Step-by-Step Guide to Building a CRUD
Application in Django
A CRUD (Create, Read, Update, Delete) application allows users to perform basic database
operations. We'll build a simple Django app to manage a list of books with fields like title,
author, and published_date.
Step 1: Set Up Django Project
First, create a new Django project and app.
# Create a Django project
django-admin startproject crud_project
# Navigate into the project
cd crud_project
# Create a new Django app
python manage.py startapp books
# Run migrations and start the server
python manage.py migrate
python manage.py runserver
Step 2: Configure Django Settings
Add the books app to INSTALLED_APPS in crud_project/settings.py.
INSTALLED_APPS = [
'django.contrib.admin',
'django.contrib.auth',
'django.contrib.contenttypes',
'django.contrib.sessions',
'django.contrib.messages',
'django.contrib.staticfiles',
'books', # Add this line
Step 3: Create the Model
Define a Book model in books/models.py.
from django.db import models
class Book(models.Model):
title = models.CharField(max_length=200)
author = models.CharField(max_length=100)
published_date = models.DateField()
def __str__(self):
return self.title
Run migrations to create the table in the database:
python manage.py makemigrations books
python manage.py migrate
Step 4: Create a Django Admin Panel (Optional)
To manage books from the admin panel, register the model in books/admin.py.
from django.contrib import admin
from .models import Book
admin.site.register(Book)
Now, create a superuser to access the Django admin panel:
python manage.py createsuperuser
Follow the prompts, then run:
python manage.py runserver
Login at http://127.0.0.1:8000/admin/ and add some book records.
Step 5: Create Views for CRUD Operations
Define views in books/views.py.
from django.shortcuts import render, redirect, get_object_or_404
from .models import Book
from .forms import BookForm
# View all books
def book_list(request):
books = Book.objects.all()
return render(request, 'books/book_list.html', {'books': books})
# Create a new book
def book_create(request):
if request.method == "POST":
form = BookForm(request.POST)
if form.is_valid():
form.save()
return redirect('book_list')
else:
form = BookForm()
return render(request, 'books/book_form.html', {'form': form})
# Update an existing book
def book_update(request, pk):
book = get_object_or_404(Book, pk=pk)
if request.method == "POST":
form = BookForm(request.POST, instance=book)
if form.is_valid():
form.save()
return redirect('book_list')
else:
form = BookForm(instance=book)
return render(request, 'books/book_form.html', {'form': form})
# Delete a book
def book_delete(request, pk):
book = get_object_or_404(Book, pk=pk)
if request.method == "POST":
book.delete()
return redirect('book_list')
return render(request, 'books/book_confirm_delete.html', {'book': book})
Step 6: Create Forms
Create a form class in books/forms.py.
from django import forms
from .models import Book
class BookForm(forms.ModelForm):
class Meta:
model = Book
fields = ['title', 'author', 'published_date']
Step 7: Define URLs
Create books/urls.py.
from django.urls import path
from .views import book_list, book_create, book_update, book_delete
urlpatterns = [
path('', book_list, name='book_list'),
path('new/', book_create, name='book_create'),
path('<int:pk>/edit/', book_update, name='book_update'),
path('<int:pk>/delete/', book_delete, name='book_delete'),
]
Include these URLs in crud_project/urls.py.
from django.contrib import admin
from django.urls import path, include
urlpatterns = [
path('admin/', admin.site.urls),
path('books/', include('books.urls')),
Step 8: Create HTML Templates
Inside the books app, create a templates/books/ folder and add the following files:
book_list.html (List all books)
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<title>Book List</title>
</head>
<body>
<h1>Books</h1>
<a href="{% url 'book_create' %}">Add New Book</a>
<ul>
{% for book in books %}
<li>
{{ book.title }} by {{ book.author }} ({{ book.published_date }})
<a href="{% url 'book_update' book.pk %}">Edit</a>
<a href="{% url 'book_delete' book.pk %}">Delete</a>
</li>
{% endfor %}
</ul>
</body>
</html>
book_form.html (Form for Create/Update)
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<title>Book Form</title>
</head>
<body>
<h1>{% if form.instance.pk %}Edit{% else %}New{% endif %} Book</h1>
<form method="post">
{% csrf_token %}
{{ form.as_p }}
<button type="submit">Save</button>
</form>
<a href="{% url 'book_list' %}">Back</a>
</body>
</html>
book_confirm_delete.html (Delete confirmation)
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<title>Delete Book</title>
</head>
<body>
<h1>Are you sure you want to delete "{{ book.title }}"?</h1>
<form method="post">
{% csrf_token %}
<button type="submit">Yes, Delete</button>
</form>
<a href="{% url 'book_list' %}">Cancel</a>
</body>
</html>
Step 9: Run the Application
Start the Django development server:
python manage.py runserver
Visit http://127.0.0.1:8000/books/ to see the book list.
Conclusion
You have successfully built a CRUD application in Django. This project covers:
✅ Creating models and migrations
✅ Using Django forms for input
✅ Writing views for CRUD operations
✅ Setting up URLs and templates
