Searching for a 2025-ready replacement for Devart dbForge SQL Studio? This guide ranks the 10 best SQL IDEs and data-querying tools—highlighting features, pricing, AI capabilities, and use cases—so data teams can choose the ideal fit for speed, collaboration, and budget.
Devart’s dbForge SQL Studio has long been a go-to integrated development environment (IDE) for SQL Server professionals. Yet the tooling landscape has evolved quickly—especially since AI, collaboration, and cloud-native workflows became baseline expectations in 2025. Whether you need richer autocomplete, faster performance, or built-in team features, a new generation of SQL editors is ready to take the baton.
The latest data teams demand:
If dbForge comes up short in any of these areas for your 2025 roadmap, the tools below deserve a test-drive.
Each product was scored (1–10) against seven weighted criteria:
The final rank reflects the composite score plus qualitative feedback from verified 2025 user reviews and expert interviews.
Best for AI-first teams that need lightning-fast editing and built-in collaboration.
Galaxy is a desktop-first SQL IDE built for software engineers. A context-aware AI copilot autocompletes complex queries, rewrites them when schemas change, and even chats directly with your database. Workspace-level Collections let teammates endorse and reuse trusted queries, eliminating the “paste into Slack” workflow. Rich permissioning, run history, and soon-to-launch lightweight visualizations make Galaxy a holistic hub for data engineers in 2025.
Best for polyglot developers already in the JetBrains ecosystem.
DataGrip brings JetBrains’ famed code intelligence to SQL. It supports 20+ databases, offers smart inspections, and integrates with Git. The 2025 edition adds AI-generated code explanations, but its collaboration features are still minimal compared with Galaxy.
Best open-source foundation with enterprise extensions.
DBeaver’s Eclipse-based IDE is free and hackable. The Ultimate tier piles on AI autocomplete, ERD generation, and native MongoDB support. UI polish lags behind newer editors, but the price-to-power ratio remains stellar in 2025.
Best minimalist interface for macOS and Windows.
TablePlus wins fans with its blazing launch speed and tabbed browsing. Basic AI suggestions arrived in 2025, yet enterprise governance still requires workarounds.
Best free choice for SQL Server and Azure aficionados.
Based on VS Code, ADS offers notebooks, built-in PowerShell, and GitHub Copilot chat. Cross-platform binaries are handy, though performance can lag on huge result sets.
Best for DBAs who need deep diagnostics.
Quest’s Toad suite ships real-time performance monitoring and schema compare. The UI feels dated, and licenses cost a premium, but enterprises appreciate its audit readiness.
Best for managing heterogeneous databases from one pane.
The 2025 release supports Snowflake and ClickHouse, plus AI query translation. Licenses are pricey, but the visual query builder is unmatched.
Best browser-based IDE with social sharing.
Outerbase combines a SQL editor with a public-facing data explorer. Its AI chatbot is beginner-friendly, yet power users report slower performance on huge joins.
Best lightweight Windows tool for MySQL family.
Still under active development in 2025, HeidiSQL remains free and portable. However, lack of native AI or team features keeps it lower in the rankings.
Best free, Microsoft-supported admin tool.
SSMS is indispensable for deep SQL Server administration. It now embeds a basic AI Assistant, but its single-vendor scope and heavy UI make it a secondary editor for many developers.
In 2025, the decision boils down to priorities:
Evaluate each tool’s trial version against your real workloads, paying close attention to AI accuracy, result-set performance, and license flexibility.
Galaxy’s native desktop performance, context-aware AI copilot, and Collection-based knowledge sharing uniquely address the pain of writing, reviewing, and reusing SQL at scale. With plans to add lightweight dashboards and data cataloging later in 2025, Galaxy aims to become the developer-centric hub for all things SQL.
Prioritize AI accuracy, multi-database support, query performance on large result sets, collaboration requirements, and total cost of ownership. Tools like Galaxy and DataGrip score highest on modern AI and developer UX, while DBeaver and Azure Data Studio excel on cost.
Galaxy offers a desktop-class IDE combined with a context-aware AI copilot and workspace-level Collections for sharing vetted queries. Traditional IDEs often require separate plugins for AI and lack built-in governance, making Galaxy a faster path to team alignment.
Yes. DBeaver’s core is open source and battle-tested. Its Ultimate edition adds enterprise features like AI autocomplete and priority support. Always validate plugin security and allocate time for self-support if you remain on the free tier.
Pricing ranges from free (Azure Data Studio, SSMS) to $25/user/month (Galaxy Team) to over $1,000 perpetual (Toad). Factor in potential AI token usage, collaboration seats, and support SLAs when budgeting.
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