Prisma ORM - Type-Safe Database Toolkit

Modern database toolkit for TypeScript with schema-first development, auto-generated type-safe client, and powerful migration system.

Quick Reference

Installation

npm install prisma @prisma/client
npx prisma init

Basic Workflow

# 1. Define schema
# Edit prisma/schema.prisma

# 2. Create migration
npx prisma migrate dev --name init

# 3. Generate client
npx prisma generate

# 4. Open Studio
npx prisma studio

Core Schema Pattern

// prisma/schema.prisma
generator client {
  provider = "prisma-client-js"
}

datasource db {
  provider = "postgresql"
  url      = env("DATABASE_URL")
}

model User {
  id        String   @id @default(cuid())
  email     String   @unique
  name      String?
  posts     Post[]
  createdAt DateTime @default(now())
  updatedAt DateTime @updatedAt
}

model Post {
  id        String   @id @default(cuid())
  title     String
  content   String?
  published Boolean  @default(false)
  author    User     @relation(fields: [authorId], references: [id])
  authorId  String
  createdAt DateTime @default(now())
  updatedAt DateTime @updatedAt

  @@index([authorId])
}

Type-Safe CRUD

import { PrismaClient } from '@prisma/client';

const prisma = new PrismaClient();

// Create
const user = await prisma.user.create({
  data: {
    email: '[email protected]',
    name: 'Alice',
    posts: {
      create: { title: 'First Post', content: 'Hello World' }
    }
  },
  include: { posts: true }
});

// Read with filters
const users = await prisma.user.findMany({
  where: { email: { contains: '@example.com' } },
  include: { posts: { where: { published: true } } },
  orderBy: { createdAt: 'desc' },
  take: 10
});

// Update
await prisma.user.update({
  where: { id: userId },
  data: { name: 'Bob' }
});

// Delete
await prisma.user.delete({ where: { id: userId } });

Schema Design Patterns

Field Types and Attributes

model Product {
  id          Int      @id @default(autoincrement())
  sku         String   @unique
  name        String
  description String?  // Optional field
  price       Decimal  @db.Decimal(10, 2)
  inStock     Boolean  @default(true)
  quantity    Int      @default(0)
  tags        String[] // Array field (PostgreSQL)
  metadata    Json?    // JSON field
  createdAt   DateTime @default(now())
  updatedAt   DateTime @updatedAt

  @@index([sku])
  @@index([name, inStock])
}

Relations

One-to-Many:

model User {
  id    String @id @default(cuid())
  posts Post[]
}

model Post {
  id       String @id @default(cuid())
  author   User   @relation(fields: [authorId], references: [id])
  authorId String

  @@index([authorId])
}

Many-to-Many:

model Post {
  id         String     @id @default(cuid())
  categories Category[] @relation("PostCategories")
}

model Category {
  id    String @id @default(cuid())
  name  String @unique
  posts Post[] @relation("PostCategories")
}

One-to-One:

model User {
  id      String   @id @default(cuid())
  profile Profile?
}

model Profile {
  id     String @id @default(cuid())
  bio    String
  user   User   @relation(fields: [userId], references: [id])
  userId String @unique
}

Self-Relations:

model User {
  id        String @id @default(cuid())
  following User[] @relation("UserFollows")
  followers User[] @relation("UserFollows")
}

Client Operations

Nested Writes

// Create with nested relations
const user = await prisma.user.create({
  data: {
    email: '[email protected]',
    profile: {
      create: { bio: 'Software Engineer' }
    },
    posts: {
      create: [
        { title: 'Post 1', content: 'Content 1' },
        { title: 'Post 2', content: 'Content 2' }
      ]
    }
  }
});

// Update with nested operations
await prisma.user.update({
  where: { id: userId },
  data: {
    posts: {
      create: { title: 'New Post' },
      update: {
        where: { id: postId },
        data: { published: true }
      },
      delete: { id: oldPostId }
    }
  }
});

Transactions

Sequential (Interactive):

await prisma.$transaction(async (tx) => {
  const user = await tx.user.create({
    data: { email: '[email protected]' }
  });

  await tx.post.create({
    data: { title: 'Post', authorId: user.id }
  });

  // Rollback if error thrown
  if (someCondition) {
    throw new Error('Rollback transaction');
  }
});

Batch (Parallel):

const [deletedPosts, updatedUser] = await prisma.$transaction([
  prisma.post.deleteMany({ where: { published: false } }),
  prisma.user.update({
    where: { id: userId },
    data: { name: 'Updated' }
  })
]);

Advanced Queries

Aggregations:

const result = await prisma.post
how to use prisma-orm
CursorClaude CodeClineCodexWindsurfGooseGitHub CopilotVS CodeGemini CLIKiloOpencodeKimi CLIRoo ClineAiderContinueZedBolt.newLovablev0Replit AgentSweepSmol DeveloperDevinCavemanAmpAntigravity
How to use prisma-orm on Cursor
AI-first code editor with Composer
1
Prerequisites
Before installing skills in Cursor, ensure your development environment meets these requirements:
›Cursor installed and configured on your development machine
›Node.js version 16.0+ with npm package manager (verify with node --version)
›Active project directory or workspace where you want to add prisma-orm
2
Execute installation command
Execute the skills CLI command in your project's root directory to begin installation:
$npx skills add https://github.com/bobmatnyc/claude-mpm-skills --skill prisma-ormcopy
The skills CLI fetches prisma-orm from GitHub repository bobmatnyc/claude-mpm-skills and configures it for Cursor.
3
Select Cursor when prompted
The CLI will show a list of available agents. Use arrow keys to navigate and space to select Cursor:
◆ Which agents do you want to install to?
│
│ ── Universal (.agents/skills) ── always included ────
│   • Amp
│   • Antigravity
│   • Cline
│   • Codex
│ ●Cursor(selected)
│   • Cursor
│   • Windsurf
4
Verify installation
Confirm successful installation by checking the skill directory location:
.cursor/skills/prisma-orm
Reload or restart Cursor to activate prisma-orm. Access the skill through slash commands (e.g., /prisma-orm) or your agent's skill management interface.
⚠
Security & Verification Notice
We perform automated surface-level scans (Gen AI Scanner, Socket, Snyk) during installation. These checks detect common vulnerabilities but do not guarantee complete security. Always review skill source code and verify the publisher's reputation before production use.
Skills execute code in your development environment. Always verify the publisher's identity, review recent commits, and test in isolated environments before production deployment.
Additional Resources
›View source code on GitHub›Skills CLI documentation›Learn more about Cursor›What are agent skills?