Databases

Store and manage data in your apps

Create comes with built in databases for each project

Overview

Every Create project comes with a free database built in. As you chat with Create, it handles all database details - from designing the structure to writing the code that lets your app save and retrieve data from it.

Use databases to:

• Store user submissions (forms, feedback, uploads)

• Save content (blog posts, products, galleries)

• Persist data between uses of the app

• Build dynamic data-driven features

Interested in upgrading an existing database? We’re planning on offering a direct path to support you here, work is ongoing. Please reach out in the meantime via [e-mail] for assistance with this.

Chat

Create automatically updates your database structure & how your app retreives and stores data as you chat.

When a feature requires storing data, it:

1. Designs the database structurebased on your description

2. Makes Functionsto save and retrieve data from the database

3. Designs the Pages and Componentsto display and interact with the data

4. Connects everythingto make sure your Pages use the Functions that retrieve/store data.

For example, if you say “Make me a tasks app”, Create:

1. Creates a tasks table with title, due date, and other fields

   
2. Creates Functions to save and fetch tasks

   
3. Builds a Page with a task list and add form

   
4. Makes your Page use your Functions to save and grab tasks from the database

   

As you continue describing your app, Create updates your database structure, Functions and Pages to match what you want.

Here are common ways to modify your database through chat:

Setting the scene

It helps to start with a specific description of what you want your app to do.

Prompt:

Make a tasks app. Users should be able to add, view, and delete tasks. 

Each task has title, description and comments

Comments should show up under the task and show who wrote them.  

Create will:

• Make the tables needed

  • Make a Tasks table with title, description, and comments fields

  • Make a Users table with name and avatar fields

  • Make a Comments table with text and author fields

• Create Functions to save and fetch tasks, users, and comments

• Build a Page with a task list, add form, and comment list

• Make the Page use your Functions to save tasks when submitted and grab tasks to display

Adding Fields

Add a description to todos. Show it below the title in italics.

Create will:

• Add the description column to the Todos table

• Update Functions to handle the new field

• Modify the UI to display descriptions

Removing Fields

Remove the priority from todos, we won't use it anymore

Create will:

• Remove the priority column

• Update queries to exclude the field

• Clean up any UI elements showing priority

Adding Tables

Let users add comments on todos. Each comment should have the text and who wrote it

Create will:

• Make a new Comments table

• Link it to the Todos table

• Add UI for viewing/adding comments

• Handle saving comments to the database

Changing Structure

Instead of due dates, let's use status (Todo, In Progress, Done) to track progress

Create will:

• Convert the due_date field to a status field

• Update existing data

• Modify the UI to show status options

Relationships

Let users assign todos to team members. Show their avatar next to each todo

Create will:

• Add user relationships to todos

• Update queries to fetch user data

• Show assignee info in the UI

Filling Data

Generate 10 sample todos with different statuses and assignees

Create will:

• Generate 10 sample todos with different statuses and assignees based on your structure

• Insert the data into your database

• Preserve relationships between tables

Validation

Make sure every todo has a title

Create will:

• Add validation rules to the database

• Update Functions to check data

• Show validation errors in the UI

Always describe both what data you want to store AND how you want to use it. This helps Create build the right database structure, Functions, and UI.

The more specific you are in your prompt, the better Create can help.

If you describe something at a high level, “make a todo app”, Create will guess what fields each todo should have.

If you describe what you want in detail, “make a todo app with a title, due date, and priority field”, Create will make sure each todo has those fields.

Viewing & Editing Data

Create comes with a built-in database viewer for manual edits to your data. You can quickly verify that data is being stored in the right way when you use your app.

Access it from:

• Chat - tap the database

• Project Selector- choose your database name

The database viewer lets you:

• See all tables

• Edit individual rows

• Sort and filter data

• Download data in bulk

• Run custom SQL queries to fetch data

You can also make your own internal tools to update multiple tables at once:

• Make a newPage

• Describe your tool and how it should update the database

• Try out your UI

Changes in Demo mode in the Builder use a test database. This lets you experiment safely without affecting your live data.

Test vs. Live DB

Create maintains separate test and live databases for each project:

Test Database

• Used in Demo mode from the builder

• Allows you to make sure your app is saving data correctly before publishing

Live Database

• Used in your published app

• Access your live database from the builder

Publishing

When you publish your app, Create automatically:

• Creates your live database

• Applies the latest structure from the Test database to your Live database so that it has the same tables and fields

• Runs your app with that structure

Errors

Here are some good ways to troubleshoot common errors:

Data isn’t saving or retrieving

If data isn’t saving when you use your app, there are 3 common failure points to check. Go in this order to test each isolation:

1. Database Structure

How to check:

• Open the database viewer

• Verify tables and fields match what you expect

If there’s an issue:

• Describe the correct structure you want in chat

• Example: “Update the Tasks table to have title, description, and dueDate fields”

• Create will modify the database to match

2. Function -> Database

How to check:

• Identify which function saves or retrieves data from the database. Tap on it.

• Open theTest Runner(3-dot menu > Test)

• Enter sample data and run the test

• Check database viewer to verify data was saved

• Delete test records if needed

If there’s an issue:

• Copy any error messages

• Paste them into the function chat

• Ask Create to fix the specific error

• Example: “I see this error when I run saveTask and test it with this data: [error] [example data]“

3. UI -> Function

How to check:

• Try the app in Demo mode from the UI

• Check that data is being saved when you use the app in the database viewer

• Verify your page/component references the correct function

• Type/in chat to see if function is linked

• Try the flow in Demo mode

• Watch database viewer to see if records appear

If there’s an issue:

• Verify your page/component references the correct function

• Example: “Connect the taks form to the saveTask function when I submit a task”

• Create will update the code to properly wire everything together

For any errors you encounter, you can paste them directly into Create’s chat. It often recognizes specific error patterns and knows how to fix them.

Database Management Tools

Database Resets

You can reset your development (builder) database schema to match the state of your published database. This is helpful if you’ve made changes to your database in the builder that can’t be safely applied to your published database.

The database reset button is located in the top right corner of the database viewer in demo mode

When to use database resets:

• When you’ve made schema changes that conflict with your published database
• When you want to start fresh with your development database
• When you’re stuck with migration conflicts during publishing

How to reset your database:

1. Go to the database viewer in demo mode
2. Click the reset button in the top right corner

Important: This will delete ALL data in your builder database. Your published database will remain untouched.

FAQ

Will this scale?

Yes. Create’s built in databases are designed to scale. Under the hood, it’s PostgreSQL, which is powerful and scalable. We partner with Neon to autoscale your database as your app grows.

How much data can I store?

Free plans include 100mb of storage per database. You can upgrade to a paid plan to increase this.

Can I import existing data?

Not yet, we will be working on an import function in the future

How do I connect to external databases?

Use Functions to connect to external databases like Supabase or your own backend.

Is my data backed up?

Yes, databases are automatically backed up. Contact support if you need to restore data.

Can I write custom queries?

Create handles making queries to your database automatically. For custom queries, create a Function and describe what you need. You can then use your Function. Or use the built in SQL editor in the database viewer.

How do I reset my development database?

You can reset your development (builder) database schema to match the state of your published database. This is helpful if you’ve made changes to your database in the builder that can’t be safely applied to your published database. To reset your database, go to the database viewer in demo mode and click the reset button in the top right corner. Note: This will delete ALL data in your builder database. Your published database will remain untouched.

How do I convert a V1 database to V2?

We now support converting legacy V1 databases to the new V2 format. When you convert: 1) A new V2 database is created for you, 2) Your data is migrated from V1 to V2, 3) A function is created in your project to access the data, 4) Your apps will automatically start using the new data store. To convert your database, go to your V1 database at www.create.xyz/database/[DATABASE_ID] and click the conversion option in the top right dropdown menu. After conversion, you can use the new database like any other V2 database in your project.

I have a legacy database from an app built prior to February 2025

We still have documentation for you, linked here.

Need help? Join our Discord community or email [e-mail]

Helpful Database Terms

Create handles the technical details of your database, but understanding some key concepts can help you work more effectively.

Think of a database as a collection of connected spreadsheets:

• A table is like a spreadsheet (e.g., “Users”, “Products”)
• Fields (or columns) are the types of information stored (e.g., “name”, “email”)
• Rows are individual entries
• Relationships connect data between tables using foreign keys

Key terms explained:

Term	Definition	Example
Schema	The structure of your database (tables and fields)	Your app’s blueprint showing Users table with name, email fields
Query	Instructions to get or save data	”Get all products where price < $100”
Join	Combining data from different tables	Showing posts with their authors’ names from the Users table
Foreign Key	A field that references another table	Post’s authorId connects to User’s id
SQL	The language databases understand	Create writes this for you!
Migration	Changes to your database structure	Adding a “phone” field to Users table

Don’t worry about memorizing these! Just describe what data you want to store and how you want to use it - Create handles the technical implementation.