better-sqlite3
The fastest and simplest library for SQLite in Node.js.
About
The fastest and simplest library for SQLite in Node.js.
Live mirror of the GitHub README. Updated whenever the repo's default branch changes.
better-sqlite3 
The fastest and simplest library for SQLite in Node.js.
- Full transaction support
- High performance, efficiency, and safety
- Easy-to-use synchronous API (better concurrency than an asynchronous API... yes, you read that correctly)
- Support for user-defined functions, aggregates, virtual tables, and extensions
- 64-bit integers (invisible until you need them)
- Worker thread support (for large/slow queries)
Help this project stay strong! 💪
better-sqlite3 is used by thousands of developers and engineers on a daily basis. Long nights and weekends were spent keeping this project strong and dependable, with no ask for compensation or funding, until now. If your company uses better-sqlite3, ask your manager to consider supporting the project:
How other libraries compare
select 1 row get() | select 100 rows all() | select 100 rows iterate() 1-by-1 | insert 1 row run() | insert 100 rows in a transaction | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| better-sqlite3 | 1x | 1x | 1x | 1x | 1x |
| sqlite and sqlite3 | 11.7x slower | 2.9x slower | 24.4x slower | 2.8x slower | 15.6x slower |
You can verify these results by running the benchmark yourself.
Installation
npm install better-sqlite3
Requires a currently supported Node.js version. Prebuilt binaries are available for LTS versions. If you have trouble installing, check the troubleshooting guide.
Usage
const db = require('better-sqlite3')('foobar.db', options);
const row = db.prepare('SELECT * FROM users WHERE id = ?').get(userId);
console.log(row.firstName, row.lastName, row.email);
Though not required, it is generally important to set the WAL pragma for performance reasons.
db.pragma('journal_mode = WAL');
In ES6 module notation:
import Database from 'better-sqlite3';
const db = new Database('foobar.db', options);
db.pragma('journal_mode = WAL');
Why should I use this instead of node-sqlite3?
node-sqlite3uses asynchronous APIs for tasks that are either CPU-bound or serialized. That's not only bad design, but it wastes tons of resources. It also causes mutex thrashing which has devastating effects on performance.node-sqlite3exposes low-level (C language) memory management functions.better-sqlite3does it the JavaScript way, allowing the garbage collector to worry about memory management.better-sqlite3is simpler to use, and it provides nice utilities for some operations that are very difficult or impossible innode-sqlite3.better-sqlite3is much faster thannode-sqlite3in most cases, and just as fast in all other cases.
When is this library not appropriate?
In most cases, if you're attempting something that cannot be reasonably accomplished with better-sqlite3, it probably cannot be reasonably accomplished with SQLite in general. For example, if you're executing queries that take one second to complete, and you expect to have many concurrent users executing those queries, no amount of asynchronicity will save you from SQLite's serialized nature. Fortunately, SQLite is very very fast. With proper indexing, we've been able to achieve upward of 2000 queries per second with 5-way-joins in a 60 GB database, where each query was handling 5–50 kilobytes of real data.
If you have a performance problem, the most likely causes are inefficient queries, improper indexing, or a lack of WAL mode—not better-sqlite3 itself. However, there are some cases where better-sqlite3 could be inappropriate:
- If you expect a high volume of concurrent reads each returning many megabytes of data (i.e., videos)
- If you expect a high volume of concurrent writes (i.e., a social media site)
- If your database's size is near the terabyte range
For these situations, you should probably use a full-fledged RDBMS such as PostgreSQL.
Upgrading
Upgrading your better-sqlite3 dependency can potentially introduce breaking changes, either in the better-sqlite3 API (if you upgrade to a new major version), or between your existing database(s) and the underlying version of SQLite. Before upgrading, review:
Documentation
- API documentation
- Performance (also see benchmark results)
- 64-bit integer support
- Worker thread support
- Unsafe mode (advanced)
- SQLite compilation (advanced)
- Contribution rules
- Code of conduct
License
Quick facts
npm install better-sqlite3How Sourcemap Explorer detects better-sqlite3
We catch better-sqlite3 from two complementary signals: bundled source paths and the embedded package.json. Modern bundlers (webpack, Vite, esbuild, Rollup, Turbopack) preserve the original node_modules/better-sqlite3/ paths inside the JavaScript sourcemap's sources[] array — that's the canonical signal. When the matching package.json is also captured in sourcesContent[], we read the exact version field — patch number included. No regex guessing, no version inference.
- 1
Confirm the site exposes sourcemaps
In DevTools Network, check the response headers of any application script for `SourceMap` or `X-SourceMap`. Failing that, fetch the script's last 4 KB and look for a `//# sourceMappingURL=` comment.
- 2
Find the package in the bundle
Open DevTools → Network → reload. Click any application script and look at its sourcemap. Inside, search `sources[]` for entries matching `node_modules/better-sqlite3/` — every match confirms the package is bundled. The matching `sourcesContent[i]` for `node_modules/better-sqlite3/package.json` gives you the exact installed version.
- 3
Read the version directly from package.json
Run `jq -r '. as $m | $m.sources | to_entries[] | select(.value | endswith("node_modules/better-sqlite3/package.json")) | $m.sourcesContent[.key] | fromjson | .version' bundle.js.map`. Sourcemap Explorer automates the same query in the popup.
Recent versions
FAQ
What is better-sqlite3 used for?
The fastest and simplest library for SQLite in Node.js.
How can I tell if a website is using better-sqlite3?
Open the page in Chrome with the Sourcemap Explorer extension installed and read the Stack tab. We catch `better-sqlite3` from two complementary signals: `node_modules/better-sqlite3/` paths inside the JavaScript sourcemap, and the embedded `package.json` we read for exact-version detection. Without the extension you can do the same lookup manually in DevTools — the steps are listed in the "How Sourcemap Explorer detects" section above.
What is the latest version of better-sqlite3?
12.10.0, as published on the npm registry. The "Recent versions" table on this page lists the most recent 8 releases with their release dates. Sourcemap Explorer reports the version actually bundled into a site, which can lag the latest release by months on real-world deployments.
Where can I read more?
Project homepage: http://github.com/WiseLibs/better-sqlite3. Source code: https://github.com/WiseLibs/better-sqlite3. Published on npm: https://www.npmjs.com/package/better-sqlite3. Licensed as MIT.
Keep reading on Sourcemap Explorer
Practical guides
Detected by Sourcemap Explorer
When a bundle ships sourcemaps, we read the embedded package.json for better-sqlite3 and report the precise version. Without sourcemaps, an import / require in the page's scripts is enough to flag it.