Whether you’ve been developing with dbt™ for five years or just a few weeks, you’ve learned a simple truth: Your dbt™ project is never “done.”Every day (or only every week if you’re lucky!), models need to be created, updated, and deleted, tests need fine-tuning, and production jobs need revisions.

Once I came to terms with my dbt™ project never being “done,” I resorted to the only plausible alternative - How can I make my dbt™ development workflow more efficient?

In this blog, I’ll share a few tips and tricks that have dramatically improved my dbt™ development workflow. More specifically, I’ll share a few features from the Paradime Code IDE, including:

Auto Complete

• Avoid constant typing and copy-paste during dbt™ development.
• Make development faster with a dropdown of relevant options as you type.

Data Preview

• View compiled SQL in real-time without executing “dbt run.”
• Improve workflow by quickly catching errors throughout dbt development.
• Control data warehouse spend by previewing only 100 rows by default, with the option to adjust.

Download CSV

• Utilize CSVs for exploratory data analysis and easily share data extracts.

Peek Definition

• Eliminate context switching and disruptions during dbt development.
• Highlight any source, model, or macro to generate a preview of the code within the current file.

Merge Conflict Resolution

• Quickly and reliably resolve merge conflicts with Paradime.
• Clearly see differences between your current file and the incoming branch.
• Resolve conflicts by accepting your change, the incoming change, or both.

Let’s dive in!

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Auto Complete

I’m no different than you - I don’t want carpal tunnel syndrome, and I don’t want to waste time writing boilerplate code. Enter - Auto Complete!

This feature makes dbt™ development much faster by providing a dropdown of relevant options to select as I’m typing.

Data Preview

Data preview allows me to view compiled SQL in real-time without executing “dbt run.” This improved my dbt™ development workflow for two reasons:

1. I catch errors quickly throughout dbt development. I can view the compiled SQL with every line of code I write.
2. I don’t dramatically drive up data warehouse spend! Preview, by default, only returns 100 rows of data, and I can reduce or increase the rows returned.

Additionally, I can choose to preview a portion of my compiled SQL (ex. CTE) instead of the entire query.

Download CSV

Let’s be honest - CSVs are still incredibly useful. It allows me to more easily perform exploratory data analysis and share the data extract with others.

Peek Definition

Although I work day in and day out in my dbt project, I constantly ask myself this question during dbt development: “wait… what does that reference model do again?

I then drop everything I was doing, search my project to answer my question.

Even though the questions take 10 seconds to answer, it requires context switching, and it takes me out of my groove.

Peek definition is the solution. With it, I can highlight any source, model, or macro in my dbt project and then automatically generate a preview of the highlighted code within my current file.

No context switching. No taking me out of my groove.

‍Merge Conflict Resolution

If your data team has more than one dbt developer, you’ve likely experienced merge conflicts. They’re an unavoidable aspect of dbt development, but they don’t have to be time-consuming!

With Paradime, you can clearly see what’s in your current file vs. the incoming branch you’re trying to merge. Additionally, you can resolve the conflict by accepting your change, the incoming change, or both changes.

It’s a quick, reliable solution to that never-ending merge conflict problem.

Where to go from here?

This blog demonstrates how I use Paradime to dramatically improve my dbt™ development workflow. If you’re interested in learning more, check out more Paradime content and book a demo below 👇