Adding SQLite to the .NET MAUI application

Almost every application needs to store data. Today I will show you how to connect SQLite to the .NET MAUI application.

First of all, we need to install NuGet packages:

<PackageReference Include="sqlite-net-pcl" Version="1.8.116" />
<PackageReference Include="SQLitePCLRaw.core" Version="2.1.0" />
<PackageReference Include="SQLitePCLRaw.bundle_green" Version="2.1.0" />
<PackageReference Include="SQLitePCLRaw.provider.dynamic_cdecl" Version="2.1.0" />
<PackageReference Include="SQLitePCLRaw.provider.sqlite3" Version="2.1.0" />

Then create repository class:

private readonly SQLiteConnection _database;

public Repository()
{
    var dbPath = Path.Combine(Environment.GetFolderPath(Environment.SpecialFolder.LocalApplicationData), "entities.db");
    _database = new SQLiteConnection(dbPath);
    _database.CreateTable<MyEntity>();
}

public List<MyEntity> List()
{
    return _database.Table<MyEntity>().ToList();
}

public int Create(MyEntity entity)
{
    return _database.Insert(entity);
}

public int Update(MyEntity entity)
{
    return _database.Update(entity);
}

public int Delete(MyEntity entity)
{
    return _database.Delete(entity);
}

It's up to you how you initialize the database and which methods to implement.

To use the repository update the MainPage:

private readonly Repository repository;

public MainPage()
{
    repository = new Repository();
    InitializeComponent();
}

protected override void OnAppearing()
{
    base.OnAppearing();
    GetEntities();
}

private void GetEntities()
{
    collectionView.ItemsSource = repository.List();
}

Important part for iOS

For iOS/MacCatalyst we need to set the SQLite provider. We can do it in AppDelegate:

protected override MauiApp CreateMauiApp()
{
    raw.SetProvider(new SQLite3Provider_sqlite3());
    return MauiProgram.CreateMauiApp();
}

The full code can be found on GitHub.

The .NET MAUI Blazor sample can be found on GitHub.

The sample with EntityFramework Core can be found on GitHub.