Normalization Cheat Sheet
Quick reference: 1NF (atomic, no repeating groups), 2NF (no partial dependencies), 3NF (no transitive dependencies), BCNF (every determinant is a superkey).
MySQL
Beginner
3 min read
Normalization Cheat Sheet
Example
-- 1NF: Each cell holds one value; there is a PK
-- 2NF: Every non-PK column depends on the whole PK
-- 3NF: Every non-PK column depends only on the PK (not other non-PK)
-- BCNF: For X->Y, X must be a superkey
-- 4NF: No multi-valued dependencies
-- 5NF: No join dependencies
-- Most real databases target 3NF or BCNF Pro Tip
Aim for 3NF in application databases; BCNF and beyond for academic or high-integrity systems.