Query Performance Guide | Geode Database

<h2 id="query-performance-guide" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Query Performance Guide <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="query-performance-guide" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Query Performance Guide"> Share link </button> </h2><div id="headingShareModal" class="heading-share-modal" role="dialog" aria-modal="true" aria-labelledby="headingShareTitle" hidden> <div class="hsm-dialog" role="document"> <div class="hsm-header"> <h2 id="headingShareTitle" class="h6 mb-0 fw-bold">Share this section</h2> <button type="button" class="hsm-close" aria-label="Close"> </button> </div> <div class="hsm-body"> <label for="headingShareInput" class="form-label small text-muted mb-1 text-uppercase fw-bold" style="font-size: 0.7rem; letter-spacing: 0.5px;">Permalink</label> <div class="input-group mb-4 hsm-url-group"> <input id="headingShareInput" type="text" class="form-control font-monospace" readonly aria-readonly="true" style="font-size: 0.85rem;" /> <button class="btn btn-primary hsm-copy" type="button" aria-label="Copy" title="Copy"> </button> </div> <div class="small fw-bold mb-2 text-muted text-uppercase" style="font-size: 0.7rem; 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This guide covers query execution fundamentals, optimization techniques, and common pitfalls to avoid. <h3 id="understanding-query-execution" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Understanding Query Execution <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="understanding-query-execution" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Understanding Query Execution"> Share link </button> </h3> <h4 id="how-geode-executes-queries" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> How Geode Executes Queries <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="how-geode-executes-queries" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: How Geode Executes Queries"> Share link </button> </h4>When you submit a GQL query, Geode processes it through several stages: <ol> <li>Parsing: Query text is parsed into an abstract syntax tree (AST)</li> <li>Planning: The query planner creates an execution plan</li> <li>Optimization: The optimizer rewrites the plan for efficiency</li> <li>Execution: The engine executes the optimized plan</li> <li>Result Assembly: Results are collected and returned</li> </ol> <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">// This simple query... MATCH (p:Person)-[:KNOWS]->(friend:Person) WHERE p.name = "Alice" RETURN friend.name // ...becomes an execution plan: // 1. Index scan on Person(name) for "Alice" // 2. Expand relationships [:KNOWS] // 3. Filter by Person label on target // 4. Project friend.name </code></pre></div> <h4 id="execution-plan-components" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Execution Plan Components <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="execution-plan-components" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Execution Plan Components"> Share link </button> </h4>Understanding plan components helps you write better queries: <table> <thead> <tr> <th>Component</th> <th>Description</th> <th>Performance Impact</th> </tr> </thead> <tbody> <tr> <td>NodeByLabelScan</td> <td>Scans all nodes with a label</td> <td>O(n) - slow for large datasets</td> </tr> <tr> <td>NodeIndexSeek</td> <td>Uses index to find nodes</td> <td>O(log n) - fast</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Expand</td> <td>Follows relationships</td> <td>O(degree) - varies by connectivity</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Filter</td> <td>Applies WHERE conditions</td> <td>O(n) - applied to current result set</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Projection</td> <td>Selects return columns</td> <td>O(n) - minimal overhead</td> </tr> </tbody> </table> <h3 id="writing-efficient-match-patterns" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Writing Efficient MATCH Patterns <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="writing-efficient-match-patterns" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Writing Efficient MATCH Patterns"> Share link </button> </h3> <h4 id="start-with-selective-nodes" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Start with Selective Nodes <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="start-with-selective-nodes" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Start with Selective Nodes"> Share link </button> </h4>Always begin your MATCH pattern with the most selective (narrowest) node. This minimizes the initial working set. Inefficient (scans all Posts first): <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">MATCH (post:Post)<-[:POSTED]-(user:User {username: "alice"}) RETURN post.title </code></pre></div>Efficient (uses index on User.username): <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">MATCH (user:User {username: "alice"})-[:POSTED]->(post:Post) RETURN post.title </code></pre></div> <h4 id="use-specific-relationship-types" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Use Specific Relationship Types <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="use-specific-relationship-types" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Use Specific Relationship Types"> Share link </button> </h4>Specify relationship types when possible to reduce exploration: Inefficient (explores all relationship types): <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">MATCH (a:Person)-[r]->(b:Person) WHERE type(r) = "KNOWS" RETURN a, b </code></pre></div>Efficient (only explores KNOWS relationships): <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">MATCH (a:Person)-[:KNOWS]->(b:Person) RETURN a, b </code></pre></div> <h4 id="limit-relationship-depth" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Limit Relationship Depth <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="limit-relationship-depth" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Limit Relationship Depth"> Share link </button> </h4>Variable-length patterns can be expensive. Always set bounds: Dangerous (unbounded traversal): <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">MATCH (start:Person)-[:KNOWS*]->(end:Person) RETURN end </code></pre></div>Safe (bounded traversal): <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">MATCH (start:Person)-[:KNOWS*1..4]->(end:Person) RETURN end </code></pre></div> <h4 id="choose-relationship-direction" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Choose Relationship Direction <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="choose-relationship-direction" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Choose Relationship Direction"> Share link </button> </h4>Directional patterns are more efficient than undirected ones: Less efficient (explores both directions): <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">MATCH (a:Person)-[:KNOWS]-(b:Person) RETURN a, b </code></pre></div>More efficient (specific direction): <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">MATCH (a:Person)-[:KNOWS]->(b:Person) RETURN a, b </code></pre></div> <h3 id="avoiding-cartesian-products" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Avoiding Cartesian Products <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="avoiding-cartesian-products" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Avoiding Cartesian Products"> Share link </button> </h3>A Cartesian product occurs when two unconnected patterns create all possible combinations, leading to explosive result sets. <h4 id="recognizing-cartesian-products" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Recognizing Cartesian Products <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="recognizing-cartesian-products" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Recognizing Cartesian Products"> Share link </button> </h4>Cartesian product (users x products = millions of rows): <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">MATCH (u:User), (p:Product) RETURN u.name, p.name </code></pre></div>Connected pattern (only related pairs): <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">MATCH (u:User)-[:PURCHASED]->(p:Product) RETURN u.name, p.name </code></pre></div> <h4 id="unintentional-cartesian-products" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Unintentional Cartesian Products <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="unintentional-cartesian-products" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Unintentional Cartesian Products"> Share link </button> </h4>Watch for separated patterns in the same MATCH: Cartesian product (a,b and c,d are unconnected): <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">MATCH (a:Person)-[:KNOWS]->(b:Person), (c:Company)-[:LOCATED_IN]->(d:City) RETURN a, b, c, d </code></pre></div>Solution 1 - Connect the patterns: <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">MATCH (a:Person)-[:KNOWS]->(b:Person)-[:WORKS_AT]->(c:Company)-[:LOCATED_IN]->(d:City) RETURN a, b, c, d </code></pre></div>Solution 2 - Use separate queries: <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">// Query 1 MATCH (a:Person)-[:KNOWS]->(b:Person) RETURN a, b // Query 2 MATCH (c:Company)-[:LOCATED_IN]->(d:City) RETURN c, d </code></pre></div> <h4 id="detecting-cartesian-products" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Detecting Cartesian Products <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="detecting-cartesian-products" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Detecting Cartesian Products"> Share link </button> </h4>Use EXPLAIN to identify Cartesian products: <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">EXPLAIN MATCH (u:User), (p:Product) RETURN u.name, p.name </code></pre></div>Look for <code>CartesianProduct</code> in the execution plan - this is a warning sign. <h3 id="using-with-for-query-chaining" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Using WITH for Query Chaining <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="using-with-for-query-chaining" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Using WITH for Query Chaining"> Share link </button> </h3>The WITH clause allows you to chain query parts, reducing intermediate result sets and enabling optimizations. <h4 id="filtering-early-with-with" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Filtering Early with WITH <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="filtering-early-with-with" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Filtering Early with WITH"> Share link </button> </h4>Inefficient (processes all relationships before filtering): <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">MATCH (user:User)-[:POSTED]->(post:Post)-[:HAS_COMMENT]->(comment:Comment) WHERE user.active = true RETURN user.name, count(comment) AS comment_count </code></pre></div>Efficient (filters users early): <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">MATCH (user:User) WHERE user.active = true WITH user MATCH (user)-[:POSTED]->(post:Post)-[:HAS_COMMENT]->(comment:Comment) RETURN user.name, count(comment) AS comment_count </code></pre></div> <h4 id="aggregating-before-continuing" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Aggregating Before Continuing <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="aggregating-before-continuing" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Aggregating Before Continuing"> Share link </button> </h4>Aggregate intermediate results to reduce the working set: <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">// Find users with more than 100 posts, then get their most recent comments MATCH (user:User)-[:POSTED]->(post:Post) WITH user, count(post) AS post_count WHERE post_count > 100 MATCH (user)-[:COMMENTED]->(comment:Comment) RETURN user.name, post_count, comment ORDER BY comment.created_at DESC LIMIT 10 </code></pre></div> <h4 id="breaking-complex-queries" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Breaking Complex Queries <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="breaking-complex-queries" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Breaking Complex Queries"> Share link </button> </h4>Split complex queries into manageable parts: <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">// Step 1: Find influential users MATCH (user:User)-[:FOLLOWS]->(follower:User) WITH user, count(follower) AS followers WHERE followers > 1000 WITH user ORDER BY followers DESC LIMIT 100 // Step 2: Get their recent activity MATCH (user)-[:POSTED]->(post:Post) WHERE post.created_at > datetime() - duration('P30D') WITH user, collect(post)[0..5] AS recent_posts // Step 3: Return with statistics RETURN user.name, size(recent_posts) AS recent_post_count, recent_posts </code></pre></div> <h3 id="aggregation-performance" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Aggregation Performance <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="aggregation-performance" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Aggregation Performance"> Share link </button> </h3> <h4 id="use-count-efficiently" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Use COUNT Efficiently <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="use-count-efficiently" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Use COUNT Efficiently"> Share link </button> </h4>COUNT operations have different performance characteristics: <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">// Fast: Counting with early termination MATCH (p:Person) RETURN count(p) AS total // Slower: Counting after traversal MATCH (p:Person)-[:KNOWS]->(friend) RETURN count(friend) AS total_friends // Optimize: Aggregate per-person first MATCH (p:Person)-[:KNOWS]->(friend) RETURN p.name, count(friend) AS friend_count </code></pre></div> <h4 id="optimize-sum-and-avg" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Optimize SUM and AVG <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="optimize-sum-and-avg" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Optimize SUM and AVG"> Share link </button> </h4>Pre-filter data before aggregating: Inefficient: <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">MATCH (o:Order) WHERE o.status = "completed" RETURN sum(o.total) AS revenue </code></pre></div>More efficient with index: <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">// Ensure index exists: CREATE INDEX order_status ON :Order(status) MATCH (o:Order {status: "completed"}) RETURN sum(o.total) AS revenue </code></pre></div> <h4 id="collect-wisely" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Collect Wisely <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="collect-wisely" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Collect Wisely"> Share link </button> </h4>The <code>collect()</code> function gathers values into a list. Limit what you collect: Inefficient (collects everything): <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">MATCH (author:Author)-[:WROTE]->(book:Book) RETURN author.name, collect(book) AS all_books </code></pre></div>Efficient (limits collection): <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">MATCH (author:Author)-[:WROTE]->(book:Book) WITH author, book ORDER BY book.published DESC WITH author, collect(book)[0..10] AS recent_books RETURN author.name, recent_books </code></pre></div> <h3 id="limiting-results-early" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Limiting Results Early <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="limiting-results-early" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Limiting Results Early"> Share link </button> </h3> <h4 id="use-limit-strategically" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Use LIMIT Strategically <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="use-limit-strategically" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Use LIMIT Strategically"> Share link </button> </h4>Place LIMIT as early as possible in your query: Inefficient (processes all results, then limits): <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">MATCH (p:Person)-[:KNOWS]->(friend:Person)-[:KNOWS]->(fof:Person) RETURN DISTINCT fof.name ORDER BY fof.name LIMIT 10 </code></pre></div>Efficient (limits intermediate results): <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">MATCH (p:Person)-[:KNOWS]->(friend:Person) WITH friend LIMIT 100 MATCH (friend)-[:KNOWS]->(fof:Person) RETURN DISTINCT fof.name ORDER BY fof.name LIMIT 10 </code></pre></div> <h4 id="skip-efficiently" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Skip Efficiently <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="skip-efficiently" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Skip Efficiently"> Share link </button> </h4>Combine SKIP and LIMIT for pagination: <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">// Page 1 (items 0-9) MATCH (p:Product) RETURN p.name, p.price ORDER BY p.created_at DESC SKIP 0 LIMIT 10 // Page 2 (items 10-19) MATCH (p:Product) RETURN p.name, p.price ORDER BY p.created_at DESC SKIP 10 LIMIT 10 </code></pre></div>Note: Deep pagination (large SKIP values) can be slow. Consider cursor-based pagination for large datasets: <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">// Cursor-based pagination using a timestamp MATCH (p:Product) WHERE p.created_at < $cursor_timestamp RETURN p.name, p.price, p.created_at ORDER BY p.created_at DESC LIMIT 10 </code></pre></div> <h3 id="parameterized-queries-for-plan-caching" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Parameterized Queries for Plan Caching <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="parameterized-queries-for-plan-caching" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Parameterized Queries for Plan Caching"> Share link </button> </h3> <h4 id="why-use-parameters" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Why Use Parameters <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="why-use-parameters" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Why Use Parameters"> Share link </button> </h4>Geode caches execution plans for parameterized queries. This provides: <ul> <li>Faster parsing: Cached plans skip parsing and planning</li> <li>Better security: Prevents GQL injection</li> <li>Cleaner code: Separation of query and data</li> </ul> <h4 id="parameter-syntax" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Parameter Syntax <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="parameter-syntax" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Parameter Syntax"> Share link </button> </h4>Use <code>$name</code> syntax for parameters: <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">// Parameterized query MATCH (user:User {username: $username}) WHERE user.age >= $min_age RETURN user.name, user.email </code></pre></div>Client usage (Python): <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-python" data-lang="python">result, _ = await conn.query( """ MATCH (user:User {username: $username}) WHERE user.age >= $min_age RETURN user.name, user.email """, {"username": "alice", "min_age": 18} ) </code></pre></div>Client usage (Go): <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-go" data-lang="go">rows, err := db.QueryContext(ctx, ` MATCH (user:User {username: ?}) WHERE user.age >= ? RETURN user.name, user.email `, "alice", 18) </code></pre></div> <h4 id="parameter-best-practices" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Parameter Best Practices <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="parameter-best-practices" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Parameter Best Practices"> Share link </button> </h4>Good: Parameterize variable values: <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">MATCH (p:Product) WHERE p.category = $category AND p.price <= $max_price RETURN p </code></pre></div>Bad: Don’t parameterize structural elements: <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">// Labels and relationship types cannot be parameterized // This does NOT work: MATCH (n:$label)-[:$reltype]->(m) // INVALID </code></pre></div> <h4 id="batch-operations-with-parameters" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Batch Operations with Parameters <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="batch-operations-with-parameters" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Batch Operations with Parameters"> Share link </button> </h4>Parameterized queries work well for batch operations: <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">// Use UNWIND for batch inserts UNWIND $users AS user_data CREATE (u:User { name: user_data.name, email: user_data.email, created_at: timestamp() }) </code></pre></div>Client usage: <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-python" data-lang="python">users = [ {"name": "Alice", "email": "[email protected]"}, {"name": "Bob", "email": "[email protected]"}, {"name": "Charlie", "email": "[email protected]"} ] await conn.execute( "UNWIND $users AS user_data CREATE (u:User {name: user_data.name, email: user_data.email})", {"users": users} ) </code></pre></div> <h3 id="common-performance-pitfalls" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Common Performance Pitfalls <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="common-performance-pitfalls" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Common Performance Pitfalls"> Share link </button> </h3> <h4 id="pitfall-1-selecting-all-properties" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Pitfall 1: Selecting All Properties <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="pitfall-1-selecting-all-properties" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Pitfall 1: Selecting All Properties"> Share link </button> </h4>Problem: Returning entire nodes when you only need specific properties. Slow: <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">MATCH (user:User)-[:POSTED]->(post:Post) RETURN user, post // Returns all properties </code></pre></div>Fast: <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">MATCH (user:User)-[:POSTED]->(post:Post) RETURN user.name, post.title, post.created_at // Returns only needed properties </code></pre></div> <h4 id="pitfall-2-not-using-indexes" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Pitfall 2: Not Using Indexes <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="pitfall-2-not-using-indexes" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Pitfall 2: Not Using Indexes"> Share link </button> </h4>Problem: Full label scans when indexes could be used. <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">// Slow: Full scan of User nodes MATCH (u:User) WHERE u.email = "[email protected]" RETURN u // Fast: Uses index (after creating it) // CREATE INDEX user_email ON :User(email) MATCH (u:User {email: "[email protected]"}) RETURN u </code></pre></div> <h4 id="pitfall-3-unnecessary-ordering" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Pitfall 3: Unnecessary Ordering <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="pitfall-3-unnecessary-ordering" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Pitfall 3: Unnecessary Ordering"> Share link </button> </h4>Problem: Sorting large result sets unnecessarily. <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">// Slow: Sorts millions of rows MATCH (p:Product) RETURN p.name ORDER BY p.name // Fast: Only sort what you need MATCH (p:Product) RETURN p.name ORDER BY p.name LIMIT 100 </code></pre></div> <h4 id="pitfall-4-repeated-pattern-matching" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Pitfall 4: Repeated Pattern Matching <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="pitfall-4-repeated-pattern-matching" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Pitfall 4: Repeated Pattern Matching"> Share link </button> </h4>Problem: Matching the same pattern multiple times. Slow: <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">MATCH (user:User {id: $id})-[:POSTED]->(post:Post) WITH user, count(post) AS post_count MATCH (user)-[:COMMENTED]->(comment:Comment) WITH user, post_count, count(comment) AS comment_count MATCH (user)-[:LIKED]->(liked:Post) RETURN user.name, post_count, comment_count, count(liked) AS like_count </code></pre></div>Fast (using OPTIONAL MATCH): <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">MATCH (user:User {id: $id}) OPTIONAL MATCH (user)-[:POSTED]->(post:Post) WITH user, count(post) AS post_count OPTIONAL MATCH (user)-[:COMMENTED]->(comment:Comment) WITH user, post_count, count(comment) AS comment_count OPTIONAL MATCH (user)-[:LIKED]->(liked:Post) RETURN user.name, post_count, comment_count, count(liked) AS like_count </code></pre></div> <h4 id="pitfall-5-over-fetching-in-traversals" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Pitfall 5: Over-fetching in Traversals <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="pitfall-5-over-fetching-in-traversals" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Pitfall 5: Over-fetching in Traversals"> Share link </button> </h4>Problem: Fetching all paths when you only need a few. Slow: <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">MATCH path = (start:Person)-[:KNOWS*1..6]->(end:Person) WHERE start.name = "Alice" RETURN path </code></pre></div>Fast: <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">MATCH path = (start:Person {name: "Alice"})-[:KNOWS*1..6]->(end:Person) RETURN path LIMIT 100 </code></pre></div> <h4 id="pitfall-6-string-operations-without-indexes" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Pitfall 6: String Operations Without Indexes <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="pitfall-6-string-operations-without-indexes" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Pitfall 6: String Operations Without Indexes"> Share link </button> </h4>Problem: Using CONTAINS or regex without full-text indexes. Slow: <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">MATCH (p:Product) WHERE p.description CONTAINS "wireless" RETURN p </code></pre></div>Fast (with full-text index): <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">// First, create a full-text index: // CREATE FULLTEXT INDEX product_search ON :Product(name, description) CALL db.index.fulltext.queryNodes("product_search", "wireless") YIELD node RETURN node </code></pre></div> <h3 id="performance-checklist" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Performance Checklist <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="performance-checklist" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Performance Checklist"> Share link </button> </h3>Before deploying queries to production, verify: <ul> <li><input disabled="" type="checkbox"> Indexes exist for properties used in WHERE clauses and node lookups</li> <li><input disabled="" type="checkbox"> No Cartesian products - all MATCH patterns are connected</li> <li><input disabled="" type="checkbox"> Bounded traversals - variable-length patterns have max depth</li> <li><input disabled="" type="checkbox"> Early filtering - WHERE clauses appear as early as possible</li> <li><input disabled="" type="checkbox"> Limited results - LIMIT is applied before expensive operations</li> <li><input disabled="" type="checkbox"> Parameterized queries - variable values use parameters</li> <li><input disabled="" type="checkbox"> Selective projections - only necessary properties are returned</li> <li><input disabled="" type="checkbox"> Profiled execution - PROFILE shows acceptable metrics</li> </ul> <h3 id="measuring-performance" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Measuring Performance <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="measuring-performance" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Measuring Performance"> Share link </button> </h3> <h4 id="using-explain" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Using EXPLAIN <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="using-explain" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Using EXPLAIN"> Share link </button> </h4>Get the query plan without executing: <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">EXPLAIN MATCH (user:User {username: "alice"})-[:POSTED]->(post:Post) WHERE post.created_at > datetime() - duration('P7D') RETURN post.title, post.created_at ORDER BY post.created_at DESC LIMIT 10 </code></pre></div> <h4 id="using-profile" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Using PROFILE <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="using-profile" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Using PROFILE"> Share link </button> </h4>Execute and get actual metrics: <div class="highlight"><pre tabindex="0" class="chroma"><code class="language-gql" data-lang="gql">PROFILE MATCH (user:User {username: "alice"})-[:POSTED]->(post:Post) WHERE post.created_at > datetime() - duration('P7D') RETURN post.title, post.created_at ORDER BY post.created_at DESC LIMIT 10 </code></pre></div>For detailed profiling techniques, see the <a href="/guides/query-profiling/" >Query Profiling Guide</a> . <h3 id="summary" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Summary <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="summary" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Summary"> Share link </button> </h3>Optimizing GQL queries follows these principles: <ol> <li>Start selective: Begin patterns with the most filtered nodes</li> <li>Be specific: Use exact labels and relationship types</li> <li>Bound traversals: Always limit variable-length patterns</li> <li>Filter early: Apply WHERE conditions as soon as possible</li> <li>Limit early: Reduce working sets before expensive operations</li> <li>Use indexes: Ensure indexes exist for common lookups</li> <li>Parameterize: Enable plan caching with parameters</li> <li>Profile: Measure before and after optimizations</li> </ol> <h3 id="related-guides" class="position-relative d-flex align-items-center group"> Related Guides <button type="button" class="h-share btn btn-link p-0 text-decoration-none link-secondary opacity-50 hover-opacity-100 transition-all ms-1" data-share-target="related-guides" aria-haspopup="dialog" aria-label="Share link: Related Guides"> Share link </button> </h3><ul> <li><a href="/guides/index-strategy/" >Index Strategy Guide</a> - Choosing and creating indexes</li> <li><a href="/guides/query-profiling/" >Query Profiling Guide</a> - Analyzing execution plans</li> <li><a href="/guides/graph-modeling/" >Graph Modeling Guide</a> - Schema design for performance</li> </ul> <hr> Questions? Discuss query optimization in our <a href="https://forum.geodedb.com" aria-label="forum – opens in new window" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" >forum ↗ </a> .

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