Database Naming Conventions: Tables, Columns, and Keys

Consistent naming in databases prevents confusion, simplifies queries, and makes schema migrations safer.

The Standard: snake_case

The overwhelming convention in SQL databases is snake_case for everything: table names, column names, indexes, and constraints.

CREATE TABLE user_accounts (
  user_id SERIAL PRIMARY KEY,
  first_name VARCHAR(100),
  last_name VARCHAR(100),
  created_at TIMESTAMP DEFAULT NOW()
);

Table Names: Singular or Plural?

Style	Example	Used By
Singular	`user`, `order`	Laravel, Django
Plural	`users`, `orders`	Rails, many teams

Pick one and be consistent. Both are valid.

Column Naming Rules

Primary key: id or table_name_id
Foreign key: referenced_table_id (e.g., user_id)
Timestamps: created_at, updated_at, deleted_at
Booleans: is_active, has_verified
Avoid reserved words: don't name columns order, user, group

Index and Constraint Names

idx_users_email        -- index
uq_users_email         -- unique constraint
fk_orders_user_id      -- foreign key
chk_orders_total       -- check constraint

Convert to snake_case

Use the snake_case converter or case converter hub.