It's doesn't have the featureset as PHPMyAdmin but it has a huge advantage in that it's a single PHP file you can upload, make the necessary changes, and then delete. If you're interested in maintaining a secure server but you don't have any better options than using a script, then it's better to upload something when you need it than trying to secure an online admin tool.
The days of painfully slow FTP servers are long gone where "it's one file" would count as advantage.
This leaves a massively worse UX and featureset.
(We are using adminer for postgresql databases, because there's no better alternative, and it makes me wish phpmyadmin supported postgres every time I have to use it.)
My favorite feature is generally the graphical database relation view. Without it i am something like 500% less effective.
The profiler (visual explain) of queries in MySQL workbench is a godsend.
Also, for general querying and table layout lookup in OSX (macOS, whatever) I recommend Sequel Pro. It has a slightly better UI when working with multiple databases (easier to switch).
Workbench - Massively unstable on linux. (Although I do like the visualizing tools assuming I'm willing to put up with it crashing every hour or so).
It seems like a really bad idea to place a web-based database tool on a public-facing host when technology exists to route MySQL through SSH.
Even shared hosts support SSH these days. If yours doesn't, maybe it's time to find another shared host!
I seem to remember installing it on my own workstation, setting up the ssh tunnel and then pointing PHPMA to localhost.
It's not my favorite tool and I've avoided it due to security concerns but I've set it up for others as described and I recall it worked fine. Like I said though it's been a while and I'm fuzzy on the details.
For us it sees plenty of use with poorly developed legacy software (e.g. Wordpress).