Top 9 Free SQL Practice Resources

Want to sharpen your SQL skills without spending a dime? Here’s a list of the best free SQL practice resources to help you write queries, solve real-world problems, and improve your database expertise – for beginners and advanced users.

Learning SQL is essential for anyone working with data, but practicing it effectively can be a challenge – especially if you don’t have access to a database. Fortunately, there are plenty of free SQL practice resources that let you write and test queries in interactive environments, tackle real-world datasets, and even prepare for technical interviews.

In this article, we’ll explore some of the best free platforms for SQL practice, ranging from interactive tutorials and coding challenges to open datasets and cloud-based SQL tools. Whether you're a beginner looking to reinforce the basics or an advanced user sharpening your skills, you’ll find the right resource to help you practice SQL for free.

LearnSQL.com

LearnSQL.com is one of the best platforms for interactive SQL learning, offering a structured, hands-on approach to mastering SQL. It provides step-by-step courses with real-time feedback, allowing users to write queries directly in their browsers without setting up a database. With a focus on practical, real-world applications, LearnSQL.com is ideal for anyone looking to build a strong SQL foundation or advance their database skills through guided exercises.

Free SQL Practice Resources at LearnSQL.com

LearnSQL.com offers several free resources to help you practice SQL, test your knowledge, and prepare for real-world applications:

• Free Course of the Month – every month, one full SQL course is available for free, allowing learners to explore different SQL topics.
• SQL Assessment – test your SQL knowledge and earn a certificate if you score 70% or higher. The assessment helps identify strengths and areas for improvement.
• SQL Practice Articles – a collection of articles featuring SQL practice exercises, often sourced from our interactive courses.
• SQL Interview Questions – a curated set of articles covering common SQL interview questions, helping users prepare for job applications.
• SQL Cheat Sheets – free, downloadable cheat sheets covering essential SQL concepts, functions, and syntax.
• SQL Flashcards – a quick-reference tool to reinforce SQL concepts through bite-sized learning.

While these free resources are a great way to practice, structured learning is the fastest way to master SQL. With the All Forever SQL Package, you’ll get:

• 70+ interactive courses covering everything from SQL basics to advanced analytics.
• Four SQL dialects: SQL Server, MySQL, PostgreSQL, and Standard SQL.
• A new practice course every month, ensuring continuous skill development.
• Real-world scenarios with hands-on exercises and instant feedback.

If you’re serious about learning SQL, unlock lifetime access to our full library and gain the skills to advance your career!

Who is It Good for?

• Complete beginners – learn SQL from scratch with interactive, hands-on practice.
• People looking to refresh their skills – quickly revisit key SQL concepts and techniques.
• Data analysts – enhance query skills for real-world data analysis.
• Intermediate to advanced SQL users – master advanced topics like CTEs, window functions, and query optimization.

W3Schools

W3Schools is a popular learning platform that offers a beginner-friendly SQL tutorial with interactive exercises. It covers fundamental SQL concepts like SELECT, WHERE, GROUP BY, and JOIN, allowing users to practice queries in a simple, built-in editor. The step-by-step format makes it easy to follow, and the exercises provide immediate feedback, helping learners reinforce basic SQL skills. While it’s great for getting started, it focuses more on syntax than real-world applications, making it best suited for those who need a quick and accessible introduction to SQL.

Who is It Good for?

• Complete beginners – ideal for grasping fundamental SQL concepts but not for deepening skills or tackling complex queries.

LeetCode

LeetCode is a popular platform for practicing coding problems across various programming languages, making it a valuable resource for interview preparation. It features a dedicated SQL problem set covering topics like filtering, joins, aggregation, and window functions, often modeled after real interview questions from top tech companies. LeetCode offers a premium plan, but many SQL challenges are available for free, allowing users to sharpen their query-writing skills in an interactive, browser-based environment. It's an excellent tool for those preparing for data analyst, data engineer, or backend developer roles.

Who is It Good for?

• Those preparing for an interview – LeetCode offers SQL problems commonly asked in technical interviews, helping you practice real-world query challenges and improve problem-solving skills.

HackerRank

HackerRank is a coding practice platform designed to help users prepare for technical interviews, offering challenges in multiple programming languages, including SQL. Its SQL domain features a structured set of problems ranging from basic queries to advanced topics like joins, aggregation, and window functions. Many of these challenges are available for free, allowing users to practice SQL in an interactive editor with instant feedback. It’s a great resource for aspiring data analysts, engineers, and developers looking to improve their SQL skills and get familiar with real-world database queries.

Who is It Good for?

• Those preparing for an interview – HackerRank provides SQL challenges that simulate real interview questions, helping you practice problem-solving and optimize query performance.

SQL-Practice.com

SQL-Practice.com is a no-nonsense platform for sharpening your SQL skills with interactive exercises. It features two databases – Hospital and Northwind – and offers around 70 exercises categorized into easy, medium, and hard. You can also filter challenges by specific SQL keywords like GROUP BY, JOIN, CASE, and DISTINCT to target your practice. The site may not win any design awards, but if you're here to write SQL, not admire aesthetics, it gets the job done.

Who is It Good for?

• Beginners who can ignore distractions – if you don’t mind a few ads and an outdated design, SQL-Practice.com offers straightforward exercises to help you get hands-on SQL practice.

SQL Fiddle, DB Fiddle

SQL Fiddle and DB Fiddle are online SQL editors that allow users to write and test SQL queries directly in their browsers without setting up a database. They support multiple database engines (such as MySQL, PostgreSQL, and SQLite), making them useful for comparing syntax differences across SQL dialects. These tools are ideal for practicing SQL by experimenting with queries, testing database structures, or debugging code in a lightweight environment. While they don’t offer structured exercises, they’re great for on-the-fly practice, quick testing, and sharing queries with others.

Who is It Good for?

• Intermediate users willing to set up their own database – SQL Fiddle and DB Fiddle are great for testing queries in a custom database environment, but they require manual setup instead of ready-made exercises.

Google BigQuery Sandbox

Google BigQuery Sandbox is a free cloud-based platform for practicing SQL on large real-world datasets. You just need a Google account – no credit card or paid subscription required. It provides access to public datasets in the bigquery-public-data project, including Google Trends (search trends analysis), Google Analytics Sample Data (e-commerce insights), and GDELT (global event tracking). While it doesn’t offer structured exercises, it’s a great way to practice SQL at scale, explore massive datasets, and get hands-on experience with cloud-based data querying.

Who is It Good for?

• Beginners and intermediate users – BigQuery Sandbox is great for learning SQL on large datasets without needing a paid account, making it ideal for those exploring cloud-based analytics.

SQL Learning Games

SQL games make learning fun and interactive by transforming complex query writing into engaging challenges. Instead of passively memorizing syntax, players get hands-on practice with real-world SQL problems, receive instant feedback, and improve their problem-solving skills in a stress-free environment. Whether through puzzles, simulations, or competitions, gamified learning helps reinforce key SQL concepts while keeping learners motivated. Want to explore the best SQL games? Check out our article:  5 Games to Learn SQL.

Who is it Good for?

• Beginners and intermediate users – SQL learning games make practicing SQL fun and interactive, helping users reinforce concepts through challenges and problem-solving.

Advent of Code

Advent of Code is an annual programming challenge that releases daily puzzles every December, often with a Christmas-themed storyline. While originally designed for general programming, many advanced SQL users tackle the problems using SQL, making it a unique way to practice recursive CTEs, complex joins, and data transformations. Even the early puzzles can be challenging to solve in SQL, and the later ones require advanced problem-solving skills. Though the event runs in December, all past puzzles remain available year-round, allowing users to take on the challenges at their own pace.

Who is It Good for?

• Advanced users – Advent of Code challenges push SQL skills to the limit, requiring creative problem-solving and complex query writing to tackle algorithmic puzzles.

Summary

Free SQL practice resources are a great way to sharpen your query skills without spending a dime. Whether you’re using interactive platforms, SQL coding challenges, or real-world datasets, these tools help you gain hands-on experience and improve your problem-solving abilities. However, many free resources lack a structured learning path, making it harder to progress efficiently from beginner to advanced levels.

For a comprehensive, step-by-step approach to mastering SQL, check out the All Forever SQL Package from LearnSQL.com. With lifetime access to interactive courses covering everything from SQL basics to advanced data analysis, it's the best way to build and refine your SQL skills – without limitations.