streaming results and async loading to show queries results faster and doesn’t block the UI.
  • Very quick inline editing for table data and structure, you also can edit query results directly.
  • Smart query editor with highlight syntax, instant autocomplete, SQL reformat.
  • Multiple carets
  • A plugin system to extend the app.
  • Quick support. TablePlus releases new updates regularly and responds to users’ requests almost immediately.

Cons:

It currently lacks of some advanced features such as ER Diagram, database compare tool to Diff and Sync, etc.

4. Conclusion

Go with MySQL Workbench if you:

  • Work with MySQL only
  • Need a tool to get the job done and don’t mind the UI/UX

Go with phpMyAdmin if you:

  • Work with MySQL only
  • Prefer a web app over a desktop app

Go with TablePlus if you:

  • Are a fan of native experience
  • Work with multiple databases
  • Want a modern design with better usability
  • Want quick support & development cycle.