What are the limitations of NoSQL databases?

NoSQL databases have several limitations that need to be considered when choosing them for a particular use case. Some of the limitations of NoSQL databases are:

1. Lack of standardization: NoSQL databases lack a standardized query language like SQL, making it difficult to perform complex queries and join operations across multiple collections or tables.

2. Limited transaction support: NoSQL databases often sacrifice transactional consistency in favor of scalability and performance. This means that they may not guarantee ACID (Atomicity, Consistency, Isolation, Durability) properties, which can be crucial for certain applications.

3. Limited data integrity enforcement: Unlike relational databases, NoSQL databases do not enforce strict data integrity constraints, such as foreign key relationships or unique constraints. This can lead to data inconsistencies if not carefully managed at the application level.

4. Limited data modeling flexibility: NoSQL databases typically have a denormalized data model, which means that data duplication is common to improve read performance. However, this can lead to data redundancy and increased storage requirements.

5. Limited support for complex queries: NoSQL databases are optimized for simple key-value or document-based access patterns, but they may struggle with complex queries involving multiple conditions or aggregations. This can make it challenging to perform advanced analytics or reporting tasks.

6. Limited community support and tooling: Compared to traditional relational databases, NoSQL databases often have a smaller community and ecosystem. This can result in limited tooling, documentation, and community support, making it harder to troubleshoot issues or find resources.

7. Scalability challenges for certain workloads: While NoSQL databases excel at horizontal scalability, they may face challenges with certain types of workloads that require strong consistency or involve complex relationships between data entities.

It is important to carefully evaluate these limitations against the specific requirements of the application before deciding to use a NoSQL database.