Are you new to Salesforce development and wondering how to fetch data from Salesforce objects? Welcome to the world of SOQL – Salesforce Object Query Language! Just like SQL is used to query relational databases, SOQL is used to query data stored in Salesforce.

In this beginner-friendly guide, I’ll walk you through what SOQL is, how it works, and how to write your first query.


🌟 What is SOQL?

SOQL (Salesforce Object Query Language) is a language used to retrieve data from Salesforce’s database. You can use SOQL to:

  • Select records from a single object
  • Filter those records based on conditions
  • Access related records via relationships

Note: Unlike SQL, SOQL doesn’t support INSERT, UPDATE, or DELETE. It is strictly used for querying (read-only).


🛠 Basic SOQL Syntax

SELECT field1, field2 FROM ObjectName WHERE condition

📌 Example:

SELECT Name, Industry FROM Account WHERE Industry = 'Technology'

This returns a list of Account records where the Industry is “Technology”, showing only the Name and Industry fields.


🧰 Common Clauses in SOQL

  • SELECT – Choose which fields to retrieve
  • FROM – Specify the object to query
  • WHERE – Filter records
  • ORDER BY – Sort the results
  • LIMIT – Limit the number of records returned
SELECT Name FROM Contact ORDER BY CreatedDate DESC LIMIT 5


🔗 Working with Relationships

1. Child-to-Parent (dot notation):

SELECT FirstName, LastName, Account.Name FROM Contact

2. Parent-to-Child (subquery):

SELECT Name, (SELECT LastName FROM Contacts) FROM Account


⚖️ SOQL vs SQL – Key Differences

Feature SOQL SQL
Used With Salesforce Objects Relational Databases
Write Operations No (Read-only) Yes (Read/Write)
Joins Not supported (use relationships) Supported
DML Operations Handled separately in Apex Included in SQL


✅ Best Practices

  • Always use selective filters to avoid hitting governor limits.
  • Use LIMIT while testing queries.
  • Use Developer Console, Workbench, or VS Code with Salesforce CLI to run and test queries.
  • Avoid SELECT *. Always specify fields explicitly.


🚀 Your First Steps

Start practicing by querying standard objects like Account, Contact, and Opportunity in your Salesforce Developer Org. Try combining filters, limits, and ordering.

Here’s a simple one to get started:

SELECT Id, Name FROM Opportunity WHERE StageName = 'Prospecting'
💡 Pro Tip: You can practice SOQL queries using the Query Editor in Developer Console or with Workbench at workbench.developerforce.com.


💬 Final Thoughts

SOQL is a foundational skill for every Salesforce developer. With just a few keywords, you can access powerful data and insights from your org. Start small, practice regularly, and explore how SOQL fits into Apex, automation, and reporting.

Have you tried writing a SOQL query yet? What challenges did you face? Drop a comment below!