Hackolade Studio

Overview

Hackolade Studio is a data modelling application built around what the vendor calls polyglot modelling: one tool for relational databases, NoSQL stores, APIs, file formats and schema registries. It supports conceptual, logical and physical models, keeping the logical model technology-independent and deriving physical schemas from it.

Its distinguishing feature is breadth of targets, more than 45 in total. Alongside Snowflake, Databricks, BigQuery, Oracle and SQL Server it models MongoDB, Cassandra, DynamoDB, Neo4j and Elasticsearch, plus Avro, Parquet, Protobuf, JSON Schema, OpenAPI and GraphQL. That makes it the usual choice when a team has to design beyond tables, for example JSON documents or event payloads.

It reverse-engineers from a live instance, DDL, XSD, JSON or YAML samples, Excel, and models from Erwin, ER/Studio and PowerDesigner. Forward engineering produces DDL and alter scripts for SQL targets, and native artefacts elsewhere, such as a MongoDB validator or Cassandra CQL. Model compare shows what has changed between versions, or between a model and the production database.

Models are stored as open JSON and stay on your machine or in your Git repository; the vendor does not host them. The Workgroup edition adds native Git integration for branching, change requests and peer review. A command line interface covers the same work from CI/CD pipelines, and AI assistance is optional and off by default.

Key features and capabilities

The same headings are used for every data modelling & design entry, so two tools can be read side by side.

Model types

• Conceptual, logical and physical models, with logical kept technology-independent
• Relational constructs including keys, relationships, views, procedures and triggers
• JSON Schema editing (draft-04 to 2020-12), nested objects, arrays and polymorphic schemas
• One model derives physical schemas for many targets, at rest and in motion

Forward and reverse engineering

• Forward engineering to DDL and alter scripts, or native artefacts such as MongoDB validators and CQL
• Reverse engineering from a live instance, DDL, XSD, JSON/YAML samples, Excel or Mermaid
• Imports models from Erwin, ER/Studio, PowerDesigner and Collibra
• Model compare and merge, against another version or the live database

Platform coverage

• More than 45 targets, per the vendor
• Analytics and relational: Snowflake, Databricks, BigQuery, Redshift, Synapse, Oracle, PostgreSQL, SQL Server, Teradata
• NoSQL, graph and search: MongoDB, Couchbase, Cosmos DB, Cassandra, ScyllaDB, DynamoDB, Neo4j, Elasticsearch
• Formats and APIs: Avro, Parquet, Protobuf, JSON Schema, OpenAPI, GraphQL, AWS Glue Data Catalog

Collaboration and version control

• Native Git integration in the Workgroup edition for versioning, branching and change tracking
• Change-request review, branch protection and forks for distributed teams
• Read-only Viewer edition that can still pull and comment on change requests
• Per-seat licensing, with floating seats on request

Standards, glossary and governance

• Business and technical names kept in sync per object, in both directions
• Reusable definitions propagated wherever referenced, and links to business glossary terms
• Model verification against a glossary of class and prime terms, plus target-specific rules
• Basic lineage for audit trails; Collibra integration is a paid add-on

Integrations and automation

• Git providers: GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket (cloud and data centre), Azure DevOps
• dbt artefacts, ArchiMate, Excel import and export, and API generation to OpenAPI
• Command line interface for CI/CD pipelines and Docker
• Catalogues and registries: Collibra (add-on), DataHub, AWS Glue, EventBridge Schema Registry

How it runs

• Desktop application for Windows, macOS and Linux
• Runs in the browser with nothing to install
• Models stay local or in your Git repository; the vendor does not host them

Pricing

SubscriptionProfessional from 150 per seat per month

Per-seat subscription, monthly or annual, bought self-service. Professional is 150 per seat per month or 1500 a year; Workgroup, which adds Git integration, is 175 a month or 1750 a year. Personal and read-only Viewer are 175 a year each, and the Community edition is free for ever, capped at 50 objects and without forward or reverse engineering. The same numerals show in euros or pounds by region. A 14-day trial needs no card; floating seats and Collibra integration cost extra.

Vendor pricing page →

Demos and videos

• Hackolade Studio: getting started, a quick tour Tutorial · YouTube
• Create your first data model with Hackolade Studio Tutorial · YouTube
• Hackolade Studio Workgroup edition overview Product demo · YouTube

About Hackolade

Hackolade is the trading name of IntegrIT SA/NV, a Belgian company registered as BE 0477.231.387 and based in Beersel, near Brussels. It was founded by Pascal Desmarets, who remains chief executive, and lists a team of around sixteen people. Its own site does not state a founding year, though its copyright notice and newsroom both run from 2016. No investors or funding are published. Customers shown on the site include American Express, Boeing, DHL and FedEx.

Beersel, Belgium · hackolade.com