Django Basics

10 examples to get you started with Django 5.2 - 7 basic and 3 intermediate.

Prerequisites

uv pip install "django>=5.2"
django-admin startproject config .
python manage.py migrate

• Django 5.2 targets Python 3.14.
• Use python manage.py runserver for local development.

Basic Examples

1. Project and App Layout

Settings, URLs, and an app module.

# config/urls.py
from django.contrib import admin
from django.urls import path
from hello import views
 
urlpatterns = [
    path("admin/", admin.site.urls),
    path("", views.home),
]

• Projects hold settings; apps hold features.
• Wire views in root urls.py.
• Run migrations before serving data models.

Related: Models & the ORM - database models

2. Function-Based View

Return HTTP responses from Python callables.

from django.http import JsonResponse
 
def home(request):
    return JsonResponse({"message": "Hello, Django"})

• Views receive request first.
• JsonResponse for simple APIs.
• Class-based views scale better for mixins.

3. URL Patterns with Parameters

Capture path segments.

from django.urls import path
from . import views
 
urlpatterns = [path("users/<int:user_id>/", views.user_detail)]

• Converters validate segment types.
• Names enable reverse lookups.
• Trailing slashes are conventional.

4. Settings Module

Configure installed apps and database.

# config/settings.py excerpt
INSTALLED_APPS = ["django.contrib.admin", "hello"]
DATABASES = {"default": {"ENGINE": "django.db.backends.sqlite3", "NAME": "db.sqlite3"}}

• Keep secrets in environment variables.
• Split settings per environment in mature projects.
• SQLite is fine for local dev only.

5. Admin Site

Built-in CRUD UI for models.

from django.contrib import admin
from .models import Item
 
admin.site.register(Item)

• Register models on admin.site.
• Customize list displays in ModelAdmin.
• Protect admin behind strong auth.

Related: The Admin - customization

6. Templates

Server-rendered HTML with Django template language.

from django.shortcuts import render
 
def home(request):
    return render(request, "home.html", {"title": "Django"})

• Templates live under templates/.
• Context dict passes variables.
• Use template inheritance for layouts.

Related: Templates & Forms - forms

7. Management Commands

CLI tasks via manage.py.

from django.core.management.base import BaseCommand
 
class Command(BaseCommand):
    help = "Demo command"
 
    def handle(self, *args, **options):
        self.stdout.write("ok")

• Place commands in management/commands/.
• Use for cron-friendly maintenance.
• Keep commands idempotent.

Intermediate Examples

8. Middleware Hook

Process requests globally.

MIDDLEWARE = [
    "django.middleware.security.SecurityMiddleware",
    "django.contrib.sessions.middleware.SessionMiddleware",
    "django.middleware.common.CommonMiddleware",
]

• Order matters for sessions and CSRF.
• Add custom middleware sparingly.
• Prefer view decorators for localized concerns.

Related: Caching & Performance - cache middleware

9. AppConfig

Explicit app initialization.

from django.apps import AppConfig
 
class HelloConfig(AppConfig):
    default_auto_field = "django.db.models.BigAutoField"
    name = "hello"

• Use default_app_config pattern via AppConfig.
• Run ready() for signals carefully.
• BigAutoField is default for PKs.

10. JSON API View

Return structured data without DRF.

from django.http import JsonResponse
from django.views.decorators.http import require_GET
 
@require_GET
def health(request):
    return JsonResponse({"status": "ok"})

• HTTP method decorators enforce verbs.
• DRF adds serializers and auth.
• Keep JSON views thin.

Related: Django REST Framework - viewsets

Stack versions: This page was written for Python 3.14.0 (stable 3.14, maintenance 3.13), FastAPI 0.115+, Django 5.2, Flask 3.1, Pydantic 2, PyTorch 2.6+, pandas 2.2+, Polars 1.x, ruff 0.9+, and uv 0.6+.