optimizing-ef-core-queries

Fix N+1 queries in EF Core by eager loading related data with Include, using AsSplitQuery for multiple collections to avoid cartesian explosion, or projecting only needed columns with Select. Enable query logging first to confirm the N+1 pattern.

Use AsNoTracking for read-only queries where entities will not be updated, since change tracking adds significant overhead. Use AsNoTrackingWithIdentityResolution when queries return duplicate entities to avoid duplicated objects in memory.

Use a single query for one level of Include or when transaction consistency matters. Use AsSplitQuery when including multiple collections or large child collections, since a single JOIN can cause cartesian explosion and transfer redundant data.

No, this workflow targets EF Core specifically. It also does not cover database-side problems like missing indexes or bad schema design, which require database tuning rather than ORM query changes.

This happens when ToList is called before Where, causing client-side evaluation. Always filter with Where before materializing results, use Any instead of Count for existence checks, and use EF.Functions.Like instead of string.Contains for SQL translation.