# How to delete a Postgres role

> Fix "role cannot be dropped because some objects depend on it". How to reassign or drop a role's objects and privileges in every database first, and which roles never to drop.

Source: https://supahost.app/kb/delete-role · Updated 2026-11-11

## What you see

```
ERROR:  role "reporting" cannot be dropped because some objects depend on it
DETAIL:  privileges for schema public
privileges for table public.invoices
owner of view public.monthly_revenue
3 objects in database p_app_two
```

## Why it happens

Postgres won't drop a role while anything still refers to it: objects it owns, privileges granted to it, default privileges set for it. The last line matters most: roles belong to the whole Postgres server, not to one database, so the role can own objects or hold grants in databases other than the one you're connected to. `DROP ROLE` checks all of them.

## How to fix it

1. **Check you have the right role.** Never drop roles the stack depends on: `postgres`, `anon`, `authenticated`, `service_role`, `authenticator`, `pgbouncer`, `dashboard_user`, anything starting with `supabase_` or `pgsodium`, and `sh_readonly`. Dropping one of these breaks the API, Auth, Storage or the dashboard.

2. **See what the role owns** in the current database:

```sql
select n.nspname as schema, c.relname as name, c.relkind as kind
from pg_class c
join pg_namespace n on n.oid = c.relnamespace
where c.relowner = 'reporting'::regrole;
```

3. **Move or remove its objects and privileges.** In each database the error mentions, run:

```sql
-- hand anything it owns to postgres (keeps your tables and views)
reassign owned by reporting to postgres;

-- remove its remaining privileges and default privileges here
drop owned by reporting;
```

`reassign owned` comes first on purpose. `drop owned` on its own also *drops* every object the role owns, which is rarely what you want for tables.

4. **Drop the role:**

```sql
drop role reporting;
```

If the error still lists objects "in database p_something", repeat step 3 in that database.

## Common snags

- **"permission denied to reassign objects" / "must be able to SET ROLE"**: the role you're connected as needs to be a member of, or have admin rights on, the role being dropped. Usually the role that created it has this.
- **Active sessions**: an app still connected with the role keeps working until it disconnects. Stop it first, or you may see confusing errors later.
- **Default privileges**: `alter default privileges ... to reporting` entries also block the drop. `drop owned` clears them in the current database.

## On SupaHost

- All projects on an instance share one Postgres server, and each project is a database named `p_<name>` (for example `p_app_two`). A role you create in one project's SQL editor exists in every project on the instance, which is why the error can point at another project's database.
- To run step 3 in another project, open that project's Studio (*Dashboard → that project → **Database** tab → Open Studio*) and use its SQL editor. On Business you can also use `sudo supahost-psql app-two` over SSH.
- The built-in roles are shared too, so a change to `anon` or `authenticated` (dropping, renaming, altering) affects every project on the instance.

## Related

- [Roles and permissions](/docs/database/roles)
- ["permission denied for table" (42501) errors](/kb/permission-denied-42501)
- [How to revoke execute on a Postgres function](/kb/revoke-function-execute)