--- title: How to copy large Postgres databases in seconds | daily.dev description: Copying large Postgres databases (TB-scale) using traditional methods like pg_dump, physical file copy, or logical replication is slow and resource-intensive.... canonical: https://daily.dev/posts/how-to-copy-large-postgres-databases-in-seconds-0sgborebu twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:site: @dailydotdev og:type: website og:site_name: daily.dev og:title: How to copy large Postgres databases in seconds | daily.dev og:description: Copying large Postgres databases (TB-scale) using traditional methods like pg_dump, physical file copy, or logical replication is slow and resource-intensive.... og:url: https://daily.dev/posts/how-to-copy-large-postgres-databases-in-seconds-0sgborebu og:image: https://api.daily.dev/og/posts/0SgborEbU.png og:image:alt: How to copy large Postgres databases in seconds og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 630 og:locale: en --- > ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://daily.dev/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # How to copy large Postgres databases in seconds **[Neon](https://daily.dev/sources/neontech)** · 3 min read · 0 upvotes · 0 comments ## Summary Copying large Postgres databases (TB-scale) using traditional methods like pg_dump, physical file copy, or logical replication is slow and resource-intensive. Neon offers database branching as an alternative, using copy-on-write to create instant database copies regardless of size. Branches share storage with the parent until data diverges, making them cost-efficient. Use cases include dev/test environments, PR previews, staging, and point-in-time restores. A 1TB+ database can be branched in seconds via the Neon CLI. ## Full article daily.dev links to this article rather than hosting it. Read it at the original source: ## Similar posts on daily.dev - [How to Keep Staging in Sync with Production in Postgres](https://daily.dev/posts/how-to-keep-staging-in-sync-with-production-in-postgres-7vu7hiro2) · Neon · 3 upvotes · 0 comments - [Making large Postgres migrations practical: 1TB in 2 hours with PeerDB](https://daily.dev/posts/making-large-postgres-migrations-practical-1tb-in-2-hours-with-peerdb-nxsverwgf) · ClickHouse · 1 upvotes · 0 comments - [Database Branching in Postgres: Git-Style Workflows with Databricks Lakebase](https://daily.dev/posts/database-branching-in-postgres-git-style-workflows-with-databricks-lakebase-hdnh9bdho) · databricks · 23 upvotes · 0 comments - [Inside branch-based restores in Lakebase Postgres](https://daily.dev/posts/inside-branch-based-restores-in-lakebase-postgres-udhwx0m8z) · Neon · 1 upvotes · 1 comments - [Lakebase Postgres branch-based restores for fast recovery at scale](https://daily.dev/posts/lakebase-postgres-branch-based-restores-for-fast-recovery-at-scale-gvio7wglc) · databricks · 0 upvotes · 0 comments --- Tags: [#postgresql](https://daily.dev/tags/postgresql) [View this post on daily.dev](https://daily.dev/posts/how-to-copy-large-postgres-databases-in-seconds-0sgborebu) ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180},"sameAs":["https://twitter.com/dailydotdev","https://github.com/dailydotdev","https://www.linkedin.com/company/daily-dev-ltd"]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https://daily.dev/#website","url":"https://daily.dev","name":"daily.dev","publisher":{"@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization"},"potentialAction":{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https://daily.dev/search?q={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"TechArticle","headline":"How to copy large Postgres databases in seconds","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/how-to-copy-large-postgres-databases-in-seconds-0sgborebu","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/how-to-copy-large-postgres-databases-in-seconds-0sgborebu"},"datePublished":"2026-07-09T06:57:33.109Z","dateModified":"2026-07-09T06:58:23.820Z","description":"Copying large Postgres databases (TB-scale) using traditional methods like pg_dump, physical file copy, or logical replication is slow and resource-intensive....","image":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/f_auto,q_auto/v1/posts/317532ca6a294a33ca0b2419a3c6e148?_a=AQAEuop","thumbnailUrl":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/f_auto,q_auto/v1/posts/317532ca6a294a33ca0b2419a3c6e148?_a=AQAEuop","isAccessibleForFree":true,"articleSection":"Neon","inLanguage":"en","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180}},"author":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Neon","logo":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/s--65EDghou--/f_auto/v1724339118/logos/neontech","url":"https://daily.dev/sources/neontech"},"commentCount":0,"discussionUrl":"https://daily.dev/posts/how-to-copy-large-postgres-databases-in-seconds-0sgborebu","interactionStatistic":[{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":0},{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"CommentAction"},"userInteractionCount":0}],"keywords":"postgresql","timeRequired":"PT3M"} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https://daily.dev"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Neon","item":"https://daily.dev/sources/neontech"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"How to copy large Postgres databases in seconds"}]} ```