dbt turns a folder of SELECT statements into a dependency graph, so transformations inside a warehouse run in the right order, get tested, and are documented automatically. Analytics engineers use it to keep the logic behind dashboards in Git instead of scattered across scheduled queries. dbt Core is open source and free; dbt Cloud adds a scheduler and a browser IDE.
Who it is for
Analytics engineering teams maintaining warehouse logic that several dashboards depend on.
Key features
- SQL models with dependency ordering
- Data tests on columns and rows
- Auto-generated documentation site
- Git-based version control
- Scheduling and CI in dbt Cloud
Where it falls short
It covers only the transform step, so extraction and loading need another tool, and Cloud is priced per developer seat, which penalizes teams that rotate analysts through a project.
Pricing
dbt Core is free and open source; dbt Cloud is priced per developer seat with a limited free tier.
Prices move; the tier structure is the part that stays true. Check current pricing on dbt.
Alternatives to dbt
Frequently asked
Is dbt free?
Partly. dbt Core is free and open source; dbt Cloud is priced per developer seat with a limited free tier.
What is dbt best for?
Analytics engineering teams maintaining warehouse logic that several dashboards depend on.
What are the best alternatives to dbt?
The closest substitutes we list are Metabase and DuckDB. They sit in a similar price bracket but make a different trade-off, so read the weaknesses section of each review before switching.
Which platforms does dbt run on?
dbt is available on CLI, Web and API.