Database Naming: snake_case vs camelCase

Database naming conventions are crucial for maintainability and team collaboration. The snake_case vs camelCase debate has strong opinions on both sides, but industry standards can guide your decision.

The Great Debate: snake_case vs camelCase

Team snake_case Arguments:

• More readable: user_profile_settings vs userProfileSettings
• SQL keywords are already in uppercase, lowercase underscores create visual separation
• Supported across all databases without issues
• Matches Python and Ruby conventions
• Easier to work with case-insensitive databases

Team camelCase Arguments:

• Matches JavaScript/TypeScript object properties
• No extra characters to type
• Common in NoSQL databases like MongoDB
• Matches ORM defaults in some frameworks

Industry Standards by Database Type

PostgreSQL

Recommendation: snake_case
PostgreSQL folds unquoted identifiers to lowercase, making snake_case the natural choice.

MySQL/MariaDB

Recommendation: snake_case
Case sensitivity varies by operating system, so snake_case provides consistency.

MongoDB

Recommendation: camelCase
Documents are stored as JSON, making camelCase natural for JavaScript applications.

SQL Server

Recommendation: PascalCase (Microsoft convention)
SQL Server documentation uses PascalCase, and many .NET developers follow this pattern.

General Naming Best Practices

1. Be consistent: Pick one convention and use it everywhere
2. Use singular table names: user not users (debated, but common)
3. Avoid reserved words: Don't name columns order, user, table
4. Be descriptive: user_registration_date is clearer than date
5. Use standard suffixes: _id for primary keys, _at for timestamps
6. Prefix booleans: is_active, has_permission, can_edit

Framework Considerations

• Ruby on Rails: Expects snake_case database columns
• Django: Uses snake_case by default
• Entity Framework (.NET): Prefers PascalCase
• Mongoose (Node.js): Works well with camelCase

Bottom Line: For SQL databases, snake_case is the safest choice. For NoSQL databases with JavaScript, camelCase makes sense. Whatever you choose, document it and enforce it consistently across your schema.