What is a NoSQL database?

Data is one of the most important drivers of business intelligence on the planet. With data, a company can better predict trends, significantly improve customer relationships, empower delivery chains, improve decision-making, refine operations and create new revenue streams.

When you think of data, you probably think of databases. After all, databases are the main tool for collecting and manipulating data. So without a database, the data is not very good.

One of the first things to understand is that not all databases are created equal. When it comes to data (and database development), there are two important types of databases, relational and NoSQL. Of the two types, NoSQL is the better option for big data, due to its speed and ability to handle large amounts of data.

This means that your company will have to focus mainly on NoSQL databases and their development.

NoSQL database development is considerably different from relational database development. With NoSQL databases, data is stored in documents that do not have the rigid structure of their relational counterparts.

Best NoSQL Databases

There are several NoSQL databases available today, but two stand out from the crowd:

MongoDB

Open source NoSQL document database that offers native data access from widely supported code, powerful queries and analysis, scales out (using sharding), has a simple installation, and is incredibly fast when working with large amounts of data.

Cassandra

Open source, wide column store distributed NoSQL database specifically designed to handle large amounts of data across multiple commodity servers with high availability.

NoSQL vs. SQL

One of the biggest reasons to use NoSQL over SQL is that NoSQL databases are horizontally scalable, which means it is much cheaper to use NoSQL at scale than a relational database. Additionally, NoSQL databases do not need to conform to the rigid structure found in SQL databases. This means you have more flexibility in how you design your databases.

Another area where NoSQL outperforms SQL is in the domain of web and cloud-native application development. NoSQL databases are very easy to develop, so your company is less likely to need to hire a database manager just to work with developers to interface with the data.

NoSQL database application development

NoSQL database application development can be applied to the following areas:

• e-commerce.
• Mobile Applications.
• Fraud detection.
• Digital/mobile data and communications.
• Analyzing large amounts of data to track trends.
• Internet of Things (IoT)
• Real-time data access and management.
• Backend data analysis.

Some of the biggest names developing and relying on NoSQL databases include Uber, Cisco, Netflix, Forbes, Accenture, Facebook Messenger, Gmail, and LinkedIn.

NoSQL Developer Hiring Guide

One thing to keep in mind is that NoSQL databases do not use the traditional SQL query language. Many NoSQL databases have their own query language. And since you have so many NoSQL database options, you should not only first select the NoSQL database you will use, but also hire developers who are familiar with that specific database query language. For example, you wouldn't hire a developer familiar with CouchBase for MongoDB. The CouchBase query language is N1QL, while the MongoDB query language is MQL.

It is also important to consider salary. As with most roles in the technology industry, what you'll need to pay to hire a NoSQL developer will depend on current demand and availability. This makes it impossible to know precisely how much you will need to pay these engineers. However, be aware that NoSQL developers have been in demand for some time, so you'll likely have to consider salaries in excess of $120,000 per year.

BairesDev development services for NoSQL databases

If you are looking to hire a NoSQL developer, or a team of developers, contact us and we will get to work building the ideal team to meet and exceed your NoSQL developer needs.