7 Free eBooks and PDFs to Learn SQL for Beginners (2024)

My favorite free eBooks and courses to learn SQL and Database online

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10 min readMay 1, 2023

There is no doubt that SQL is one of the most essential skills for Programmers, IT professionals, Software Engineers, Quality Analysts, Project Manager, Data scientists, Database admins, and Business Analysts. I had even mentioned this as one of the top skills in my post about 10 things every programmer should know, if you haven’t read that yet, you can read it here, it’s completely worth your time.

Since many Enterprise applications use the relational database at their backend, like Oracle, Microsoft SQL Server, MySQL, it’s crucial to learn SQL to work with those applications and use the data stored on those databases.

The SQL is pronounced as Sequel or S.Q.L has been around for many years, and it will be around for many more coming years. It is also one of the matured technology; hence, there are a lot of free resources, like books, articles, tutorials, and courses are available online.

I have been also sharing a lot of free eBooks, websites, and courses on different technologies, like Java, Python, and Database, and today, I’ll share some of the free SQL books online and offline reading.

Some of the SQL books are available in PDF, .epub, and .mobi format as well. Some of the books are available for free to read online others you can download in PDF format. Unlike many other books available online, these are not pirated or illegal copies.

In fact, these are the books that are made available for free from publishers and authors for the benefit of the community. So, you can safely download and read at your convenience.

Btw, if you can spend few bucks (like $10) then I suggest you check out The Complete SQL Bootcamp course on Udemy or SQL for Data Science course on Coursera, both are great courses to learn SQL.

7 Free SQL Books for Beginners to Master

Here is my list of some of the best books to learn SQL, which is absolutely free. You can either download their PDF version for offline reading, or you can read them online.

1. SQL Indexing and Tuning Book: Use the Index, Luke!

Author: Markus Winand
Download: http://use-the-index-luke.com/
Description: “Use the Index, Luke!: A guide to database performance” is a free online SQL indexing and tuning book by Markus Winand. This book is for developers; it avoids unnecessary details about database internals.

You can read it online for free at http://use-the-index-luke.com/, but if you want to read it as a paperback, you can always buy his book SQL Performance Explained as seen below:

You can also combine this book with SQL For Beginners course from Udemy which is better suited for beginners and it’s completely FREE. All you need is to create an Udemy account to access this course and it will be free for a lifetime.

Once you understand key concepts like how SQL query gets executed, and how indexes are used to make your query faster, you can read this book to dig deeper.

2. SQL Notes for Professionals book

Author: StackOverFlow
Download: https://books.goalkicker.com/SQLBook/
Description: The SQL Notes for Professionals book is compiled from Stack Overflow Documentation, the content is written by the beautiful people at Stack Overflow.

The book is complete free and you can learn a lot about SQL by following this book. It covers a lot of topic, which also makes it one of the most comprehensive free SQL course.

Here is the full list of topics coverd in this free SQL book:

Getting started with SQL
Identifier
Data Types
NULL
Example Databases and Tables
SELECT
GROUP BY
ORDER BY
AND & OR Operators
CASE
LIKE operator
IN clause
Filter results using WHERE and HAVING
SKIP TAKE (Pagination)
EXCEPT
EXPLAIN and DESCRIBE
EXISTS CLAUSE
JOIN
UPDATE
CREATE Database
CREATE TABLE
CREATE FUNCTION
TRY/CATCH
UNION / UNION ALL
ALTER TABLE
INSERT
MERGE
cross apply, outer apply
DELETE
TRUNCATE
DROP Table
DROP or DELETE Database
Cascading Delete
GRANT and REVOKE
XML
Primary Keys
Indexes
Row number
SQL Group By vs Distinct
Finding Duplicates on a Column Subset with Detail
String Functions
Functions (Aggregate)
Functions (Scalar/Single Row)
Functions (Analytic)
Window Functions
Common Table Expressions
Views
Materialized Views
Comments
Foreign Keys
Sequence
Subqueries
Execution blocks
Stored Procedures
Triggers
Transactions
Table Design
Synonyms
Information Schema
Order of Execution
Clean Code in SQL
SQL Injection

Btw, if you are interested in learning Oracle SQL then you can also check out The Oracle SQL — A Complete Introduction, another free Udemy course to learn SQL.

3. MySQL® Notes for Professionals book

Author: StackOverlow
Download: https://books.goalkicker.com/MySQLBook/
Description: This is another free book you can use online to learn MySQL, one of the popular MySQL database. Like the previous book, this one is also created by StackOverflow Answers and covers a lot of ground.

Here is the full list of topics covered in this book:

Getting started with MySQL
Data Types
SELECT
Backticks
NULL
Limit and Offset
Creating databases
Using Variables
Comment MySQL
INSERT
DELETE
UPDATE
ORDER BY
Group By
Error 1055: ONLY_FULL_GROUP_BY: something is not in GROUP BY clause …
Joins
JOINS: Join 3 table with the same name of id.
UNION
Arithmetic
String operations
Date and Time Operations
Handling Time Zones
Regular Expressions
VIEW
Table Creation
ALTER TABLE
Drop Table
MySQL LOCK TABLE
Error codes
Stored routines (procedures and functions)
Indexes and Keys
Full-Text search
PREPARE Statements
JSON
Extract values from JSON type
MySQL Admin
TRIGGERS
Configuration and tuning
Events
ENUM
Install Mysql container with Docker-Compose
Character Sets and Collations
MyISAM Engine
Converting from MyISAM to InnoDB
Transaction
Log files
Clustering
Partitioning
Replication
Backup using mysqldump
mysqlimport
LOAD DATA INFILE
MySQL Unions
MySQL client
Temporary Tables
Customize PS1
Dealing with sparse or missing data
Connecting with UTF-8 Using Various Programming language.
Time with subsecond precision
One to Many
Server Information
SSL Connection Setup
Create New User
Security via GRANTs
Change Password
Recover and reset the default root password for MySQL 5.7+
Recover from lost root password
MySQL Performance Tips
Performance Tuning

If you need courses, you can also checkout The Ultimate MySQL Bootcamp: Go from SQL Beginner to Expert course on Udemy. Most of the time, you can get it for just $9.9; which is almost free.

4. PostgreSQL® Notes for Professionals book

Author: StackOverFlow
Download:https://books.goalkicker.com/PostgreSQLBook/
Description: This is another free online book you can use to learn PostgreSQL, one of the leading database. Like previous two books, this one is also created by compiling StackOverflow answer and its very comprehensive.

Here i sthe full list of topics covered in this book:

Getting started with PostgreSQL
Data Types
Dates, Timestamps, and Intervals
Table Creation
SELECT
Find String Length / Character Length
COALESCE
INSERT
UPDATE
JSON Support
Aggregate Functions
Common Table Expressions (WITH)
Window Functions
Recursive queries
Programming with PL/pgSQL
Inheritance
Export PostgreSQL database table header and data to CSV file
Triggers and Trigger Functions
Event Triggers
Role Management
Postgres cryptographic functions
Comments in PostgreSQL
Backup and Restore
Backup script for a production DB
Accessing Data Programmatically
Connect to PostgreSQL from Java
PostgreSQL High Availability
EXTENSION dblink and postgres_fdw
Postgres Tip and Tricks

And, if you need a course, you can join SQL Crash Course: PostgreSQL for Beginners (FREE) on Udemy. Its also completely free. If you need more choices, you can also see this list of postgresql courses.

5. Oracle® Database Notes for Professionals book

Author: StackOverFlow
Download: https://books.goalkicker.com/OracleDatabaseBook/
Description: This is an excellent introductory text for learning Oracle SQL. There is no more straightforward text for learning the syntax and structure of SQL. Download it for free.

Like previous books, this one is also created from StackOverFlow answers and you can download it for FREe. It’s comprehensive and cover a lot of topics like:

Getting started with Oracle Database
Getting started with PL/SQL
Anonymous PL/SQL Block
PL/SQL procedure
Data Dictionary
Dates
Working with Dates
DUAL table
JOINS
Handling NULL values
String Manipulation
IF-THEN-ELSE Statement
Limiting the rows returned by a query (Pagination)
Recursive Sub-Query Factoring using the WITH Clause (A.K.A. Common Table Expressions)
Different ways to update records
Update with Joins
Functions
Statistical functions
Window Functions
Creating a Context
Splitting Delimited Strings
Collections and Records
Object Types
Loop
Cursors
Sequences
Indexes
Hints
Packages
Exception Handling
Error logging
Database Links
Table partitioning
Oracle Advanced Queuing (AQ)
constraints
Autonomous Transactions
Oracle MAF
level query
Hierarchical Retrieval With Oracle Database 12C
Data Pump
Bulk collect
Real Application Security
Assignments model and language
Triggers
Dynamic SQL

And, if you like online courses, check out Introduction to SQL on Pluralsight, one of my favorite courses to learn SQL.

Btw, you would need a Pluralsight membership to get access to this course, which costs around $29 per month or $299 annually (14% discount).

If you don’t have Pluralsight membership, I encourage you to get one because it allows you to access their 5000+ online courses on all the latest topics like front-end and back-end development, machine learning, etc. It also includes interactive quizzes, exercises, and the latest certification material.

It’s more like Netflix for Software Developers and Since learning is an important part of our job, Pluralsight membership is a great way to stay ahead of your competition.

They also provide a 10-day free trial without any commitment, which is a great way to not just access this course for free but also to check the quality of courses before joining Pluralsight.

6. SQL for Web Nerds

Author: Philip Greenspun
Download: http://philip.greenspun.com/sql/
Description: This is a free online SQL book by Philip Greenspun. First and foremost, we keep our readers in the world of Web services. Most often, they are working within the data model for online communities chronicled in Philip and Alex’s Guide to Web Publishing.

Sometimes we drag readers into the dreary world of commerce, but at least, it is the flashier-than-average corner of e-commerce. You can read it for FREE at http://philip.greenspun.com/sql/

7. Grokking the SQL Interview

If are preparing for Programming job interviews and you need SQL related questions not just queries but also database related questions from other topics like indexes, joins, group by, aggregation, and window functions then you can also checkout Grokking the SQL Interview book to prepare better.

This book contains frequently asked SQL questions from essential topics like

1. SQL Basics

2. Joins

3. SQL Query Questions

4. Indexes

5. Group by and Aggregation

6. SQL Date and Time Questions

7. Stored Procedures

8. Triggers and Views

9. Transactions

10. Window Function and CTE

11. Deep Dive on popular SQL Questions

If you are preparing for SQL interviews then I highly recommend you to go through these questions before your telephonic or face-to-face interviews, you will not only gain confidence and knowledge to answer the question but also learn how to drive Coding interviews in your favor.

Grokking the SQL Interview

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This book is one of the specially designed book to prepare you for SQL interviews by answering popular questions. You an also use discount code friends20 to get 20% discount now.

That’s all in this list of Free SQL books for beginners and experienced developers. You can download these books as free PDF or read them online as well. Even if you know SQL and have been using it for few years, you will be amazed to learn many new things in some of these books, especially the first two books are great for experienced SQL programmers, I just loved them when I found first and has since read them many times already.

More free Books and PDF

Thanks for reading this article so far, if you like these best free SQL and Database books, eBooks, and PDFs, then please share them with your friends and colleagues as well. If you have any questions or you know a good SQL book that is available for free and wants to add to this list, then please feel free to drop a note.

P. S. — If you are looking for some free online courses to learn SQL from scratch, there here is a list of 10+ free SQL courses to learn Programming. It’s a good idea to combine some courses from that list with these books to learn Python quickly and better.

10 Free Courses to learn Database and SQL for Programmers and Data Scientist

Free courses learn SQL and Database concepts for beginners using Microsoft SQL Server, Oracle, and MySQL from edX…

medium.com