Object-Relational Mapper (ORM)
A library that translates between database tables and application code objects — common ones: Prisma, Drizzle, TypeORM, Sequelize.
In long form.
ORMs let developers query and mutate data using language-native objects instead of raw SQL strings. Pros: type safety, less SQL boilerplate, easier migrations between databases. Cons: query performance can degrade silently (N+1 queries are notorious), complex queries often need raw SQL anyway, and the abstraction can hide what the database is actually doing. Modern lightweight options (Drizzle, Kysely) trend toward staying close to SQL while offering type safety.
On Next.js + Postgres projects we typically reach for Drizzle or Prisma. For complex analytical queries we drop to raw SQL — fighting the ORM for query performance is a sign you've outgrown it.
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