By Louise de Leyritz from Castor (www.castordoc.com)
As data proliferates in modern organizations, and as more people work with data in their day-to-day operations, it has become crucial to facilitate access to data assets. SQL is the programming language used by the most popular database servers worldwide, and SQL editors are the interfaces that provide access to the data. Thus, democratizing access to data is synonym with making SQL accessible to a wide range of people.
This explains the recent explosion in the past few years of SQL editors. This new trend is not going to stop, and we'd rather bring visibility and structure soon.
At Castor, we believe the first step to structure the SQL editors tools market, is more transparency. For that reason, we put up a list of all the SQL IDEs we heard of. More context on this analysis and the state of the SQL clients ecosystem here.
Get started on SQL Editors
Deeper dive into SQL Editors
Productivity
Multi-platform: Does the tool provide an interface through which multiple platforms can be queried?
Execute Multiple Queries: Run all queries in the editor at the same time and get the results in an organized format.
Autocomplete: Autocomplete is a search feature, where the editor predicts the user's query and proposes suggestions as the user types their query. The user can select the autocomplete suggestions matching his use case without having to manually type the full query.
Query corrector: Detects potential mistakes in your code and suggests better options to correct them in one click.
Schedule recurring queries: Automate recurring queries, and get updated results just when you need them. You can also schedule refreshes of your dashboards.
Drag-and-drop query: drag-and-drop cells to build SQL queries without coding.
Query parameters: Parameterize your SQL queries and let users set values of interest via simple UI elements - no need to manipulate code.
Query referencing: Possibility to reference other cells and queries - even across notebooks - to build up your analysis.
Collaboration
Integration with slack: Push query results to your team via slack
Version history: The solution provides access to all the past versions of a query.
Query link to share a query: Share your query, project, or notebook with a link, instead of copying and pasting queries.
Frequently used queries: The solution provides access to frequently used queries
Visualization
Visualization: The tool has a built-in visualization layer. Upon query execution, the tool automatically picks the best possible chart to visualize your results. This saves you from having to learn a plotting library.
Automatic Data Visualization. One of the most convenient things about PopSQL is that upon query execution, it automatically picks the best possible chart to visualize your results. This makes it easier to digest information and also saves you from having to visualize the data on your own.
Diff viewer: the solution allows you to compare two queries, with a highlight of their difference
| Name | Website | Tool category | Deployment | Price | Features | Collaboration | Reporting | System availability | Databases connections |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Husprey | Modern editor | SaaS | 40/user/month | Share query/project link | Visualization | ||||
Count | SQL notebook | SaaS | $29/user/month | Query referencingQuery parametersDrag and drop queryAutocompleteError highlightingCSV downloads | Version controlShare query/project linkComment | Visualization | Any | BigQuerySnowflakePostgreSQLRedshiftMySQLSQL serverAzure Synapse | |
PopSQL | Modern editorSQL notebook | SaaS | From $199/month | VisualizationSchema annotationTable popularitySearchAutocompleteError highlightingQuery correctionMulti-platformQuery parameters | Share query/project linkSlack integrationCommentVersion controlQuery library | VisualizationDashboardsScheduled queries | Any | SnowflakeRedshiftBigQueryPostgreSQLSQL serverPrestoPanoplyOracleCassandraSQLiteMongoDBClickhouseAmazon Athena | |
Deepnote | SQL notebookPython notebookModern editor | SaaS | Free | Share query linkVisualizationSearchAutocompleteQuery parametersMulti-platformQuery referencingDrag and drop queryCSV downloadsSyntax highlightingMultiple-query executioncopy-pasteObject explorerVersion historyData uploadStack overflow search errors | Share query/project linkCommentVersion controlReal-time multiplayer | VisualizationDashboardsScheduled queriesReports | Any | PostgreSQLRedshiftAmazon AthenaMongoDBBigQuerySnowflakeMySQLMariaDBMindsDBClickhouseSupabase | |
Hyperquery | Modern editor | SaaS | |||||||
Datagrip | Modern editor | SaaS | From $199/user/year | SearchAutocompleteQuery correctionQuery parametersDiff viewerMulti-platform | Version control | LinuxAnyMacOs | PostgreSQLBigQuerySnowflakeRedshiftSQL serverSQLiteMongoDB+ 14 others | ||
Aginity | Modern editor | open-sourceOn-premises | From $150/user/year | Query referencingSearchMulti-platformCSV downloadsrecent queries accessObject explorerMultiple-query executionAutocompleteExplain planSave queriesData uploadExcel download | Query libraryVersion control | VisualizationScheduled queries | Any | SnowflakePostgreSQLRedshiftSQL serverIBM Db2IBM NetezzaTanzu GreenplumAzure SynapseApache SparksApache HiveAmazon RDSAmazon Aurora | |
Hex | SQL notebookPython notebook | SaaS | Contact only | AutocompleteQuery parameters | Version controlReal-time multiplayerCommentShare query/project link | VisualizationDashboardsReports | Any | SnowflakeBigQueryRedshiftPostgreSQLMySQL | |
Noteable | SaaS | ||||||||
Query.me | SQL notebook | SaaS | Contact only | Query parametersAutocompleteFrequently used queriesQuery referencingSearch | Share query/project linkReal-time multiplayerCommentSlack integration | Scheduled queriesVisualization | Any | SnowflakeRedshiftBigQueryPostgreSQLMicrosoft SQL ServerMore | |
Adminer | Standard IDE | On premises | Contact only | AutocompleteDatabase administration | MariaDBMySQLPostgreSQLSQLiteOracleMongoDBSimpleDB | ||||
Valentina Studio | Standard IDE | On premises | Free | AutocompleteSyntax highlightingrecent queries accessSave queries | Any | ValentinaDBMySQLMariaDBSQLitePostgreSQL | |||
HeidiSQL | Standard IDE | open-source | Free | Syntax highlighting | Windows | MariaDBMySQLPostgreSQLSQLite | |||
DBeaver | Standard IDE | open-source | Free | ER diagramsAutocompleteMulti-platform | WindowsMacOsLinuxEclipse plugin | MariaDBMySQLPostgreSQLSQLiteOracleMore | |||
RazorSQL | Standard IDE | On premises | From $92/user | Syntax highlightingAutocompleteMultiple-query execution | Scheduled queries | MacOsLinuxWindowsSolaris | 40+ Databases | ||
Toad for SQL Server | Database administration | ||||||||
SQuirrel SQL | Standard IDE | open-source | Free | AutocompleteSyntax highlightingcopy-paste | |||||
Microsoft SQL Server Management Studio Express | Standard IDE | Free | Integrated script editorObject explorerActivity monitor | Windows | |||||
Oracle SQL Developer | Standard IDE | Free | Version control | Any | |||||
Datapine SQL Editor | Standard IDE | SaaS | From $257/month | Drag and drop queryAutocomplete | Any | MySQLPostgreSQLMariaDBOracle | |||
My SQL Workbench | Standard IDE | Preview changes before applyingSyntax highlightingAutocomplete | WindowsMacOsLinux | ||||||
SQLgate | Standard IDE | On premises | From $300/month | Autocomplete | Any |
Additional dimensions - Standard SQL IDE's
Database administration suite: This makes it easy for you to audit your databases, configure servers, and view logs. It even comes with a system status feature where you can easily see health indicators of your MySQL environment, such as security and memory usage.
Object explorer: you can view and manage objects and filter them for faster searches according to your criteria.
Activity monitor: It logs everything for you in real-time to help you track changes.
System availability: Which systems are the solution available on? Windows, Mac, Linux, any?
Performance Monitoring. MySQL Workbench gives users a dashboard where they can view the status of their queries, client timing, network latency, and index usage. This allows for simpler identification of possible ways to optimize SQL performance.
