Airflow Best Practices: 10 Things Every Data Engineer Should Know

Building production-ready Airflow DAGs requires more than just writing Python code. Here are 10 essential best practices every data engineer should follow.

1. Use Idempotent Tasks

Your tasks should be idempotent - running them multiple times should produce the same result. This is crucial for retries and manual reruns.

2. Set Proper Start Dates

Always use static start dates. Never use dynamic dates like datetime.now() as they can cause unexpected behavior.

3. Implement Proper Error Handling

Use try-except blocks and proper logging to handle errors gracefully. This makes debugging much easier.

4. Use Task Pools and Queues

Leverage Airflow's task pools and queues to manage resource allocation and prevent system overload.

5. Keep DAGs Simple and Focused

Each DAG should have a single, clear purpose. Break complex workflows into multiple DAGs if needed.

6. Use Variables and Connections

Store configuration in Airflow Variables and Connections rather than hardcoding values in your DAGs.

7. Implement Proper Logging

Use Python's logging module with appropriate log levels. This helps with debugging and monitoring.

8. Test Your DAGs Locally

Always test your DAGs locally before deploying to production. Use Airflow's test commands.

9. Version Control Your DAGs

Keep your DAGs in version control. This enables collaboration and rollback capabilities.

10. Monitor and Alert

Set up proper monitoring and alerting for your DAGs. Know when things go wrong before your users do.

Conclusion

Following these best practices will help you build more reliable, maintainable, and production-ready Airflow DAGs.

If you want a simple way to keep these in mind, download our Airflow Best Practices Checklist, which turns this article into a one-page PDF you can share with your team.

Want to enforce best practices automatically? DAGForge automatically applies these best practices to every DAG you create. Try it free and pair it with our checklist for your code reviews.