MongoDB is one of the most popular databases in the world, as it is used by many big organizations. It provides a convenient way to store data. But to use MongoDB to its full power, database admins and developers could use various MongoDB tools available out there. These tools bring extra assistance and features to make working with MongoDB easier.
In this article, we will discuss what MongoDB is, what MongoDB tools are, and the top 7 tools for MongoDB that businesses could use in 2024.
What is MongoDB?
MongoDB is the most popular NoSQL database that can store data in a non-relational and flexible manner. Unlike relational databases like MySQL, where the data is stored in the form of tables, MongoDB uses JSON-like documents to store data.
An example of a document in MongoDB that stores the data of a user would be like this:
Javascript
{ "_id": "506f1f76bcf56cd799437032", "name": "Robert Doe", "age": 28, "likes": ["shopping", "racing"], "address": { "city": "Berlin", "country": "Germany" } } |
MongoDB is used by several big corporations, and it is available in multiple forms. If the users do not want to manage any hardware and installation themselves, they could use MongoDB Atlas, which is a DBaaS (database as a service).
But if they want more advanced features with high-end security and efficiency, they could use the Enterprise and Community versions of MongoDB.
What are MongoDB tools?
MongoDB tools are a collection of different tools and utilities that help the user work with MongoDB more effectively. They save time and effort while working with different tasks associated with MongoDB.
There are Graphical User Interface (GUI) tools, Command Line (CLI) tools, and Object Data Modeling (ODM) tools that are available for MongoDB. Some are made by MongoDB, and others are offered by third-party organizations, in both free and paid versions.
Top 7 MongoDB Tools for 2024
A plethora of tools are available that reduce overall management time while providing amazing features. Below are some of the best MongoDB tools that could be used in 2024:
1. MongoDB Compass
MongoDB offers a free and open-source GUI tool called MongoDB Compass that provides a visual environment for querying, aggregating, and analyzing the data. This tool is available on Windows, Linux, and Mac.
Below are some of its features:
- Visualization of schema: MongoDB Compass provides a visual representation of the structure of data, including the types, ranges, and field distribution. Moreover, it offers deep insights into the documents present in the collection, which helps in identifying errors and irregularities in the data.
- Data query: There is a query bar present on MongoDB Compass that queries the data based on the user’s instructions. It has a user-friendly interface, which is quite helpful for any user. They could simply write a query and click on “find” to view the results. Additionally, users could filter documents and sort their data however they like.
- Creation of aggregation pipelines: Aggregation pipelines in MongoDB help process several documents and return updated results. MongoDB Compass contains the Aggregation Pipeline Builder, which provides multiple modes, such as focus mode and text view mode, to create an aggregation pipeline.
2. Mongoose
One of the most popular tools among developers, with more than 26,000 stars on GitHub, Mongoose is an Object Data Modeling (ODM) library that is designed for MongoDB to be used in Node.js. With Mongoose, the developers could manage relationships between data and add schema validation. Overall, Mongoose makes the task of working with MongoDB easier.
Here is how developers could create a schema and a model to interact with any collection available in MongoDB.
Javascript
const user = new Schema({ name: String, email: String, age: Number, student: Boolean }); const User = mongoose.model('User', user); |
In the above code:
- There is a ‘Schema’ object assigned to a ‘user’ variable that defines the structure of user data.
- Then there is a Model object assigned to ‘User’, which is used to interact with the MongoDB collection with the help of data queries for fetching, updating, and deleting data. All of these data query operations could be performed by Mongoose itself.
3. NoSQLBooster
A cross-platform GUI tool, NoSQLBooster has built-in support for MongoDB script debugger, server monitoring tools, query code generator, task scheduling, and remarkable IntelliSense experience. Some of the features of NoSQLBooster are:
- IntelliSense support: The built-in language service of NoSQLBooster offers code suggestions as users type MongoDB queries. The suggestions include methods, properties, variables, keywords, MongoDB collection names, and field names. This automatic suggestion reduces development time and syntax errors.
- Script debugger for MongoDB: With this GUI tool, developers could set breakpoints throughout the code to perform effective debugging. When the debugger reaches the breakpoint, the call stack can be explored by watching and editing variables.
- Task scheduler: Along with providing different tasks such as imports, exports, data backup, restore, and migration, NoSQLBooster provides a task scheduler. It could run tasks on a one-time basis or on a schedule. It could run MongoDB script files, import from JSON and BSON files, and export collections to JSON, CSV, etc.
4. Studio 3T
Studio 3T is a MongoDB GUI tool used by more than 1,00,000 developers and database admins. Studio 3T could be utilized in three ways:
- As a MongoDB GUI: The user interface with menus, icons, and other elements.
- As a MongoDB client: The application that could connect to a server.
- As a MongoDB IDE: The capabilities of an application and database development into a single environment.
Some of its features include:
- AI support: Studio 3T provides an AI Helper that enables users to write complex queries and aggregations with AI. This saves a lot of time and effort, as the user could simply type a prompt and the query could be generated. All of this is presented in a user interface.
- Simple migration: Users could easily import data between SQL and MongoDB as importing data from MySQL, Oracle, or PostgreSQL to MongoDB is supported, the vice versa is also true. Users could import and export data in JSON or CSV formats and get a preview of the output.
- Team sharing: Users could organize their scripts and connections and share MongoDB queries with their teams. With a simple drag and drop in a team’s folder, resources could be shared. This encourages teamwork while also ensuring that the data stays protected.
5. MongoDB Shell
MongoDB Shell is a CLI tool or an interactive JavaScript interface to MongoDB. It is a way to connect to MongoDB and offers a host of features such as autocomplete, syntax highlighting, error messages, and help. It could connect with the MongoDB Atlas too. Its capabilities include:
- CRUD operations and aggregation: MongoDB Shell supports simple CRUD operations like inserting, reading, updating, and deleting documents. Apart from this, developers could run aggregation pipelines using the db.collection.aggregate() command.
- Automation with scripts: Developers could run scripts that perform CRUD operations, and they could create helper functions and store them in a config file. In addition, commonly used scripts could be saved as snippets for reuse at any point in time.
- Manage databases: MongoDB Shell makes it easy to view information about databases and perform operations like creating a collection and deleting a database. This CLI tool could manage sharding as well.
6. Atlas CLI
Atlas CLI is a command-line interface for MongoDB Atlas, the DBaaS of MongoDB. Management of Atlas Search and Vector Search is included. Developers could interact with the Atlas database with short commands through a terminal, which is a fast process. Some capabilities of Atlas CLI are:
- Atlas search and vector search: Developers could create indexes for Atlas Search for developing full-text search use cases and indexes for Atlas Vector Search for generative AI use cases.
- Improved development experience: Atlas CLI could be used from the local environment to the cloud. Scripts could be used to automate tasks like creating clusters and managing network access and logs.
7. NoSQL Manager
NoSQL Manager is a user-friendly desktop GUI client for MongoDB database management. It provides full support for MongoDB and MongoDB Enterprise versions. It also offers a MongoDB Shell that supports code auto-completion and syntax highlights. Its features include:
- Monitoring tools: Developers and administrators could use the monitoring tools of NoSQL Manager for performance tuning. The Performance Monitor collects data for memory usage, read/write operations, the number of client connections, and many more. It also displays the collected data in the form of graphs.
- Shell: The commands of MongoDB Shell could be used in NoSQL Manager without any problems, and developers could use the command autocompletion to reduce their querying time.
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Conclusion
There are plenty of MongoDB tools available, but some are more popular or packed with more advanced features than others. In this article, we discussed what MongoDB is, what MongoDB tools are, and the 7 best MongoDB tools that developers and database administrators could use in 2024. Ultimately, it is important to properly analyze the tools and pick the most optimal tool as per the project requirements.
