SQL games · free in your browser
SQL games where the trap is in the data
No murder, no suspects. A colleague hands you a number that looks right. Your job is to find out whether it is.
Pick your game
Three colleagues ask for a customer count, and each means something different. Ask the right questions and catch the test accounts hiding in the total.
- No SQL
- 3 minutes
- Free
- Made for a phone
Marketing’s query is correct and the chart agrees with it. Find out who it actually compares before it goes into the plan.
- SQL in your browser
- ≈17 minutes
- Free
- No account
Place a practice order in day 1 and build your first query by tapping. In day 2, type SQL by hand.
- From zero
- ≈10 minutes
- All 10 days free with an account
What makes these games different
- 1Requests like those at work
A colleague needs a number for a report or a plan. Not a riddle — the kind of question an analyst gets on a Tuesday.
- 2A trap that looks right
The query runs, the chart agrees, the number is real. The trap is in who was counted and what was compared.
- 3Feedback that explains
Every wrong turn gets its own reason, in plain words. Not just a red cross and “try again”.
- 4A call you defend
You finish with a verdict, a memo or a decision — what an analyst actually hands over.
SQL Murder Mystery asks who did it. Atterna asks whether the number is right.
We like the classics, and they are a good place to start. Here is where each one fits, as of October 2026, from each game’s own site.
| Game | Format | How you know you’re right | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| SQL Murder Mystery | One open-ended murder case | You enter the suspect’s name | Free |
| SQL Island | Text adventure, about an hour | You move on when a task is solved | Free |
| SQL Noir | Detective cases | Your query result is validated | Starter cases free, then a one-time licence |
| Atterna | Work requests with a data trap | Each mistake gets its reason; you write the verdict | Wrong Number, case 1 and Start free (all 10 days with an account) |
Never written a query? SQL Island or Start day 1. Want the free classic? SQL Murder Mystery. Want problems shaped like real analyst work? Start here.
We make Atterna. Facts about other games come from their own websites; if something changed, write to hello@atterna.com.
When you want more than one game
- Cases 2–3A commission that shrank and refunds that don’t add up: the same kind of trap, in deeper data.
- Meridian simulatorEight episodes of analyst work on one marketplace, about an hour each, with a casefile at the end.
- Start, SQL from zeroTen days from your first query to a report a board can trust.
Start is free. Case rounds in Foundations €19 or Meridian in Analyst €59, one-time. See both levels →
Questions
Do I need to know SQL?
Not for Wrong Number: you pick filters, no code. Case 1 uses SQL that is already written for you to run and edit. If you have never written a query, Start teaches it from zero: a practice order and the tables in day 1, your first SQL query in day 2. Days 1–2 need no account; all 10 days are free with one.
Is it free?
Wrong Number, case 1, Start days 1–2 and the guides are free with no account. SQL is free: all 10 days of Start with a free account. You pay only for practice: case rounds (€19) and Meridian (€59).
Does it work on a phone?
Wrong Number is made for a phone. The SQL case and lessons work on a phone too, but a computer is more comfortable for typing queries.
If AI writes my queries, why learn SQL?
Because someone has to check what comes back. These games train exactly that: whether the number answers the question that was asked.
Will this help me get a job?
Use the cases to practise explaining what you counted, why your comparison is fair, and what your results do and do not support. The scenarios and data are fictional; completing them is not a job guarantee.
No murder, no suspects. A colleague hands you a number that looks right. Your job is to find out whether it is.