The terms get used as if they are the same thing. They are not. A warehouse stores structured data ready for reporting; a lake stores raw data of any shape for later use.
For most businesses, the right starting point is the structured store we build through our Data Warehouse Setup service, with a lake added only when the data volume and variety demand it.
A warehouse holds clean, structured data modelled for reporting. A lake holds raw data in its original form, from spreadsheets to logs to images, ready to be processed when needed.
| Aspect | Data warehouse | Data lake |
|---|---|---|
| Data | Structured, modelled | Raw, any format |
| Best for | Reporting and dashboards | Storing everything cheaply |
| Users | Business and analysts | Data engineers and scientists |
| Setup effort | Modelled up front | Stored first, structured later |
If your goal is trustworthy reporting and dashboards, a warehouse is what you need. It models the data so business users can rely on the numbers without engineering help.
A lake suits businesses with large volumes of varied, raw data they want to keep cheaply and process later, often for advanced analytics. Most growing businesses do not need one yet.
Many mature setups use both: a lake to store everything, a warehouse to serve clean data for reporting. Start with the warehouse unless you have a clear lake-shaped problem.
A foundation build with your first warehouse and core pipelines starts from $4,990 plus GST as a one-off. Keeping it running and growing starts from $990 per month. Larger multi-source platforms start from $12,000 plus GST.
TPR Media operates from Level 34, 1 Eagle Street, Brisbane City QLD 4000, serving clients across Brisbane and Australia-wide.
A data warehouse stores clean, structured data modelled for reporting, while a data lake stores raw data of any format for later processing. Most growing businesses should start with a warehouse and add a lake only when data volume and variety demand it.