How Do I Add a Database to My Vibe Code App?

Store and retrieve data with simple API calls

Building an app with Claude Code or another AI assistant? You'll probably need to store data at some point - user preferences, content, application state. With itsalive.co, adding a database is as simple as making a fetch call.

No Setup Required

Unlike traditional databases, there's nothing to configure. No connection strings, no schemas, no migrations. Just start saving and retrieving data.

Saving Data

Use the /_db/ endpoint to store any JSON data under a key:

// Save data for the current user
await fetch('/_db/user-preferences', {
  method: 'POST',
  headers: { 'Content-Type': 'application/json' },
  body: JSON.stringify({
    theme: 'dark',
    notifications: true,
    language: 'en'
  })
});

Retrieving Data

Fetch your data back with a GET request:

const response = await fetch('/_db/user-preferences');
const data = await response.json();
console.log(data.theme); // 'dark'

Data Scoping

Data is automatically scoped to the logged-in user. This means:

Public vs Private Data

By default, data is private to each user. For public data (like blog posts or products), use the public prefix:

// Save public data (anyone can read)
await fetch('/_db/public/blog-posts', {
  method: 'POST',
  headers: { 'Content-Type': 'application/json' },
  body: JSON.stringify([
    { title: 'My First Post', content: '...' },
    { title: 'Another Post', content: '...' }
  ])
});

Listing Keys

Need to see what keys exist? List them:

const response = await fetch('/_db/');
const keys = await response.json();
// ['user-preferences', 'saved-items', 'draft-content']

Deleting Data

Remove data with a DELETE request:

await fetch('/_db/old-data', {
  method: 'DELETE'
});

Complete Example

Here's a simple todo app that persists data:

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
  <title>My Todos</title>
</head>
<body>
  <h1>My Todos</h1>
  <input type="text" id="newTodo" placeholder="Add a todo...">
  <button onclick="addTodo()">Add</button>
  <ul id="todoList"></ul>

  <script>
    let todos = [];

    // Load todos on page load
    async function loadTodos() {
      const res = await fetch('/_db/todos');
      if (res.ok) {
        todos = await res.json();
        render();
      }
    }

    // Save todos to database
    async function saveTodos() {
      await fetch('/_db/todos', {
        method: 'POST',
        headers: { 'Content-Type': 'application/json' },
        body: JSON.stringify(todos)
      });
    }

    function addTodo() {
      const input = document.getElementById('newTodo');
      if (input.value.trim()) {
        todos.push({ text: input.value, done: false });
        input.value = '';
        saveTodos();
        render();
      }
    }

    function render() {
      const list = document.getElementById('todoList');
      list.innerHTML = todos.map((t, i) =>
        `<li>${t.text}</li>`
      ).join('');
    }

    loadTodos();
  </script>
</body>
</html>

Tips

Next Steps