typescript 57 lines · 8 steps

A type-safe SQL query builder in TypeScript

A generic builder chains type-checked clauses and emits parameterized SQL to prevent injection.

Explained by highlit

Intermediate builder pattern generics method chaining sql injection type safety

1type Operator = "=" | "!=" | ">" | "<" | ">=" | "<=" | "LIKE";
2 
3type Row = Record<string, unknown>;
4 
5type Condition<T> = {
6  column: keyof T & string;
7  operator: Operator;
8  value: unknown;
9};
10 
11class QueryBuilder<T extends Row> {
12  private conditions: Condition<T>[] = [];
13  private columns: (keyof T & string)[] = [];
14  private orderBy?: { column: keyof T & string; dir: "ASC" | "DESC" };
15  private limitCount?: number;
16 
17  constructor(private readonly table: string) {}
18 
19  select(...columns: (keyof T & string)[]): this {
20    this.columns = columns;
21    return this;
22  }
23 
24  where(column: keyof T & string, operator: Operator, value: unknown): this {
25    this.conditions.push({ column, operator, value });
26    return this;
27  }
28 
29  order(column: keyof T & string, dir: "ASC" | "DESC" = "ASC"): this {
30    this.orderBy = { column, dir };
31    return this;
32  }
33 
34  limit(count: number): this {
35    this.limitCount = count;
36    return this;
37  }
38 
39  build(): { sql: string; params: unknown[] } {
40    const cols = this.columns.length ? this.columns.join(", ") : "*";
41    const params: unknown[] = [];
42    let sql = `SELECT ${cols} FROM ${this.table}`;
43 
44    if (this.conditions.length) {
45      const clauses = this.conditions.map((c) => {
46        params.push(c.value);
47        return `${c.column} ${c.operator} $${params.length}`;
48      });
49      sql += ` WHERE ${clauses.join(" AND ")}`;
50    }
51 
52    if (this.orderBy) sql += ` ORDER BY ${this.orderBy.column} ${this.orderBy.dir}`;
53    if (this.limitCount != null) sql += ` LIMIT ${this.limitCount}`;
54 
55    return { sql, params };
56  }
57}

01 / 01

STEP 01

Walkthrough

Space play ←→ step click any line

Three takeaways

1Constraining a generic to a row shape lets column names be validated at compile time.
2Returning `this` from each method enables fluent chaining until a terminal build step.
3Pushing values into a params array and emitting placeholders keeps SQL parameterized and injection-safe.

Related explainers

typescript

import { registerLocaleData } from '@angular/common';
import localeFr from '@angular/common/locales/fr';
import localeFrExtra from '@angular/common/locales/extra/fr';
import localeDe from '@angular/common/locales/de';

Locale-aware bootstrapping in Angular

i18n localization dependency-injection

Intermediate 8 steps

typescript

import { Module } from '@nestjs/common';
import { ConfigModule } from '@nestjs/config';
import * as Joi from 'joi';

Validating env config at boot in NestJS

configuration schema-validation environment-variables

Intermediate 8 steps

typescript

import { Inject, Injectable, Logger } from '@nestjs/common';
import { CACHE_MANAGER } from '@nestjs/cache-manager';
import { Cache } from 'cache-manager';
import { InjectRepository } from '@nestjs/typeorm';

A cache-aside country lookup in NestJS

cache-aside dependency-injection batch-lookup

Intermediate 8 steps

typescript

import { Injectable, effect, signal, computed } from '@angular/core';
 
interface Preferences {
  theme: 'light' | 'dark';

A signal-based preferences store in Angular

signals state-management persistence

Intermediate 7 steps

typescript

import { useEffect, useState } from "react";
 
interface Section {
  id: string;

Building a scroll-spy hook in React

custom-hooks intersectionobserver dom-observation

Intermediate 8 steps

typescript

import { Injectable, Scope, Inject, NotFoundException } from '@nestjs/common';
import { REQUEST } from '@nestjs/core';
import { Request } from 'express';
import { DataSource } from 'typeorm';