pgvecto.rs
PostgreSQL vector search can use pgvecto.rs, an extension described as scalable and low latency.
About pgvecto.rs
pgvecto.rs is a PostgreSQL extension that provides vector similarity search functions. It adds a vector(n) data type, distance operators for squared Euclidean, negative dot product and cosine distance, filtering for vector search with relational queries, and binary, FP16 and INT8 vector types. It is written in Rust using pgrx and can be run from a Docker image and enabled with CREATE EXTENSION vectors.
Dimensions are limited to 1 to 65535, and an index cannot be created when stored values do not match the column dimension. Write-ahead logging covers data while index support is still in progress. The repository notes a newer implementation, VectorChord, and encourages migration to it.
Key features
- Vector similarity search functions inside PostgreSQL via extension
- vector(n) data type for n-dimensional vectors up to 65535 dimensions
- Distance operators for squared Euclidean, dot product, cosine distance
- Filtering with relational queries via VBASE method
- Additional binary, FP16, and INT8 vector data types
- Docker image for setup with PostgreSQL 17 example
Best for: PostgreSQL users who need to store vectors and run similarity queries with SQL filtering.
Good for
- Supports vectors up to 65535 dimensions
- Includes binary, FP16, and INT8 vector data types
- Supports filtering for vector search combined with relational queries
Watch out for
- Write-ahead logging for indexes is still in progress
- Indexes cannot be created when values do not match the column dimension
- Maintainers encourage users to migrate to VectorChord
pgvecto.rs at a glance
- Category
- Development › APIs & Databases
- Type
- Open-source project
- Pricing
- Not confirmed. Check the site
- Open source
- Yes · Source code
- Language
- English
- Last checked
- Oct 6, 2026 · Online when checked
- Listed
- Oct 5, 2026
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pgvecto.rs FAQ
How do I enable pgvecto.rs in PostgreSQL?
Run DROP EXTENSION IF EXISTS vectors; followed by CREATE EXTENSION vectors;
How do I start a test instance with Docker?
Run docker run --name pgvecto-rs-demo -e POSTGRES_PASSWORD=mysecretpassword -p 5432:5432 -d ghcr.io/tensorchord/pgvecto-rs:pg17-v0.4.0, then connect with psql -h localhost -p 5432 -U postgres.
Which distance operators are available?
for squared Euclidean distance, for negative dot product, and for cosine distance.
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