Drizzle vs Prisma: A Simple Honest Guide

So I've been working on my AI project lately, and while researching and browsing through different codebases, I noticed a lot of people using Drizzle as their ORM. This caught my attention because I've been using Prisma for my projects, and I was curious that why are people choosing Drizzle?

I decided to dig into both of them and figure out the differences. Since I spent time understanding this, I thought I'd share what I learned with you guys. This might help you decide which one to use for your next project!

I'm not an expert in databases or anything just someone who's been building things and trying to make sense of these tools. So let's explore this together!

What Are These Tools Anyway?

Both Prisma and Drizzle are ORMs (Object-Relational Mapping tools) for TypeScript/JavaScript. Basically, they help you talk to your database without writing raw SQL everywhere. They give you type safety, which is pretty important when you're working with TypeScript.

Think of them as translators between your TypeScript code and your database.

The Schema Approach

Prisma uses its own schema language. You write a .prisma file:

model User {
  id    Int     @id @default(autoincrement())
  email String  @unique
  name  String?
  posts Post[]
}

Then you run npx prisma generate and it creates TypeScript types for you.

Drizzle lets you write everything in TypeScript directly:

export const users = pgTable('users', {
  id: serial('id').primaryKey(),
  email: text('email').notNull().unique(),
  name: text('name'),
});

No code generation needed... your schema is TypeScript.

Writing Queries

Prisma queries look like this:

const users = await prisma.user.findMany({
  where: {
    email: {
      contains: '@gmail.com'
    }
  },
  include: {
    posts: true
  }
});

Pretty readable, right? Even if you don't know much about databases, you can understand what's happening.

Drizzle queries look like this:

const users = await db
  .select()
  .from(usersTable)
  .where(like(usersTable.email, '%@gmail.com%'));

This is closer to actual SQL. If you know SQL, this will feel natural. If you don't, it might be a bit confusing at first.

Pros and Cons

Prisma

Pros:

• Really easy to get started
• Amazing documentation
• Prisma Studio (a visual database browser) is super helpful
• Great autocomplete and TypeScript support
• Huge community, so you'll find answers on Stack Overflow
• Mature migration tools

Cons:

• Bigger bundle size
• You need to run code generation every time you change the schema
• Sometimes feels restrictive when you want to do complex queries
• Another language to learn (Prisma Schema Language)

Drizzle

Pros:

• Lightweight and faster
• Everything is just TypeScript—no extra language
• Closer to SQL, so you have more control
• Smaller bundle size
• No code generation step

Cons:

• You need to be comfortable with SQL
• Smaller community (fewer tutorials and Stack Overflow answers)
• Documentation is good but not as polished as Prisma's
• Migration tools are less mature

What Should You Use?

Okay, here's my take after exploring both:

Use Prisma if:

• You're just starting out with databases and ORMs
• You want to move fast and don't want to worry about SQL details
• Your team has different skill levels then Prisma is easier for everyone to understand
• You're building a standard app with normal CRUD operations (Create, Read, Update, Delete)
• You value great tooling and support then Prisma Studio and the docs are really good

Use Drizzle if:

• You know SQL or are willing to learn it (which is a good skill anyway!)
• Performance matters for your project
• Bundle size is important: maybe you're building something that needs to be lightweight
• You want more control over your queries
• You prefer working with just TypeScript and don't want code generation steps

My Thoughts

For my AI project, I'm sticking with Prisma for now because I'm moving fast and I don't want to spend too much time on database stuff. Prisma lets me focus on the AI parts of my project.

But I'm definitely curious about Drizzle! For my next project, especially if it's something where performance matters or I need more complex queries, I might give Drizzle a try.

The good news? Both are solid choices. You can't really go wrong with either one. It just depends on what you're comfortable with and what your project needs.

Final Words

If you're starting a new project, try Prisma first if you want the smoothest experience. If you're comfortable with databases and want something leaner, give Drizzle a shot.

And honestly? You can always switch later if you need to. Don't overthink it too much just pick one and start building!