CAPYSQUASH: CLI or Platform

Use CAPYSQUASH your way: free CLI for solo devs or Platform for teams.

THE OPEN CORE MODEL

CAPYSQUASH gives you flexibility. Start with the free capysquash-cli for local development, or use the CAPYSQUASH Platform for team collaboration and visual workflows. Same powerful technology underneath.

FEATURE COMPARISON

WHEN TO USE capysquash-cli

# Quick local squash
pgsquash analyze migrations/
pgsquash squash migrations/ --safety standard

# CI/CD pipeline
pgsquash squash migrations/ --output clean/ --quiet
pgsquash validate migrations/ clean/

# Development with AI analysis
export ANTHROPIC_API_KEY="..."
pgsquash analyze-deep migrations/

WHEN TO USE CAPYSQUASH

PERSONA-DRIVEN DECISION GUIDE

The "Vibe Coder" / Indie Hacker

Your Pain: Project is getting slow and messy after months of prototyping.

Use pgsquash-engine if:

• You love terminal workflows
• You want local-first simplicity
• You're comfortable with command-line tools

Use CAPYSQUASH if:

• You prefer web interfaces over terminals
• You want automatic GitHub PR analysis
• You want to track optimization history visually
• You're planning to collaborate with co-founders

Recommendation: Choose based on interface preference, not team size.

The Startup Generalist / Founding Engineer

Your Pain: Need to move fast, track changes, and prepare for team growth.

Use pgsquash-engine if:

• You're deeply technical and CLI-native
• You prefer scripting everything
• Budget is extremely tight

Use CAPYSQUASH if:

• You want web-based workflow
• You need GitHub automation for PRs
• You want to track migration health over time
• You're onboarding non-technical stakeholders
• Team is growing or will grow soon

Recommendation: CAPYSQUASH for velocity and visibility, even solo.

💼 The Agency Developer

Your Pain: Wasting non-billable hours, need professional deliverables.

Use pgsquash-engine if:

• Managing 1-2 clients
• Very price-sensitive
• Comfortable with manual processes

Use CAPYSQUASH if:

• Managing 3+ client projects
• Need professional reporting
• Want white-label branding
• Billing hours for migration cleanup
• Want multi-project dashboard

Recommendation: CAPYSQUASH (Agency plan) for efficiency and professionalism.

The Backend Specialist / "Closet DBA"

Your Pain: Technical sloppiness, redundant SQL, loss of control.

Use pgsquash-engine if:

• You want maximum control
• You prefer local-first tools
• You're fine with manual workflows
• You want to understand every detail

Use CAPYSQUASH if:

• You need to collaborate with frontend devs
• You want API access for custom tooling
• You need audit trails for compliance
• You want to prove ROI to management

Recommendation: Start with pgsquash-engine, add CAPYSQUASH when you need collaboration/automation.

MIGRATION PATH

You can always start with one and add the other later:

pgsquash-engine → CAPYSQUASH

CAPYSQUASH → pgsquash-engine

PRICING COMPARISON

QUICK DECISION MATRIX

Choose pgsquash-engine if:

• ☑ You prefer terminal-based workflows
• ☑ You want local-first, offline-capable tools
• ☑ You're comfortable with shell scripts
• ☑ You don't need web UI or automation
• ☑ You're on a tight budget

Choose CAPYSQUASH if:

• ☑ You prefer web interfaces over terminals
• ☑ You want automatic GitHub PR analysis
• ☑ You need project history and analytics
• ☑ You want beautiful dashboards
• ☑ You manage multiple projects
• ☑ You're working with a team (or planning to)

Use Both if:

• ☑ You want the best of both worlds
• ☑ pgsquash-engine for local dev, CAPYSQUASH for production
• ☑ Different workflows for different contexts
• ☑ Maximum flexibility

NEXT STEPS

Ready to start with capysquash-cli?

• Install capysquash-cli
• CLI Commands Reference
• Quick Start Guide

Ready to try CAPYSQUASH?

• Sign up for free
• CAPYSQUASH Overview
• Team Setup Guide

Still not sure?

• Join our Discord
• Check out the GitHub repo
• Read the blog