Cookbook recipe

Covering indexes with INCLUDE

Applies to PostgreSQL 13–17 Last reviewed May 2026 Grounded in source

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Estimated investigation4 min

Scenario

A query filters on one column but also needs two more for output. Adding them as INCLUDE columns lets an index-only scan return everything without touching the heap. Diagnose it Add payload columns with INCLUDE, not…

Investigation Path

A query filters on one column but also needs two more for output. Adding them as INCLUDE columns lets an index-only scan return everything without touching the heap.

Diagnose it

Add payload columns with INCLUDE, not to the key:

CREATE INDEX idx_orders_customer
  ON orders (customer_id)
  INCLUDE (status, total);

Why it happens

Key columns affect ordering and uniqueness and bloat the b-tree. INCLUDE columns are stored only in leaf pages as payload, so the index can satisfy the SELECT list without a heap visit while keeping the key narrow.

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Concepts on this page

Visibility map VACUUM Index Bloat Heap
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