---
title: "Making Datasets Fly with Datasette and Fly"
description: "Datasette makes SQLite datasets accessible through a web interface, with SQL queries, JSON and CSV export, and a REST/JSON API. This tutorial imports New York Central Park Squirrel Census CSV data into SQLite, runs it locally with Datasette, and publishes the database to Fly using the datasette-publish-fly plugin. It then renames the database’s X and Y columns to Longitude and Latitude, installs datasette-cluster-map, and redeploys with the plugin to produce an interactive map of squirrel sightings. The deployments expose Datasette online at Fly hostnames, with HTTPS, automatically generated Let’s Encrypt certificates, custom domain support, global deployment options, and edge networking with SSL termination. The mapped deployment lets users inspect individual sightings and view their details."
---

# Making Datasets Fly with Datasette and Fly

[Fly.io](https://yomu.fyi/company/fly-io) · Mar 26, 2020

**Type:** Tutorial

## Summary

Datasette makes SQLite datasets accessible through a web interface, with SQL queries, JSON and CSV export, and a REST/JSON API. This tutorial imports New York Central Park Squirrel Census CSV data into SQLite, runs it locally with Datasette, and publishes the database to Fly using the datasette-publish-fly plugin. It then renames the database’s X and Y columns to Longitude and Latitude, installs datasette-cluster-map, and redeploys with the plugin to produce an interactive map of squirrel sightings. The deployments expose Datasette online at Fly hostnames, with HTTPS, automatically generated Let’s Encrypt certificates, custom domain support, global deployment options, and edge networking with SSL termination. The mapped deployment lets users inspect individual sightings and view their details.

## Context

Datasette is intended to make datasets accessible and available for sharing, exploration, analysis, citizen journalism, and application demos. The tutorial uses the New York Central Park Squirrel Census data as an example and demonstrates how to take it from a downloadable CSV to an online, interactive dataset.

## Approach / What changed

The tutorial imports CSV data into SQLite, serves the resulting database with Datasette, and publishes it to Fly through the datasette-publish-fly plugin. It renames X and Y to Longitude and Latitude, installs datasette-cluster-map, and uses Datasette’s --install option to include the plugin in a second Fly deployment.

## Takeaways

- Datasette presents SQLite data through a web UI that supports composing views, SQL queries, JSON or CSV export, and a REST/JSON API.
- The Fly publishing plugin builds an image and deploys the Datasette database; the resulting app is available at a Fly hostname with HTTPS and automatically generated Let’s Encrypt certificates.
- datasette-cluster-map uses latitude and longitude columns to provide an interactive map, with closer views and details when sightings resolve to a single squirrel.

**Tags:** [Datasette](https://yomu.fyi/topic/datasette), [Deployment](https://yomu.fyi/topic/deployment), [Fly](https://yomu.fyi/topic/fly), [SQLite](https://yomu.fyi/topic/sqlite)

- Source: [Fly.io](https://fly.io/blog/making-datasets-fly-with-datasette-and-fly)
- Source URL: https://fly.io/blog/making-datasets-fly-with-datasette-and-fly
- Ingested by Yomu: 2026-09-02T11:58:24.877Z

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