malloy
Expert guidance for Malloy, the experimental data language from Google that replaces SQL for analytics with a composable, reusable, and more readable syntax. Helps developers write Malloy models, build nested queries, and explore data with Malloy's VS Code extension and notebook interface.
Usage
Getting Started
- Install the skill using the command above
- Open your AI coding agent (Claude Code, Codex, Gemini CLI, or Cursor)
- Reference the skill in your prompt
- The AI will use the skill's capabilities automatically
Example Prompts
- "Analyze the sales data in revenue.csv and identify trends"
- "Create a visualization comparing Q1 vs Q2 performance metrics"
Documentation
Overview
Malloy, the experimental data language from Google that replaces SQL for analytics with a composable, reusable, and more readable syntax. Helps developers write Malloy models, build nested queries, and explore data with Malloy's VS Code extension and notebook interface.
Instructions
Source Definition
Define reusable data models:
// models/ecommerce.malloy — Ecommerce data model
source: orders is duckdb.table('orders.parquet') extend {
// Dimensions (attributes to group by)
dimension:
order_date is created_at::date
order_month is created_at.month
order_year is created_at.year
is_high_value is amount > 100
order_size is pick
'small' when items_count < 3
'medium' when items_count < 10
'large'
// Measures (aggregations)
measure:
order_count is count()
total_revenue is sum(amount)
avg_order_value is avg(amount)
unique_customers is count(distinct customer_id)
revenue_per_customer is total_revenue / unique_customers
// Reusable named queries (views)
view: revenue_by_month is {
group_by: order_month
aggregate:
total_revenue
order_count
avg_order_value
order_by: order_month
}
view: top_customers is {
group_by: customer_id
aggregate:
total_revenue
order_count
order_by: total_revenue desc
limit: 20
}
view: daily_dashboard is {
group_by: order_date
aggregate:
total_revenue
order_count
unique_customers
avg_order_value
order_by: order_date desc
limit: 30
}
}
Queries
Write composable, readable analytics queries:
// queries/analysis.malloy — Analytics queries using the model
import "models/ecommerce.malloy"
// Simple aggregation
run: orders -> {
aggregate:
total_revenue
order_count
avg_order_value
}
// Group by with filters
run: orders -> {
where: order_year = 2026
group_by: order_month
aggregate:
total_revenue
order_count
order_by: order_month
}
// Nested queries — multiple levels of aggregation in one query
run: orders -> {
group_by: order_size
aggregate:
total_revenue
order_count
avg_order_value
// Nested: for each order_size, show monthly breakdown
nest: monthly_trend is {
group_by: order_month
aggregate: total_revenue
order_by: order_month
}
// Nested: for each order_size, show top customers
nest: top_customers is {
group_by: customer_id
aggregate: total_revenue, order_count
order_by: total_revenue desc
limit: 5
}
}
// Pipeline: chain transformations
run: orders
-> { where: status = 'completed' }
-> revenue_by_month // Reuse named view
-> { where: total_revenue > 10000 } // Filter the result
Joins and Relationships
// models/full_model.malloy — Multi-table model with joins
source: customers is duckdb.table('customers.parquet') extend {
dimension: signup_month is created_at.month
measure:
customer_count is count()
avg_lifetime_value is avg(lifetime_value)
}
source: products is duckdb.table('products.parquet') extend {
dimension: price_tier is pick
'budget' when price < 25
'mid-range' when price < 100
'premium'
measure: product_count is count()
}
source: order_items is duckdb.table('order_items.parquet') extend {
// Join to related tables
join_one: orders on order_id = orders.id
join_one: products on product_id = products.id
join_one: customers is orders.customer_id = customers.id
measure:
total_quantity is sum(quantity)
item_revenue is sum(quantity * unit_price)
// Query across joined tables
view: revenue_by_category is {
group_by: products.category
aggregate:
item_revenue
total_quantity
order_by: item_revenue desc
}
view: customer_product_matrix is {
group_by: customers.signup_month
aggregate: item_revenue
nest: by_category is {
group_by: products.category
aggregate: item_revenue
}
}
}
Notebooks and Visualization
// In Malloy notebook (.malloynb) or VS Code extension
// Malloy auto-renders results as charts when appropriate
// Bar chart — group by with single measure
run: orders -> {
group_by: status
aggregate: order_count
}
// # bar_chart
// Line chart — time series
run: orders -> revenue_by_month
// # line_chart
// Dashboard — multiple visualizations from one query
run: orders -> {
group_by: order_size
aggregate: total_revenue, order_count
nest: trend is {
group_by: order_month
aggregate: total_revenue
}
}
// # dashboard
DuckDB and BigQuery Connections
// Connection configuration
// DuckDB (local files)
connection: duckdb is duckdb [
parquet_path: "./data/"
]
// BigQuery
connection: bq is bigquery [
project_id: "my-gcp-project"
dataset: "analytics"
]
// Use BigQuery tables in models
source: events is bq.table('analytics.events') extend {
measure: event_count is count()
}
Installation
# VS Code Extension (recommended)
# Install "Malloy" from VS Code Marketplace
# CLI
npm install -g @malloydata/malloy-cli
# Python package
pip install malloy
# Run a Malloy file
malloy run analysis.malloy
Examples
Example 1: Integrating Malloy into an existing application
User request:
Add Malloy to my Next.js app for the AI chat feature. I want streaming responses.
The agent installs the SDK, creates an API route that initializes the Malloy client, configures streaming, selects an appropriate model, and wires up the frontend to consume the stream. It handles error cases and sets up proper environment variable management for the API key.
Example 2: Optimizing queries performance
User request:
My Malloy calls are slow and expensive. Help me optimize the setup.
The agent reviews the current implementation, identifies issues (wrong model selection, missing caching, inefficient prompting, no batching), and applies optimizations specific to Malloy's capabilities — adjusting model parameters, adding response caching, and implementing retry logic with exponential backoff.
Guidelines
- Models separate from queries — Define sources and views in model files; write queries in separate files or notebooks
- Name your views — Reusable views (named queries) are Malloy's superpower; define common analyses once, use everywhere
- Nested queries for rich analysis — Instead of multiple separate queries, nest related analyses into a single query
- Use pick for categorization — The
pickexpression replaces SQL's verbose CASE WHEN for creating dimensions - Pipeline for progressive filtering — Chain queries with
->to progressively refine results; each step is readable - DuckDB for local analysis — Use DuckDB connection with Parquet files for fast local analytics; switch to BigQuery for production
- Malloy notebooks for exploration — Use
.malloynbfiles for iterative data exploration with inline visualization - Version your models — Malloy models are code; store in Git alongside your data pipelines
Information
- Version
- 1.0.0
- Author
- terminal-skills
- Category
- Data & AI
- License
- Apache-2.0