SQLAlchemy is a Python SQL toolkit and Object-Relational Mapping (ORM) library that provides a full suite of well-known enterprise-level persistence patterns. It has two main components:
- SQLAlchemy Core: A schema-centric model that provides a Pythonic way of working with databases using SQL expressions
- SQLAlchemy ORM: An object-relational mapper built on top of Core that allows you to work with database records as Python objects
The main benefits include database abstraction, connection pooling, transaction management, and a powerful query API that works across different database engines.