Batch vs Streaming Pipelines

Choosing the right flow for the right kind of data

You’ve built an ETL pipeline.
You’ve transformed and loaded data.

Now the question is:
How often should your pipeline run?
And more importantly… should it run in batches — or in real time?

Let’s break it down.

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What Is a Batch Pipeline?

A batch pipeline runs on a schedule.
It pulls a large chunk of data at once — typically daily, hourly, or weekly.

Think:

• Nightly revenue reports

• Weekly customer churn rollups

• Monthly sales summaries

It’s like picking up laundry every Sunday.
No need to track every sock in real time — just do one large pickup.

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When to Use Batch

• Your data changes slowly (e.g., payments, orders)

• You’re running reports, not alerts

• You want to keep cloud costs low

• You need high data completeness over speed