TablePlus and TableStudio are both native Mac database clients with one-time pricing, and both have an MCP server for coding agents. Choose TablePlus if you need engines like Redis, MongoDB, Oracle or Snowflake, or a Windows or Linux app. Choose TableStudio if Claude Code, Codex or Cursor changes data in your databases, not just reads it, or you want local servers, sandboxes and Postgres tuning in the same app.
Built for agents that change your data, not just read it
TablePlus's MCP server lets an agent query your saved connections, and can ask you to approve each query that changes data. That's a yes or no on raw SQL, decided on the spot. TableStudio gives you more to decide with, and a way back:
- A dry run first. The agent runs the write against the real rows and rolls it back, so you see "would delete 48,213 rows" before anything happens.
- A review, not a dialog. On production the change is staged as a migration with its reason, SQL and the rows it touches, and you apply it with Touch ID when you're ready.
- Undo for one change. The rows an agent touches are saved first, foreign-key cascades included, so a bad change comes back without a restore.
- No loosening its own leash. Tagging production as development or turning off read-only becomes a request only your Touch ID can grant.
- The terminal is covered too. The plugin stops
psql,mysqland 17 migration and seed tools from writing to production behind the MCP server's back.
At a glance
| TableStudio | TablePlus | |
|---|---|---|
| Platforms | Mac (macOS 15+), iPhone and iPad on the way | Mac (macOS 12+), Windows, Linux, iOS |
| Engines | 8 | 20+, including NoSQL and warehouses |
| Price | $49 once, one Mac | $99 one device, $129 two devices |
| Updates | For life | 1 year, renewable |
| Free trial | 7 days, every feature | No time limit; 2 tabs, 2 windows, 2 advanced filters |
| MCP server | Yes, plus a free plugin with skills for Claude Code, Codex, Cursor and OpenCode | Yes, with one-click setup for Claude Code, Codex and others |
| Agent permissions | Per database: Off, Structure only, Read, Read & write | Per token: Read Only, Read & Write, Full Access; limited to chosen connections |
| Agent reads | Read-only in the database, 30-second limit | execute_read_query runs read-only statements; queries up to 300 seconds |
| Agent writes to production | Staged as a migration for your review, applied with Touch ID | Optional approval dialog per query, or the connection's safe mode prompt |
| Dry run with the real rows affected | Yes | No |
| Undo one AI change | Yes, rows saved first, foreign-key cascades included | No |
| Log of agent activity | Agent Center, per conversation | Integrations Activity, per request, exportable to CSV |
Blocks psql and migration tools writing to production | Yes, the plugin's shell guard | No |
| Local servers and sandboxes | Yes | No |
| Query Insights, index advisor | Yes (index advisor on PostgreSQL) | No |
| Health and schema checks | 96 health, 67 schema | No |
| Backups | Native dumps to Mac or S3, restore points | Sync Database (replaced Backup and Restore in October 2026) |
Where TablePlus is stronger
- Breadth. TablePlus covers far more engines, including Redis, MongoDB, Oracle, Snowflake, BigQuery and DuckDB, and runs on Windows and Linux.
- A mature, fast editor that many developers have used for years, now with a native ER diagram, custom themes and JSON and tree views.
- Fine-grained MCP tokens. Each token can be scoped to a permission level and to chosen connections and groups, and remote clients can connect over TLS.
Where TableStudio is different
Agents that change data, safely. An approval dialog asks "allow this query?" TableStudio answers the questions behind it first. Before a write runs, the agent can dry-run it against the real rows and report exactly what it would change. On production the change doesn't run at all. It's staged as a migration with its reason and SQL, and you apply it with Touch ID. Before any agent change, the rows it touches are saved, so you can undo that one change later.
Guardrails outside MCP too. An agent that can't get what it wants through MCP will often reach for psql and the URL in your .env. TableStudio's plugin stops psql, mysql and 17 migration and seed tools, like Prisma, Drizzle and Rails, from writing to production from the terminal.
It runs and tunes your databases. Start, stop and create Postgres, MySQL, ClickHouse and CockroachDB servers on your Mac, make throwaway sandbox copies, see what each database spends its time on with Query Insights, and on PostgreSQL find missing indexes with the Index Advisor.
Updates for life. $49 once, with no yearly renewal.
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