MongoDB Tutorial 0/120 lessons ~6 min read Lesson 63

    Compound Indexes

    Compound indexes cover multiple fields in a specific order.

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    Focus
    3 guided sections
    Practice signal
    Examples included
    Career prep
    Foundation builder

    Introduction

    Compound indexes cover multiple fields in a specific order. The order is critical: the index can satisfy queries on a prefix of the keys — the 'ESR rule' (Equality, Sort, Range) decides the order.

    Syntax reference

    js
    db.orders.createIndex({ userId: 1, createdAt: -1 });
    // Covers: userId=X, userId=X sort createdAt desc, etc.

    Best practices

    • Apply the ESR rule: Equality → Sort → Range.
    • Re-use one compound index for many query shapes.
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