PostgreSQL stores statistics about tables in the system table called pg_class. The query planner accesses this table for every query. These statistics may only be updated using the analyze command. If the analyze command is not run often, the statistics in this table may not be accurate and the query planner may make poor decisions which can degrade system performance. Another strategy is for the query planner to generate these statistics for each query (including selects, inserts, updates, and deletes). This approach would allow the query planner to have the most up-to-date statistics possible.

Why postgres always rely on pg_class instead?