Database
Also called DB or SQL database
An organized store for your app's data, such as users, posts, or orders, kept in tables so the app can save, find, and update it.
Create a habits table with id, user_id, name, and created_at, and a check_ins table with habit_id and date that allows one check-in per habit per day. Users may only read and change their own habits. Show me the schema before writing any features.
Paste into Layerwise or any AI coding tool.
What is Database?
A database keeps data after the page closes. Most apps use a relational database such as PostgreSQL or SQLite, which stores data in tables: each table holds one kind of thing, each row is one record, and each column is one field, like name or created_at.
When someone adds a habit, the backend inserts a row into the habits table. When the list loads, it reads the rows back. The layout of the tables is called the schema, and changes to it are made with migrations.
Ask the AI to describe the tables before it builds features on top of them, since a schema is harder to change once real data exists. Back up production data, and make sure each user can read and change only their own rows.
Related terms
All termsFrontend and backend
The two halves of a web app: the frontend runs in the browser and draws what you see, and the backend runs on a server and handles data.
API
A set of rules that lets one program ask another for data or actions, usually by sending a request to a URL and getting JSON back.
Data table
A table built for working with records: click a column header to sort, type to filter, and check rows to act on several at once.
Optimistic UI
A pattern where the interface shows the result of an action right away, before the server confirms it, and rolls it back if the request fails.
Build it with Layerwise
Describe your app, watch it run in a live preview, and publish it with a database, storage, and sign-in built in.