Context: Data is at the heart of any information system. Choosing the appropriate database and its operation is a major decision for any company and choosing from the pool of different options can can feel overwhelming. In this thesis we take a look at the main factors to consider when making your decision, to help you with the whole process. This thesis will explore the selection, prioritization and considerations when choosing a database. It is aimed at exploring the recent uptake and impact of NoSQL in companies and analyze the results of the literature and empirical study.

Aim and Objectives: Our aim is to investigate the recent uptakeand continued use of NoSQL databases in software development companies. It is imperative to know how companies are choosing to adopt the right technology for their application. The objective is to provide instructions for companies on how to choose the right DB for their needs and what to consider.

Method: Interviews are conducted to find out the process/approach that practitioners employ when choosing the database technology. Then an analysis of the considerations and their priority is conducted using a questionnaire. The focus is on the considerations, meaning factors to consider when choosing a database.

Results: The result of the interviews show that infrastructure is the most essential consideration when choosing a DB, and the survey questionnaire show that consistency is the most essential consideration.

Conclusions: The result suggests that there are several essential considerations when choosing a database. Furthermore, we conclude that the challenges of adopting NoSQL technology may be the following: only provide eventual consistency, which can impact availability and performance, reliability, the challenges of transitioning, keeping track, lacking data integrity, handling of complex queries, and security and privacy risks.