database connection pooling: overkill or essential?

hey everyone, ive been thinking a lot about database performance lately, espcially with our recent growth. weve been managing database connections on a per-request basis, opening and closing them each time. it works, but it feels inefficient. ive been reading about connection pooling and how it can reduce latency by reusing established connections. but, im wondering if its always necessary. for smaller applications or services with low traffic, could the added complexity of a connection pool outweigh the benefits? what are your experiences? when did you find connection pooling to be a real help, and when was it perhaps more overhead than it was worth?