Always-on clusters can now be created on PostgreSQL 18, alongside 17 and 16. It is the version pre-selected on the create form, so a new cluster gets it unless you pick another.
Scales-to-zero databases have offered 18 since it was released; this brings the always-on line level with them.
Nothing changes for a cluster you already have
The major version is fixed for the life of a cluster, so existing databases keep running exactly the version they were created on. Nothing is upgraded underneath you, and no restart is involved.
That also means there is no in-place move to 18. Going from 16 or 17 to 18 is a dump and restore into a new cluster, at a moment you choose — the same as it has always been.
Picking a version
- 18 is the default, and the right choice for a new application.
- 17 and 16 stay on the menu, and stay the right choice when a framework, driver or extension you depend on has not caught up yet.
Sizes, prices and the included disk are unchanged: still $5 for the 512 MB development cluster, $10 for 1 GB and $19 for 2 GB, in Stockholm.
Read the databases guide for how always-on clusters are sized and billed.