Django model data types and fields list

Django models represent the structure of your database tables, and fields are the core components of those models. Fields define the type of data each database column can hold and how it should behave. This article covers all major Django model field types and their usage.

Defining Fields in a Model

Each field in a Django model is specified as a class attribute, and its type is determined by using a specific Django field class like CharField, IntegerField, etc.

• Model Definition Location: All your model definitions should go inside the models.py file of your Django app.
• Avoid Reserved Names: Don't use reserved names like save, delete, or clean as field names, as these conflict with Django's model API and can lead to unexpected behavior.

Example:

from django.db import models

class Musician(models.Model):
    first_name = models.CharField(max_length=200)
    last_name = models.CharField(max_length=200)
    instrument = models.CharField(max_length=200)

class Album(models.Model):
    artist = models.ForeignKey(Musician, on_delete=models.CASCADE)  # Links each album to a musician
    name = models.CharField(max_length=100)                         # Album name
    release_date = models.DateField()                               # Release date of the album
    num_stars = models.IntegerField()                               # Rating (e.g., out of 5)

After creating and applying migrations we can see that the above two tables have been created in the database:

Explanation of fields used in the above example:

• CharField is used for short text like names or instruments.
• IntegerField stores numbers (e.g., star ratings).
• DateField holds date values.
• ForeignKey establishes a relationship between two models (Album- Musician).

Role of Model Fields

Fields define the data type for each model attribute. Built-in validation ensures you can’t store the wrong type (e.g., text in an IntegerField).

Each Django field class helps Django determine:

• The database column type (e.g., INTEGER, VARCHAR, TEXT)
• The default HTML form widget (e.g., <input type="text">, <select>, etc.)
• The built-in validation rules for that field

Django supports many built-in field types which can be used to save any type of data from number to entire HTML file too. Here is a list of all Field types used in Django.  

Common Field Types in Django

Relationship Fields

These fields define how models relate to each other.

Read Next Article:

• Add the slug field inside Django Model
• Intermediate fields in Django