Case Study: The Guardian achieves faster delivery of interactive features and increased revenue with MongoDB

The Guardian - Customer Case Study

The Guardian, a long-established British news organization and early digital pioneer, needed a more flexible identity system as reader engagement became directly tied to revenue. Their legacy relational database used a rigid schema that made it difficult to extend user records for new features (e.g., contests, social sign-ons or live blogging) and required downtime for schema changes, hindering rapid product evolution.

By rebuilding the identity system on MongoDB’s JSON document model, The Guardian gained a malleable schema, rich ad hoc querying and easy indexing, letting teams add fields and services without site downtime. The change sped feature rollouts, enabled richer social and interactive experiences, boosted user engagement and revenue, and set the foundation for future projects like live blogging and improved editorial workflows.

The Guardian

Philip Wills

Software Architect, Guardian