Data Warehouse vs. Database

Data warehouses are a type of database designed specifically for analytics, offering faster access to aggregated information compared to traditional databases. While both use relational structures, databases store data by rows and are optimized for transactional processing (OLTP), while data warehouses store data by columns and are optimized for analytical processing (OLAP). Data in a database is updated frequently, representing real-world transactions and events, whereas data in a warehouse is updated in batches for analysis. Using the right tool for the job, such as a data warehouse for analytics, can significantly improve efficiency and speed up results.