If you write an app that needs to persist and query larger amounts of data onthe local device, consider using a database instead of a local file or key-valuestore. In general, databases provide faster inserts, updates, and queriescompared to other local persistence solutions.
Flutter apps can make use of the SQLite databases via thesqflite
plugin available on pub.This recipe demonstrates the basics of using sqflite
to insert, read, update,and remove data about various Dogs!
If you are new to SQLite and SQL statements, please review the SQLite Tutorialsite to learn the basics before completingthis recipe.
Directions
- Add the dependencies
- Define the
Dog
data model - Open the Database
- Create the
dogs
table - Insert a
Dog
into the database - Retrieve the list of Dogs
- Update a
Dog
in the database - Delete a
Dog
from the database
1. Add the dependencies
To work with SQLite databases, import the sqflite
and path
packages.
- The
sqflite
package provides classes and functions that allow you to interact with a SQLite database. - The
path
package provides functions that allow you to correctly define the location to store the database on disk.
dependencies:
flutter:
sdk: flutter
sqflite:
path:
2. Define the Dog data model
Before you create the table to store information on Dogs, take a few moments todefine the data that needs to be stored. For this example, define a Dog classthat contains three pieces of data: A unique id
, the name
, and the age
ofeach dog.
class Dog {
final int id;
final String name;
final int age;
Dog({this.id, this.name, this.age});
}
3. Open the Database
Before you read and write data to the database, you need to open a connection to the database. This involves two steps:
- Define the path to the database file using the
getDatabasesPath
from thesqflite
package combined with thepath
function from thepath
package - Open the database with the
openDatabase
function fromsqflite
// Open the database and store the reference
final Future<Database> database = openDatabase(
// Set the path to the database. Note: Using the `join` function from the
// `path` package is best practice to ensure the path is correctly
// constructed for each platform.
join(await getDatabasesPath(), 'doggie_database.db'),
);
4. Create the dogs table
Next, you need to create a table to store information about various Dogs. Forthis example, create a table called dogs
that defines the data that can bestored. In this case, each Dog
contains an id
, name
, and age
. Therefore,these will be represented as three columns in the dogs
table.
- The
id
is a Dartint
, and will be stored as anINTEGER
SQLite Datatype. It is also good practice to use anid
as the primary key for the table to improve query and update times. - The
name
is a DartString
, and will be stored as aTEXT
SQLite Datatype - The
age
is also a Dartint
, and will be stored as anINTEGER
DatatypeFor more information about the available Datatypes that can be stored in aSQLite database, please see the official SQLite Datatypesdocumentation.
final Future<Database> database = openDatabase(
// Set the path to the database.
join(await getDatabasesPath(), 'doggie_database.db'),
// When the database is first created, create a table to store dogs
onCreate: (db, version) {
// Run the CREATE TABLE statement on the database
return db.execute(
"CREATE TABLE dogs(id INTEGER PRIMARY KEY, name TEXT, age INTEGER)",
);
},
// Set the version. This executes the onCreate function and provides a
// path to perform database upgrades and downgrades.
version: 1,
);
5. Insert a Dog into the database
Now that you have a database with a table suitable for storing information about various dogs, it’s time to read and write data!
First, insert a Dog
into the dogs
table. This involves two steps:
- Convert the
Dog
into aMap
- Use the
insert
method to store theMap
in thedogs
table
// First, update the Dog class to include a `toMap` method.
class Dog {
final int id;
final String name;
final int age;
Dog({this.id, this.name, this.age});
// Convert the dog into a Map. The keys must correspond to the names of the
// columns in the database.
Map<String, dynamic> toMap() {
return {
'id': id,
'name': name,
'age': age,
};
}
}
// Next, define a function that inserts dogs into the database
Future<void> insertDog(Dog dog) async {
// Get a reference to the database
final Database db = await database;
// Insert the Dog into the correct table. You may also specify the
// `conflictAlgorithm` to use in case the same dog is inserted twice.
//
// In this case, replace any previous data.
await db.insert(
'dogs',
dog.toMap(),
conflictAlgorithm: ConflictAlgorithm.replace,
);
}
// Now, you can create a Dog to and add it to the dogs table!
final fido = Dog(
id: 0,
name: 'Fido',
age: 35,
);
await insertDog(fido);
6. Retrieve the list of Dogs
Now that you have a Dog
stored in the database, you can query the databasefor a specific dog or a list of all dogs! This involves two steps:
- Run a
query
against thedogs
table. This will return aList<Map>
- Convert the
List<Map>
into aList<Dog>
// A method that will retrieve all the dogs from the dogs table
Future<List<Dog>> dogs() async {
// Get a reference to the database
final Database db = await database;
// Query the table for All The Dogs.
final List<Map<String, dynamic>> maps = await db.query('dogs');
// Convert the List<Map<String, dynamic> into a List<Dog>.
return List.generate(maps.length, (i) {
return Dog(
id: maps[i]['id'],
name: maps[i]['name'],
age: maps[i]['age'],
);
});
}
// Now, you can use the method above to retrieve all the dogs!
print(await dogs()); // Prints a list that include Fido
7. Update a Dog in the database
After you’ve inserted some information into the database, you may want to updatethat information at a later time. To do so, use theupdate
method from the sqflite
library.
This involves two steps:
- Convert the Dog into a Map
- Use a
where
clause to ensure you update the correct Dog
Future<void> updateDog(Dog dog) async {
// Get a reference to the database
final db = await database;
// Update the given Dog
await db.update(
'dogs',
dog.toMap(),
// Ensure we only update the Dog with a matching id
where: "id = ?",
// Pass the Dog's id through as a whereArg to prevent SQL injection
whereArgs: [dog.id],
);
}
// Now, you can update Fido's age!
await updateDog(Dog(
id: 0,
name: 'Fido',
age: 42,
));
// And you could print the updated results
print(await dogs()); // Prints Fido with age 42.
请注意::Always use whereArgs
to pass arguments to a where
statement. This helps safeguard against SQL injection attacks.
Do not use string interpolation, such as where: "id = ${dog.id}"
!
8. Delete a Dog from the database
In addition to inserting and updating information about Dogs, you can alsoremove dogs from the database. To delete data, use thedelete
method from the sqflite
library.
In this portion, create a function that takes in an id and deletes the dog witha matching id from the database. To make this work, you must provide a where
clause to limit the records being deleted.
Future<void> deleteDog(int id) async {
// Get a reference to the database
final db = await database;
// Remove the Dog from the Database
await db.delete(
'dogs',
// Use a `where` clause to delete a specific dog
where: "id = ?",
// Pass the Dog's id through as a whereArg to prevent SQL injection
whereArgs: [id],
);
}
Example
To run the example:
- Create a new Flutter project
- Add the
sqfite
andpath
packages to yourpubspec.yaml
- Paste the following code into a new file called
lib/db_test.dart
- Run the code with
flutter run lib/db_test.dart
import 'dart:async';
import 'package:path/path.dart';
import 'package:sqflite/sqflite.dart';
void main() async {
final database = openDatabase(
// Set the path to the database. Note: Using the `join` function from the
// `path` package is best practice to ensure the path is correctly
// constructed for each platform.
join(await getDatabasesPath(), 'doggie_database.db'),
// When the database is first created, create a table to store dogs
onCreate: (db, version) {
return db.execute(
"CREATE TABLE dogs(id INTEGER PRIMARY KEY, name TEXT, age INTEGER)",
);
},
// Set the version. This executes the onCreate function and provides a
// path to perform database upgrades and downgrades.
version: 1,
);
Future<void> insertDog(Dog dog) async {
// Get a reference to the database
final Database db = await database;
// Insert the Dog into the correct table. We will also specify the
// `conflictAlgorithm` to use in this case. If the same dog is inserted
// multiple times, it will replace the previous data.
await db.insert(
'dogs',
dog.toMap(),
conflictAlgorithm: ConflictAlgorithm.replace,
);
}
Future<List<Dog>> dogs() async {
// Get a reference to the database
final Database db = await database;
// Query the table for All The Dogs.
final List<Map<String, dynamic>> maps = await db.query('dogs');
// Convert the List<Map<String, dynamic> into a List<Dog>.
return List.generate(maps.length, (i) {
return Dog(
id: maps[i]['id'],
name: maps[i]['name'],
age: maps[i]['age'],
);
});
}
Future<void> updateDog(Dog dog) async {
// Get a reference to the database
final db = await database;
// Update the given Dog
await db.update(
'dogs',
dog.toMap(),
// Ensure we only update the Dog with a matching id
where: "id = ?",
// Pass the Dog's id through as a whereArg to prevent SQL injection
whereArgs: [dog.id],
);
}
Future<void> deleteDog(int id) async {
// Get a reference to the database
final db = await database;
// Remove the Dog from the Database
await db.delete(
'dogs',
// Use a `where` clause to delete a specific dog
where: "id = ?",
// Pass the Dog's id through as a whereArg to prevent SQL injection
whereArgs: [id],
);
}
var fido = Dog(
id: 0,
name: 'Fido',
age: 35,
);
// Insert a dog into the database
await insertDog(fido);
// Print the list of dogs (only Fido for now)
print(await dogs());
// Update Fido's age and save it to the database
fido = Dog(
id: fido.id,
name: fido.name,
age: fido.age + 7,
);
await updateDog(fido);
// Print Fido's updated information
print(await dogs());
// Delete Fido from the Database
await deleteDog(fido.id);
// Print the list of dogs (empty)
print(await dogs());
}
class Dog {
final int id;
final String name;
final int age;
Dog({this.id, this.name, this.age});
Map<String, dynamic> toMap() {
return {
'id': id,
'name': name,
'age': age,
};
}
// Implement toString to make it easier to see information about each dog when
// using the print statement.
@override
String toString() {
return 'Dog{id: $id, name: $name, age: $age}';
}
}