2 Sample Databases for SQLite

If you need a sample database to run some quick tests in SQLite, here are a couple of options.

The Chinook Sample Database

The Chinook database was created as an alternative to the Northwind database. It represents a digital media store, including tables for artists, albums, media tracks, invoices and customers.

The Chinook database is available on GitHub. It’s available for various DBMSs including MySQL, SQL Server, PostgreSQL, Oracle, DB2, and of course, SQLite. The files are available on the releases page:

https://github.com/lerocha/chinook-database/releases

Here, you’ll see that there are two options for SQLite; a .sql file and a .sqlite file. This means you have the option of creating the sample database from a SQL script, or by download the complete database file. I’ll cover both.

Option 1: Download the Database File

From the releases page (linked to above), download the Chinook_Sqlite.sqlite file to an appropriate location on your computer. Now you can go ahead and open that file from within SQLite, just like you would with any other database file.

Open your terminal or command prompt and navigate to where you downloaded the file:

sqlite3 Chinook_Sqlite.sqlite

That’s it. You’ve just opened the Chinook sample database in SQLite.

Option 2: Run the SQL Script

You can also install the Chinook database in SQLite by running the SQL script. It’s quite a large script, so you might find it easier to run it from a file.

First, save the Chinook_Sqlite.sql script to a folder/directory on your computer.

Now create a database called Chinook. You can do this by connecting to SQLite with the following command:

sqlite3 Chinook.db

Now you can run the script. To run it from the file, use the following command:

.read Chinook_Sqlite.sql

This assumes that you’re in the same directory as the file, and that the file is called Chinook_Sqlite.sql. If not, you’ll need to use the full path to the file, along with whatever you’ve called the file.

Running this script creates the database tables and populates them with data.

Once the script has finished running, you can verify that it created the database by selecting some data from a table. For example, you could run the following:

SELECT * FROM Artist LIMIT 10;

Result:

ArtistId  Name                
--------  --------------------
1         AC/DC               
2         Accept              
3         Aerosmith           
4         Alanis Morissette   
5         Alice In Chains     
6         Antônio Carlos Jobim
7         Apocalyptica        
8         Audioslave          
9         BackBeat            
10        Billy Cobham        

The Northwind Sample Database

You can do exactly the same thing with the Northwind database. In fact, the Chinook database was created as a newer alternative to the Northwind database.

The Northwind database has been available for SQL Server and Microsoft Access for years. It was provided as a tutorial database for managing small business customers, orders, inventory, purchasing, suppliers, shipping, and employees. 

Github has a version of the Microsoft Access 2000 Northwind sample database, re-engineered for SQLite3.

Option 1: Download the Database File

Go to the GitHub page:

https://github.com/jpwhite3/northwind-SQLite3

And download the database file to an appropriate location on your computer (look for a link titled Download here). Now you can go ahead and open that file from within SQLite, just like you would with any other database file. The file is called northwind.db.

Open your terminal or command prompt and navigate to where you downloaded the file:

sqlite3 northwind.db

That’s it. You’ve just opened the Northwind sample database in SQLite.

Option 2: Run the SQL Script

When I first wrote this article, the database was available in a .sql script, and so I wrote the following instructions for installing the sample DB. Now that I’m revisiting this article (in 2026), I can’t see the script on GitHub. But in case it’s still there and I missed it, I’ll leave the following instructions.

Connect to SQLite and create a database called Northwind:

sqlite3 Northwind.db

Now you can run the script:

.read Northwind_Sqlite.sql

This will create the tables and populate them, etc. You’ll probably see the data flash by as the script as it’s running.

In any case, once it’s finished running, you can run a quick check by selecting some data. For example:

SELECT * FROM "Order Details" LIMIT 10;

Result:

OrderID  ProductID  UnitPrice  Quantity  Discount
-------  ---------  ---------  --------  --------
10248    11         14         12        0.0     
10248    42         9.8        10        0.0     
10248    72         34.8       5         0.0     
10249    14         18.6       9         0.0     
10249    51         42.4       40        0.0     
10250    41         7.7        10        0.0     
10250    51         42.4       35        0.15    
10250    65         16.8       15        0.15    
10251    22         16.8       6         0.05    
10251    57         15.6       15        0.05    

Bonus DB: The Netflix Sample Database

Another sample database is the Netflix sample database. Like the above sample DBs, it’s available on GitHub. See How to Get the Netflix Sample Database for SQLite for more info.

The database is actually available for several platforms, including SQL Server, Oracle, MySQL, and PostgreSQL. Here’s more information about the DB.