MySQL is the widely used open-source relational database for web applications and APIs. It stores structured data such as customers, orders, products and payments in related tables, and almost every hosting provider supports it.
For a business owner, MySQL is a dependable, free choice for the data behind your website, online store or web app. There is no licence fee, developers everywhere understand it, and managed versions are available on every major cloud.
What we build with it
- Databases for online stores: catalogues, orders, customers and stock
- Backends for Laravel and NodeJS web applications
- Multi-tenant SaaS products that keep each customer's data separate
- WordPress and WooCommerce sites
- Booking, membership and subscription systems
- Reporting tables that feed admin dashboards
Why we choose it
- No licence cost. It is open source, with managed options on AWS and most hosts.
- Proven for web workloads. It handles the read-heavy traffic of stores and portals well.
- Widely known. Developers, hosting providers and backup tools all support it, so you are never short of help.
- Relational integrity. Foreign keys and transactions keep orders, payments and stock consistent with each other.
When something else fits better
For systems with heavy accounting logic, complex reporting or advanced data types, PostgreSQL often gives us more to work with, and for businesses already on Microsoft's platform, SQL Server fits better. If your data is mostly loosely structured, such as varied product attributes or activity logs, MongoDB may be simpler. MySQL is a sound default for web applications, not the answer to every case.
How we work with it
- We design tables with keys, constraints and indexes from the start, based on how the app actually queries data.
- All schema changes go through versioned migrations in the application code.
- We use the InnoDB engine, full Unicode throughout, and parameterised queries to prevent injection attacks.
- Backups are automated, with point-in-time recovery where the host supports it, and restores are tested.
- We monitor slow queries after launch and tune indexes as usage grows.
