Drizzle best practices

Use when working with Drizzle ORM in TypeScript backends, full-stack apps, or server runtimes.

Schema first

• Keep schema definitions in one coherent module tree and treat them as the source of truth for tables, enums, indexes, and relations.
• Use Drizzle’s column builders and exported table objects instead of handwritten SQL strings for normal application queries.
• Split large schemas by domain, but keep naming and ownership consistent so imports stay predictable.

Migrations and drift

• Pick one migration workflow intentionally: generated migrations through drizzle-kit generate or direct schema sync with drizzle-kit push for disposable environments. Do not mix them casually.
• Review generated SQL before applying it, especially for renames, dropped columns, and index changes.
• Commit migration artifacts alongside schema changes so CI, teammates, and production deploys use the same history.

Queries and typing