Software Development Updates

Dapper and EF Core are the two most popular and reliable ORM frameworks in the .NET ecosystem. Both aim to simplify data access. But they use different approaches and offer distinct capabilities. It is important for a .NET development company to understand their differences thoroughly to make an informed choice. Hence, this article offers a critical comparison between Dapper vs Entity Framework based on common parameters. It also discusses their features, pros, cons, and possible use cases.

Below are the npm trends for Dapper vs Entity Framework.

1. What is the Dapper Framework?

Stack Overflow created a micro ORM called Dapper for the .NET ecosystem. Popular for its speed and lightweight design, Dapper can execute raw SQL queries and efficiently map the results to strongly typed objects.

It takes a minimalistic approach to help developers quickly access the database and improve performance through helper functions. This allows developers to retrieve data with fewer lines of code. 

In complex object-relational mapping scenarios, there is no overhead when working with Dapper because it maps query results directly to the object properties. Dapper is an ideal choice for performance-critical scenarios such as apps with large datasets or high-concurrency environments.

1.1 Key Features of Dapper

Let us explore some of the most important features of Dapper in this section: 

• Lightweight and Fast: Dapper takes a minimalistic approach, allowing developers to write less code while gaining quick access to the database. It also keeps overhead to a minimum. 
• Minimal Abstraction: Dapper provides developers with complete control over SQL queries. 
• Multi-Mapping: With this feature, developers can map query results to multiple objects. It allows you to fetch relevant data from several tables using a single query. 
• Lazy Loading: Only when an object is accessed, Dapper retrieve the data related to it. Implementing Lazy loading improves performance, especially when working with complex object graphs. 
• Raw SQL Support: Developers can write raw SQL queries using Dapper, giving them complete control over database interactions.

1.2 Advantages of Dapper

There are benefits to using Dapper. Below are a few common ones: 

• Enhanced Performance: Dapper is fast due to its minimal abstraction and lightweight design. As a result, it can easily handle large datasets while maintaining optimal performance of .NET application. 
• Easy to Use: Having straightforward syntax and APIs makes it easy to integrate and use Dapper. Moreover, its intuitive APIs simplify the process of writing SQL queries in the raw form. 
• Flexibility: The ORM allows full control over SQL queries and gives freedom to not use any code and instead connect directly with the existing database schema.

1.3 Disadvantages of Dapper

It is also important to discuss the challenges of using Dapper. Here are a few: 

• Limited Features: Dapper lacks advanced features such as built-in CRUD operations, change tracking, and database migrations, resulting in increased manual coding. This means the developers have to write and maintain queries. 
• More SQL Knowledge Required: The functioning of Dapper is similar to SQL. So the developers must have a better understanding of SQL. Developers are also responsible for guaranteeing SQL security and consistency.

1.4 Example of Dapper

Given below is the sample code for Dapper. It first defines the required classes.

public class Book
{
    public int Id { get; set; }
    public string Title { get; set; }
    public int PublicationYear { get; set; }
	
    public int AuthorId  { get; set; }
    public Author Author { get; set; }
}

public class Author
{
    public int Id { get; set; }
    public string Name { get; set; }
    public List Books { get; set; }
}

The CRUD operations are implemented in the following way:

using System;
using System.Collections.Generic;
using System.Data.SqlClient;
using Dapper;

public class UserRepository
{
    private readonly SqlConnection _connection;
    public UserRepository(SqlConnection connection)
    {
        _connection = connection ?? throw new ArgumentNullException(nameof(connection));
    }
	
    public void Insert(Book book)
    {
        _connection.Execute("INSERT INTO Book (Title, PublicationYear, AuthorId) VALUES (@Title, @PublicationYear, @AuthorId)", book);
    }
	
    public User GetById(int bookId)
    {
        return _connection.QueryFirstOrDefault("SELECT * FROM Book WHERE Id = @Id", new { Id = bookId });
    }

    public void Update(Book book)
    {
        _connection.Execute("UPDATE Book SET Title = @Title, PublicationYear = @PublicationYear, AuthorId = @AuthorId WHERE Id = @Id", book);
    }

    public void Delete(int bookId)
    {
        _connection.Execute("DELETE FROM Book WHERE Id = @Id", new { Id = bookId });
    }
}

This code shows how Dapper performs CRUD operations on a Book entity. It uses properties to define the Book and Author classes. The database access is managed through an injected SqlConnection in the UserRepository class. 

The Execute method in Dapper runs SQL commands like Insert, Update, and Delete using parameterized queries to prevent SQL injection. Use the QueryFirstOrDefault from GetById to retrieve a single book record by ID. The database operations are simple and efficient without any heavy ORM overhead because Dapper maps the query results directly to the book properties. 

2. What is Entity Framework Core?

Entity Framework (EF) Core is a mature ORM framework that provides a high-level abstraction over the database. Created by Microsoft for .NET applications, EF Core allows developers to work with domain-specific objects instead of conventional tables and columns. 

It gives LINQ queries to simplify writing and reading data from the database. Moreover, it supports various databases such as SQLite, SQL Server, MySQL, etc. EF Core can generate SQL statements and manage data changes by automating most database operations. 

In addition to LINQ support, Entity Framework offers advanced features such as database migrations and change tracking. The framework is highly configurable and extensible, allowing you to meet specific requirements and simplify data access. It abstracts many complexities and interacts directly with the database, making it an ideal choice for projects with complex data models and relationships. 

2.1 Key Features of Entity Framework Core

This section discusses the key features of EF Core:

• Modeling: EF Core supports creating an entity data model based on POCO (Plain Old CLR Object) entities using get/set properties of various data types. This model allows you to query or save entity data in the database efficiently. 
• Change Tracking: EF has a feature that automatically and continuously keeps track of data changes, which helps update the records efficiently. It has minimal overhead and allows saving changes in the database without any additional manual work. 
• Simplified Development: EF uses C# classes to help developers define data models, and its LINQ integration enables you to write queries in C# extension methods. It can also automatically track changes made to entities. Implementing this series of methods and features helps streamline and accelerate the development process. 
• Rich Abstraction: EF Core uses a code-first approach and uses models to generate database schemas and manage relationships. 
• Integration: Entity Framework Core is compatible with the latest versions of .NET tools and frameworks.

2.2 Advantages of Entity Framework

Using EF Core can be helpful to you in the following ways: 

• Database Migrations: EF is compatible with various databases and supports code-first migration, allowing you to update the database schema without losing any data. This simplifies data migration and helps manage database versioning effectively. 
• Reduced Boilerplate Code: Using EF Core helps keep your codebase clean and easy to maintain. It removes the boilerplate code or any other repetitive code required for CRUD operations. The ORM also eliminates the need to write low-level data access code using high-level abstraction. 
• Automatic Change Tracking: Entity Framework automatically tracks changes made to the entities. This not only helps with updating the records but also allows the automatic generation of SQL queries required to perform operations upon detection of track changes. 
• LINQ Integration: With LINQ support, developers can easily write type-safe or strongly typed queries, leading to compile-time checking and minimizing runtime errors.

Further Reading on: Step-by-step Guide to EF Core Migrations

2.3 Disadvantages of Entity Framework

Even if there are countless advantages, no framework is perfect. So, there ought to be a few limitations as well.

• Learning Curve and Complex Queries: You need to gain a deeper understanding of EF conventions, configurations, and behavior before getting started with EF Core. It is difficult and time-consuming, especially for beginners. Moreover, it is not efficient in translating complex queries into SQL. So, you have to learn to write raw SQL for complex scenarios. 
• Database Provider Limitations: Multiple database providers have specific limitations or offer limited support when used with EF, which can negatively affect the availability of features in your application. 
• Overhead in Large Applications: Because numerous entities exist in a large-scale application, EF Core has to add more overhead, which can significantly impact the memory usage and app performance. Its abstraction layers are also responsible for increasing the performance impact.

2.4 Example of Entity Framework

Let us now take a look at the sample code for Entity Framework.

using Microsoft.EntityFrameworkCore;
using System.Collections.Generic;

namespace MyApp.Data
{
    // Define your DbContext
    public class AppDbContext : DbContext
    {
        public DbSet Books { get; set; }
        public DbSet Authors { get; set; }

        protected override void OnConfiguring(DbContextOptionsBuilder optionsBuilder)
        {
            // Use your connection string or inject it via configuration
            optionsBuilder.UseSqlServer("Server=(localdb)\\mssqllocaldb;Database=LibraryDb;Trusted_Connection=True;");
        }
    }

    // Book entity
    public class Book
    {
        public int Id { get; set; }
        public string Title { get; set; }
        public int PublicationYear { get; set; }

        // Foreign Key
        public int AuthorId { get; set; }
        public Author Author { get; set; }
    }

    // Author entity
    public class Author
    {
        public int Id { get; set; }
        public string Name { get; set; }

        public ICollection Books { get; set; }
    }
}

To inject a connection string, make sure it is defined in the appsettings.json or appsettings. {Environment}.json file.

{
  "ConnectionStrings": {
    "DefaultConnection": "Server=(localdb)\\mssqllocaldb;Database=LibraryDb;Trusted_Connection=True;"
  }
}

Next, configure Entity Framework Core in your app startup class (usually Startup.cs) to utilize a connection string from the app settings and register ApplicationDbContext with dependency injection.

builder.Services.AddDbContext(options =>
    options.UseSqlServer(builder.Configuration.GetConnectionString("DefaultConnection")));
Use LINQ to retrieve an instance of entity classes from the database.
using var context = new AppDbContext();

var recentBooks = context.Books
    .Where(b => b.PublicationYear > 2015)
    .OrderByDescending(b => b.PublicationYear)
    .Include(b => b.Author)
    .ToList();

Leveraging the entity classes’ instances, you can create, modify, or delete the data from the database. The code given below shows how you can save data to the database.

using var context = new AppDbContext();
var author = new Author { Name = "Rabindranath Tagore" };
context.Authors.Add(author);
var book = new Book
{
    Title = "Gitanjali",
    PublicationYear = 1910,
    Author = author
};

context.Books.Add(book);
context.SaveChanges();

3. Dapper VS Entity Framework: A Comprehensive Comparison

After knowing about our .NET ORM frameworks, their features, strengths, and limitations, it’s time to delve into the factors that differentiate them. 

3.1 Ease of Use

EF Core makes data querying more intuitive by offering LINQ integration and allowing .NET developers to define a database schema using C# classes. The ORM also supports schema management and database migrations by default. 

But to make data queries intuitive when using Dapper, developers need to write raw SQL queries manually. This means they must have a working knowledge of SQL. On the bright side, Dapper requires less boilerplate code to execute basic CRUD operations. 

3.2 Performance

Dapper is a lightweight ORM that consumes minimal memory and has a fast startup time. Its use of raw SQL queries contributes to faster execution. It also generates the SQL statements dynamically, which helps avoid overhead. 

On the other hand, EF Core has some overhead due to its abstraction layer. Its feature of automatically generating SQL statements does not always result in better performance. However, EF Core offers caching and several performance optimization techniques that can help improve overall speed and efficiency. 

3.3 Learning Curve

Promoting simplicity and relying on raw SQL makes Dapper easy to learn. So, if you are already familiar with SQL, then it’s easy to understand the syntax and integrate this micro-ORM into your code without any hassle. 

Meanwhile, the learning curve for EF Core is steep because it is a comprehensive, fully developed ORM with a rich set of features. Furthermore, it also allows you to extend its capabilities, including additional functions to learn. Still, EF provides better productivity in the long run. Although Entity Framework automatically generates SQL, it is recommended to have a good understanding of SQL to ensure efficient query execution.

3.4 Code Transparency

EF Core offers features for automatic code generation. Executing a migration using an EF command is straightforward. However, the ORM generates too lengthy code, which is overwhelming to edit in comparison to manually written code. 

On the other hand, Dapper gives .NET developers full control over their SQL code as they need to write raw SQL queries and handle migrations manually. This approach offers several benefits. 

3.5 Maintenance and Scaling

When working with Dapper, it’s easy to maintain small and medium-sized projects, but it becomes difficult as the number of queries grows. On the other hand, EF Core offers better scalability by reducing the need to write repetitive SQL queries. Its code-first approach makes it easier to maintain large applications. 

3.6 Database Migrations and Schema Management

EF Core excels in managing database schema changes thanks to its integrated migration tools. These tools make it easy to maintain the database schema throughout development and deployment. In contrast, Dapper also does not have built-in migration capabilities and relies entirely on manual procedures or third-party tools for schema management.

4. When to Choose Dapper?

Here are the likely scenarios when choosing Dapper would be beneficial: 

• Performance Critical Projects: When working on an app or project that requires high performance, use Dapper. Its minimal overhead ensures fast data access. But you must have experience writing SQL queries. 
• Simple Data Access: When performing straightforward CRUD operations, you don’t need any advanced ORM features. Choose Dapper for its speed and simplicity. 
• Small to Medium Projects: Dapper has a simple setup, which is ideal for small to medium-sized projects. 
• SQL-Intensive Workflows: If your team requires complete control over SQL or needs to fully leverage raw SQL queries, it’s better to pick Dapper.

5. When to Choose Entity Framework?

Using Entity Framework can be effective in the following use cases: 

• Large-Scale Applications: When working on a project that involves numerous entities and a complex network of systems, it is wise to choose EF Core because it integrates seamlessly with all .NET projects and tools. 
• Database Evolution: Use EF Core for its built-in migration features, which make it easy to modify the schema in the database. So, if your project requires frequent schema changes, EF Core can simplify the process and save time. 
• Complex Applications: The rich ORM functionalities of EF Core, including change tracking and migration support, are especially useful when developing applications that require complex data manipulation. 
• Rapid Development: EF Core is useful for projects that prioritize reducing boilerplate code and increasing development speed. Its support for Language Integrated Query and automated object-relational mapping improves overall productivity, making it an ideal choice for rapid application development.

6. Conclusion

Both Dapper and Entity Framework are reliable ORM frameworks for the .NET environment. As discussed in this blog, each comes with a unique set of features, advantages, and challenges. 

If you need an ORM framework with better performance, flexibility, and a minimalist approach, or if you want complete control over raw SQL queries, Dapper is the way to go. However, if you need a mature ORM with a high level of abstraction, rich features, and user-friendly capabilities, then choose Entity Framework Core. 

However, such choices are mostly influenced by project requirements and the team’s or developer’s preferences. But it is necessary to select an option that balances performance and productivity effectively.

FAQs

How does Dapper work?

Dapper is available as a NuGet package. It allows developers to write and execute raw SQL queries and map the results to objects. Its lightweight design provides complete control over SQL queries, making it ideal for projects that require high performance and low latency. 

Is the Entity Framework an ORM?

Yes, Entity Framework is indeed an Object Relational Mapping technology that allows .NET developers to use domain-specific objects to work with relational data.