data.table
data.table is a free R package that provides a high-performance version of base R’s data.frame.
What data.table is
data.table is a free R package that provides a high-performance version of base R’s data.frame. It supports filtering, grouping, aggregation, joins, reshaping, and adding, updating, or deleting columns. Its join options include ordered, rolling, overlapping range, and non-equi joins, while dcast and melt handle reshaping. For file work, fread() reads delimited text such as CSV and TSV, including compressed .gz and .bz2 files, and can take input from web URLs or shell commands. fwrite() writes delimited files and is optimized for speed on large files. Many common operations use multiple CPU threads. The project describes the package as memory efficient: columns can be changed by reference without making copies. It has no external Imports, LinkingTo, or Depends dependencies, and queries can use functions from other R packages. data.table requires base R and runs on Linux, macOS, and Windows. Its stated scope excludes binary formats such as Parquet and data stored on disk or in remote SQL databases. The package is self-hosted and code-based, licensed under MPL-2.0, with community help available through Stack Overflow.
Good
- Free R package for Linux, macOS, and Windows
- Includes joins, aggregation, and reshaping
- Reads compressed delimited files
- Can change columns by reference without copies
- No external package dependencies listed
Watch out
- Requires base R
- Binary formats such as Parquet are outside its scope
- On-disk and remote SQL data manipulation are outside its scope
Who it suits
It suits R users who work with delimited files and need in-memory tabular data operations. It is not intended for workflows centered on binary files such as Parquet or data stored in remote SQL databases.
Verdict
data.table brings a broad set of tabular operations and delimited-file tools to R. Its stated limits make it a better fit for in-memory text-data work than binary or remote-database workflows.
Plans and prices
From data.table's own pricing page, checked 8 Oct 2026.
| Plan | Price | What it gives you |
|---|---|---|
| data.table | Free | R package; requires base R |
The facts
Each one read from data.table's own pages, with the date it was checked.
What it does
- Community support
- The project directs users who need help to its active Stack Overflow community.checked 8 Oct 2026
- Data operations
- It supports filtering, grouping, aggregation, joins, reshaping, and adding, updating, or deleting columns.checked 8 Oct 2026
- Dependencies
- The project says it has no dependencies other than base R.checked 8 Oct 2026
- File export
- The package includes fwrite, a fast writer for delimited files.checked 8 Oct 2026
- File format limit
- Reading and writing binary files such as Parquet is listed as outside the project’s current scope.checked 8 Oct 2026
- File import
- The package includes fread, a fast reader for delimited files.checked 8 Oct 2026
- File input
- Its fread() function reads delimited files and can read directly from web URLs or shell commands.checked 8 Oct 2026
- File output
- Its fwrite() function writes delimited files and is optimized for speed on large files.checked 8 Oct 2026
- Funding
- The data.table project is fiscally sponsored by NumFOCUS and accepts donations to support project needs.checked 8 Oct 2026
- Governance
- The project uses a custom governance agreement and is fiscally sponsored by NumFOCUS.checked 8 Oct 2026
- Integrations
- data.table is an R package and can use R functions from other packages in queries.checked 8 Oct 2026
- Joins
- Its join features include ordered, rolling, overlapping range, and non-equi joins.checked 8 Oct 2026
- License
- The project repository identifies its license as MPL-2.0.checked 8 Oct 2026
- Memory behavior
- Columns can be added, updated, or deleted by reference without making copies.checked 8 Oct 2026
- Memory use
- The project describes data.table as memory efficient and says columns can be added, updated, or deleted by reference without copies.checked 8 Oct 2026
- Out-of-memory limit
- Manipulating data stored on disk or in remote SQL databases is listed as outside the project’s current scope.checked 8 Oct 2026
- Parallel processing
- Many common operations are internally parallelized to use multiple CPU threads.checked 8 Oct 2026
- R compatibility
- The project says it continuously tests against R 3.5.0, its stated current oldest supported R dependency.checked 8 Oct 2026
- Reshaping
- It supports reshaping data with dcast and melt.checked 8 Oct 2026
- Support
- The project directs users who need help to the data.table community on Stack Overflow.checked 8 Oct 2026
- Supported systems
- The installation guide lists Linux, Mac, and Windows.checked 8 Oct 2026
- What it does
- data.table provides a high-performance version of base R’s data.frame with syntax and feature enhancements.checked 8 Oct 2026
- What it is
- data.table is an R package that provides a high-performance version of base R’s data.frame.checked 8 Oct 2026
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