How to connect MongoDB with Django
How to Connect Django with MongoDB
In this article, you will learn how to connect a MongoDB database to a Python web application framework Django. You will also learn how to edit your Django Project Settings file and connect your web application to a MongoDB (NoSQL or document) Database.
Django is a flexible framework for quickly creating Python applications. By default, Django applications are configured to store data into a lightweight SQLite database file.
Introduction
Django is used in such an amazing modular style, it's simple to replace different components of a Django-based web application. Because document (NoSQL) databases are more common these days, you might want to try running an application with a different backend rather than one of the standard relational databases such as MySQL, SQLite, PostgreSQL, etc.
3 Ways to Connect Django with MongoDB
1. Djongo
Extension to Django ORM framework
2. MongoEngine
ORM layer on top of PyMongo
3. PyMongo
Official MongoDB driver
1. Djongo
Djongo is an open-source project and regularly maintained. Djongo is a smarter approach to pymongo programming. It is an extension to the traditional Django ORM framework. It maps Python objects to MongoDB documents, a technique popularly referred to as Object Document Mapping or ODM.
Let's start connecting "Django" with "MongoDB" using djongo:
Step 1: Install Djongo
To set up the environment for Djongo, you first need to install the package:
pip install djongoStep 2: Update settings.py
Go to the settings.py file of your Django App. Under the settings file for Databases, change the settings from SQLite3 or your current database to the following code:
DATABASES = {
'default': {
'ENGINE': 'djongo',
'NAME': 'your-db-name',
'CLIENT': {
'host': 'localhost',
'port': 27017,
'username': '',
'password': ''
}
}
}Step 3: Run Makemigrations
Run makemigrations command to convert all the models into queries for the database:
python manage.py makemigrationsStep 4: Run Migrate
Run migrate command to migrate these changes into our database:
python manage.py migrateCongratulations! Your Django project is now connected with MongoDB. Have fun!
Requirements
- Python 3.6 or higher
- MongoDB 3.4 or higher
- If your models use nested queries or sub-querysets, MongoDB 3.6 or higher is required
inner_query = Blog.objects.filter(name__contains='Ch').values('name')
entries = Entry.objects.filter(blog__name__in=inner_query)Note: Django doesn't create a MongoDB database. You must have a pre-made MongoDB database. If not, create a new database in MongoDB. Djongo helps to connect to that database and acts as a transpiler from SQL to MongoDB.
2. MongoEngine
MongoEngine is an ORM (Object Relation Mapping) layer on top of PyMongo written in Python. Using MongoEngine will grant you additional benefits like fields DictField and ListField which you will find very useful when dealing with unstructured JSON data in MongoDB.
Let's start connecting "Django" with "MongoDB" using MongoEngine:
Step 1: Install MongoEngine
To set up the environment for MongoEngine, you first need to install the package:
python -m pip install -U mongoengineStep 2: Update settings.py
After that, open your project settings.py, and change the DATABASES part to this code:
# DATABASES={
# 'default':{
# 'ENGINE': 'django.db.backends.sqlite3',
# 'NAME': os.path.join(BASE_DIR, 'db.sqlite3'),
# }
# }
import mongoengine
mongoengine.connect(
db='DATABASE_NAME',
host='DATABASE_HOST',
username='USERNAME',
password='PASSWORD'
)Requirements
- MongoDB 3.4, 3.6, or 4.0
- pymongo>=3.4
Note: You do not need to do makemigrations and migrate since you are not using Django ORM here.
3. PyMongo
PyMongo is a Python distribution containing tools for working with MongoDB. PyMongo is the recommended way to work with MongoDB from Python. It is great for writing and saving JSON data to your MongoDB, and it will let you use all of the MongoDB queries in your Python code.
Step 1: Install PyMongo
pip install pymongo
# To get a specific version of pymongo:
python -m pip install pymongo==3.5.1
# To upgrade using pip:
python -m pip install --upgrade pymongoStep 2: Create utils.py
Create a utils.py file in your project root directory (project/utils.py) and add these lines:
from pymongo import MongoClient
def get_db_handle(db_name, host, port, username, password):
client = MongoClient(
host=host,
port=int(port),
username=username,
password=password
)
db_handle = client[db_name]
return db_handle, client
def get_collection_handle(db_handle, collection_name):
return db_handle[collection_name]You can use the above functions in your views or anywhere you want to fetch or write data into your MongoDB.
Note:
- You don't need anything in models when you are using PyMongo.
- Also, no need to add anything in Settings.py but don't forget to comment out the DATABASES part.
Comparison: Which Method to Choose?
| Method | Best For | Pros | Cons |
|---|---|---|---|
| Djongo | Full Django ORM support | Works with existing Django models, migrations supported | Less active development, may have compatibility issues |
| MongoEngine | Flexible document modeling | Great for complex schemas, ORM-like interface | No Django admin support, different API |
| PyMongo | Direct MongoDB access | Full control, official driver, most flexible | Manual query handling, no ORM features |
Summary
You now know three different methods to connect Django with MongoDB:
- Djongo: Use if you want full Django ORM compatibility with MongoDB
- MongoEngine: Use if you need flexible document modeling with an ORM-like interface
- PyMongo: Use if you want maximum flexibility and control over your MongoDB operations
Choose the method that best fits your project requirements and team's familiarity with Django patterns.