What is psqlODBC?

PostgreSQL ODBC driver for Windows — psqlODBC

psqlODBC is the official ODBC driver for PostgreSQL. It allows Windows applications that use the ODBC API — such as Microsoft Excel, Access, Power BI, Tableau, and ODBC-capable programming languages — to connect to a PostgreSQL database. It is available in both x64 (64-bit) and x86 (32-bit) versions.

Choose the right version

x64 vs x86 — which to install?

Scenario	Install
64-bit applications (Excel 64-bit, Power BI, most modern apps)	psqlODBC x64
32-bit applications (older Excel, Access 32-bit, legacy apps)	psqlODBC x86
Both 32-bit and 64-bit apps on the same machine	Install both x64 and x86
Unsure which your app uses	Check Task Manager → Details → if app name shows *32, it is 32-bit

You can install both x64 and x86 versions side by side on Windows without conflict. They appear separately in ODBC Data Source Administrator.

Installation

Download and install psqlODBC

1
Download from the official source
Get psqlODBC from postgresql.org/ftp/odbc/versions/msi/. Download the latest psqlodbc_xx_xx_xxxx-x64.zip for 64-bit or psqlodbc_xx_xx_xxxx-x86.zip for 32-bit.
2
Run the MSI installer
Extract the ZIP and run the MSI file as Administrator. Follow the simple wizard — no configuration is needed during install.
3
Open ODBC Data Source Administrator
Press Win+S → search ODBC. Open ODBC Data Sources (64-bit) for x64 or ODBC Data Sources (32-bit) for x86.
4
Add a new DSN
Click Add → select PostgreSQL Unicode (or PostgreSQL ANSI for legacy apps) → fill in the connection details:

DSN configuration fields
Data Source: MyPostgresDB
Database: mydbname
Server: localhost (or server IP)
Port: 5432
User Name: postgres
Password: your_password
5
Test the connection
Click Test in the DSN setup dialog. You should see Connection successful. Click Save.

DSN types

System DSN vs User DSN vs File DSN

DSN Type	Available to	Use when
User DSN	Current user only	Personal use, development
System DSN	All users and services	Shared apps, Windows services, IIS
File DSN	Any machine with the driver	Portable connection, shared configs

FAQ

ODBC driver questions

PostgreSQL ODBC driver not showing in ODBC administrator

Make sure you are opening the correct bitness of ODBC administrator. The 64-bit administrator is at C:\Windows\System32\odbcad32.exe and the 32-bit one is at C:\Windows\SysWOW64\odbcad32.exe. A 64-bit driver only appears in the 64-bit administrator.

Unicode vs ANSI driver — which to use?

Use PostgreSQL Unicode for all modern applications. Unicode supports all character sets and locales. Use ANSI only for very old legacy applications that do not support Unicode.

Connection test fails with "could not connect to server"

Check: (1) PostgreSQL service is running, (2) firewall allows port 5432, (3) pg_hba.conf allows connections from your client IP. For local connections the server should be localhost or 127.0.0.1.

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