SurrealDB is making the case that its multi-model database and SurrealQL query language solve PostgreSQL's complexity around joins and schema rigidity. The pitch: combine relational and NoSQL features, skip foreign keys, deploy serverless. The reality is more nuanced.
The numbers tell a story
A 2023 developer survey shows PostgreSQL at 79.7% awareness with 72% willing to use it on new projects. SurrealDB: 12.8% awareness, 29% willing to try. That gap reflects PostgreSQL's three-decade production track record versus SurrealDB's emerging status.
Benchmarks are mixed. SurrealDB shows 79 OPS on creates (competitive) but 57-second delete times versus PostgreSQL's 25 seconds. Fast enough for some workloads, a red flag for others.
Where SurrealDB makes sense
The schemaless approach and HTTP-native API suit specific cloud-native patterns: rapid prototyping, graph-heavy applications, embedded databases in edge deployments. The CREATE CONTENT syntax is genuinely simpler than PostgreSQL's foreign key dance for certain schemas.
The e-commerce example in SurrealDB's materials shows this well - direct relationships without junction tables, array operations without JSON wrangling. For teams building product catalogs with heavy nesting, that's a productivity win.
The trade-offs matter
PostgreSQL's perceived complexity is also its strength: mature tooling, battle-tested ACID compliance, extensive integration ecosystem, and predictable scaling patterns. Every CIO has PostgreSQL experts on staff or available to hire.
SurrealDB's multi-model promise means learning new patterns for transactions, replication, and security. Their permissions model differs from PostgreSQL's row-level security - not necessarily better or worse, but different. That's a migration cost.
What to watch
If you're building graph-heavy applications or need embedded databases for edge computing, SurrealDB is worth a proof-of-concept. The query language improvements are real for specific use cases.
For core transactional systems, data warehouse integration, or anything requiring extensive third-party tooling, PostgreSQL remains the safe choice. The 72% vs 29% new project preference exists for reasons.
The pattern here is familiar: specialized database solves specific problems well, struggles to replace general-purpose incumbent. SurrealDB needs more production deployments at scale before enterprise teams bet core systems on it. We'll see.