I recently started exploring how to store JSON data in a traditional relational database management system (RDBMS), rather than a dedicated form of JSON/document storage, like MongoDB. While I could write a lot more about the problems with MongoDB, that’s not what I want to do here. Instead, I want to focus primarily on how to store and query JSON in PostgreSQL. However, I should note that PostgreSQL is not the only RDBMS that supports JSON storage. I know that MariaDB also does, as of v10.2, and possibly other RDBMS as well. However, since I have been mostly using and enjoying Postgres for awhile now, I decided to focus on that, specifically.

The Test Case

As a sort of test case to experiment with storing JSON in a relational database, I decided create a table to store miscellaneous textbooks, and various information for them. While this is a somewhat simple example, it nonetheless illustrates at least the basics of how to store and query JSON in Postgres.

Creating a Table for JSON Data and Seeding It

First, I should note that while Postgres has both a JSON data type, and a JSON bytes (JSONB) data type, we will be using JSONB, as that data type supports indexing, while the JSON type does not.

Here is the sample table I created to store data in:

-- Create table for textbooks
CREATE TABLE textbooks
(
    id SERIAL PRIMARY KEY,
    book_info JSONB
);

And here is how to insert JSON data into a JSONB field.

-- Populate textbooks table
INSERT INTO textbooks(book_info)
VALUES
('{
    "title": "Python Crash Course, 2nd Edition: A Hands-On, Project-Based Introduction to Programming",
    "ISBN": 1593279280,
    "condition": "new",
    "price": 22.99,
    "hardcover": false,
    "authors": ["Eric Matthes"]
}'),
('{
    "title": "Applied Cryptography: Protocols, Algorithms and Source Code in C 20th Anniversary Edition",
    "ISBN": 1119096723,
    "condition": "new",
    "price": 55.00,
    "hardcover": true,
    "authors": ["Bruce Schneier"]
}'),
('{
    "title": "Gravitation",
    "ISBN": 9780691177793,
    "condition": "used",
    "price": 45.40,
    "hardcover": true,
    "authors": ["Charles W. Misner", "Kip S. Thorne", "John A. Wheeler"]
}'),
('{
    "title": "Programming C# 8.0: Build Cloud, Web, and Desktop Applications",
    "ISBN": 1492056812,
    "condition": "new",
    "price": 54.82,
    "hardcover": false,
    "authors": ["Ian Griffiths"]
}'),
('{
    "title": "Mastering PostgreSQL 11: Expert techniques to build scalable, reliable, and fault-tolerant database applications, 2nd Edition",
    "ISBN": 1789537819,
    "condition": "used",
    "price": 39.99,
    "hardcover": false,
    "authors": ["Hans-Jürgen Schönig"]
}');

Querying the Data

If we simply wanted to get all the data in the table, then we would just do your basic SELECT * FROM textbooks;, but if only want to select specific elements from our JSONB field, then we have to use syntax that might look somewhat unfamiliar. Let’s say we only wanted to select title values from our JSON data. Then, we would use: select book_info ->> 'title' as title from textbooks;. However, what if we need to do a more complicated SELECT query? For example, what if I’m on a budget, and only want to see textbooks that cost less than $50.00? In that case, we would have to do a little type casting with the following query:

-- Select books that cost less than $50.00
SELECT book_info ->> 'title' AS title, book_info ->> 'price' AS price
FROM textbooks
WHERE cast
(
    book_info ->> 'price' AS DECIMAL
) < 50.00;

For another example, let’s say we just want hardcover books. Then, we would use:

-- Select only hardcover books
SELECT book_info ->> 'title' AS title, book_info ->> 'hardcover' AS is_hardcover
FROM textbooks
WHERE cast
(
    book_info ->> 'hardcover' AS BOOLEAN
) = true;

Conclusions

Storing, and querying JSON data in a traditional, relational database like Postgres, is not only possible, but also practical. So, the next time you find yourself in one of those niche use-cases where you actually need to persistently store data in JSON, don’t simply asume that you need to use a NoSQL DBMS, like MongoDB. At least look into using Postgres, and its JSONB data type. I have also authored a gist on the topic.