Download MySQL and do it yourself
If you’re learning SQL for the first time, you’ve probably dabbled with at least one of the following resources: codeacademy, datacamp, and khan academy. Each of these websites provides an interactive, hands-on method for beginners to learn SQL.
These are great, free resources and you absolutely should use them.
But what comes next? How do you bridge the gap from “I know a little SQL” to “I’m comfortable querying and analyzing large datasets in SQL”?
Practice makes perfect — obviously — but how does a beginner get practice?
In this post, I’ll walk through a simple set of steps you can take to build up your skills at home, for free.
Your first task is to download database software.
Sure, there are options for practicing SQL online without the software. But there are some serious benefits to doing it yourself:
