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Launch ships with a thin ORM adapter layer so you can swap Prisma or Drizzle without rewriting app code. You should pick one ORM for a project and remove the other to keep the dependency tree and docs clean.

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Choose an ORM

Set DATABASE_ORM in apps/api/.env: 
DATABASE_ORM=prisma

DATABASE_ORM=drizzle

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Prisma (default)

  • Uses prisma/schema.prisma and Prisma migrations.
  • db:generate, db:migrate, and db:push run Prisma commands when DATABASE_ORM=prisma.

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Drizzle + Neon

  • Uses Drizzle ORM with the Neon serverless driver (and pg for local Postgres).
  • You can reuse the same Postgres schema; the adapter targets the same tables.
  • Drizzle is code-first: the schema.ts file defines tables, and Drizzle Kit generates SQL migrations from it.

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Drizzle workflow

  1. Edit apps/api/src/lib/db/schema.ts
  2. Generate SQL migrations: pnpm --filter api db:generate
  3. Apply to the database: pnpm --filter api db:push

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Remove the ORM you don’t use

After you pick one ORM, delete the other to avoid confusion and remove the unused dependencies from apps/api/package.json.

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If you choose Prisma, remove Drizzle

  1. Delete Drizzle files:
    • apps/api/src/lib/db/drizzle-adapter.ts
    • apps/api/src/lib/db/schema.ts
    • apps/api/drizzle.config.ts
    • apps/api/drizzle/
  2. Remove Drizzle dependencies from apps/api/package.json:
    • drizzle-orm
    • drizzle-kit
    • @neondatabase/serverless
    • ws + @types/ws
  3. Update apps/api/src/lib/db/index.ts to only load Prisma.

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If you choose Drizzle, remove Prisma

  1. Delete Prisma files:
    • apps/api/prisma/
    • apps/api/src/lib/db/prisma-adapter.ts
    • apps/api/src/generated/
  2. Remove Prisma dependencies from apps/api/package.json:
    • prisma
    • @prisma/client
    • @prisma/adapter-pg
  3. Update apps/api/src/lib/db/index.ts to only load Drizzle.
  4. Update the build script to remove prisma generate.

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Notes

  • db:generate, db:migrate, and db:push auto-select Prisma or Drizzle based on DATABASE_ORM in apps/api/.env.
  • db:reset runs Prisma reset. For Drizzle, use manual SQL or a dedicated reset workflow.
  • For Neon setup and safe migration guidance, see Neon Database.
  • Prisma and Drizzle migrations are separate workflows. Pick one toolchain per project and keep it consistent.
  • Switching the ORM does not change your database; it only changes the client.