JSONB is PostgreSQL's superpower. It's also a foot-gun. Learn the GIN indexing strategies, query patterns, and performance cliffs before you deploy.

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A comprehensive guide to PostgreSQL JSONB performance covering when to use JSONB vs normalized columns, the differences between JSON and JSONB storage, all major indexing strategies (GIN with jsonb_ops, GIN with jsonb_path_ops, and B-tree expression indexes), and a reproducible benchmark on 1 million rows. Key findings: GIN indexes do not accelerate ->> extraction queries (the most common misconception), B-tree expression indexes are ~6x smaller than GIN and 3,500x faster for targeted key lookups, and jsonb_path_ops produces indexes ~37% smaller than default GIN for containment-only workloads. Includes a decision framework for choosing the right strategy, common mistakes like missing type casts on expression indexes, and guidance on when to promote JSONB fields to typed columns.

PostgreSQL JSONB Performance Guide: Indexing & Query Optimization

JSONB: The Best Feature You're Probably Misusing

JSON vs JSONB: What's Actually Different Under the Hood

When to Avoid JSONB (And What to Do Instead)

JSONB Operators and Query Patterns You Need to Know

Benchmark Comparison: GIN vs B-tree vs Sequential Scan

A Decision Framework: Choosing Your JSONB Strategy