You create a NoSQL Table in the Catalyst console and define a table key. Each item in the table is a JSON-like document that can hold any combination of string, number, boolean, or list attributes. The Catalyst SDK provides methods to put, get, update, and delete items by key. Query operations support filtering by attribute values, though complex multi-attribute queries are more limited than a full SQL database. NoSQL Tables are well suited to workloads where individual item retrieval by a known key is the primary access pattern.
Use NoSQL Tables when your data does not fit neatly into fixed columns, such as storing user preferences, session state, or configuration objects that vary in structure per record. Indian app developers building Zoho Creator extensions often use NoSQL Tables to store user-specific UI settings or feature flags that would be cumbersome to model in a relational schema. They are also practical for prototype applications where the data model is still evolving.
NoSQL Tables in Catalyst do not support JOIN operations or aggregate functions like SUM and COUNT across all rows. If you need relational queries or reporting, use the Catalyst Datastore instead. Design your key structure carefully because most retrievals depend on knowing the exact key. Table scans across all items are possible but slower and more expensive at scale than key-based lookups.
A Hyderabad-based EdTech startup uses a Catalyst NoSQL Table called “UserProgress” to store each student’s course completion state. The key is the student ID, and each item contains different attributes depending on which modules that student has started, with some students having five attributes and others having twenty. Because the schema varies per student, a NoSQL Table fits the data better than a rigid relational table would.
Choose a NoSQL Table when your items have variable attributes, when the primary access pattern is fetching a single item by its key, or when you want to store unstructured or semi-structured data quickly. Choose the Datastore when you need to run SQL queries, joins, or aggregations across many rows with a fixed schema.
Catalyst imposes size limits on individual items rather than a fixed limit on the number of attributes. The total serialised size of an item must stay within the documented item size limit. For very large documents, consider storing the overflow data in Catalyst File Store and keeping only a reference key in the NoSQL Table item.
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