RAW, STAGING, CERTIFIED and CORE Layers Explained
Understanding data warehouse layers and implementing them with DBT.
Dec 5, 202510 min read|DataForge
A well-organized data warehouse has distinct layers. Here's how to structure them.
RAW Layer
Untouched data from sources. Never modify raw data directly.
STAGING Layer
Light transformations: type casting, column renaming, basic cleaning.
CORE Layer
Business logic, joins, aggregations. Your main analytical models.
CERTIFIED Layer
Production-ready, tested, documented. What analysts and BI tools consume.
Implementing with DBT
Use folders to organize: models/raw, models/staging, models/core, models/certified.