Database Tools

DBeaver49.3k★

If you work with databases — any database, Postgres, MySQL, SQLite, Oracle, MongoDB, 100+ others — DBeaver is a desktop app that lets you browse tables, write queries, visualize data, and manage schemas all in one interface. Think of it as a universal remote control for databases. 49.3K stars, Apache 2.0, Java. Connects to anything with a JDBC driver, which means basically every database that exists. The Community Edition handles SQL editing with autocomplete, ER diagrams, data export/import, and a visual query builder. It's a proper desktop app — not a web tool, not a CLI. The Community Edition is fully free. DBeaver PRO (formerly Enterprise) adds NoSQL support, MongoDB/Cassandra visual editors, SSH tunneling, cloud database integration, and team collaboration. PRO is $25/user/month or $199/year. Solo developers: Community Edition covers 95% of needs. Write SQL, browse data, export CSVs — all free. Small teams: still free for most SQL databases. Pay $25/mo only if you need NoSQL visual editors or team features. Growing teams: the ERD and schema comparison tools in PRO save time at scale. The catch: it's a Java app, which means it can be memory-hungry (expect 500MB-1GB RAM). Startup is slower than lightweight alternatives. And if you mostly work with one database (just Postgres, just MySQL), a specialized tool like pgAdmin or MySQL Workbench might be snappier. DBeaver's strength is breadth, not depth in any single database.

sqlit3.9k★

If you work with databases and want to browse, query, and manage them without leaving your terminal, sqlit is a TUI (terminal user interface) that connects to SQL Server, MySQL, PostgreSQL, SQLite, and more. Think of it as a lightweight database GUI that runs in your terminal window — no browser, no Electron app, just your keyboard and your data. 3.9K stars and growing at +40/week, MIT licensed, Python. The interface lets you browse tables, run queries, view results in a formatted table, and switch between databases. It supports multiple database backends through a unified interface, which is useful if you work with different databases across projects. Completely free. No paid tier, no hosted version. Install via pip and connect to your databases. Solo: great for quick database checks without opening a heavy GUI. Small teams: useful for developers who live in the terminal and want fast data access. Medium to large: this is a personal productivity tool, not a team collaboration platform — for shared database management, look at DBeaver or a web-based tool. The catch: it's early-stage. 3.9K stars with high velocity means it's catching attention, but the feature set is thin compared to mature tools like DBeaver or DataGrip. No saved queries, no ER diagrams, no data export wizards. It's a browser, not a workbench. If you need advanced features, this won't replace your existing tool — but for quick terminal queries, it's clean and fast.