Skip to content
PondPilot Docs
Blog

Getting Started

Get up and running with PondPilot in minutes. This guide walks you through loading data, writing queries, and exploring results.

Opening PondPilot

Section titled “Opening PondPilot”

Visit app.pondpilot.io in your browser. No account or installation required.

For the best experience, use Chrome or Edge which support persistent file access across sessions.

Loading Your First Data

Section titled “Loading Your First Data”

From Local Files

Section titled “From Local Files”
  1. Press Ctrl+F (or ⌘+F on Mac) to open the file picker
  2. Select one or more files (CSV, Parquet, JSON, Excel, or DuckDB)
  3. Your files appear in the Data Explorer on the left

From URLs

Section titled “From URLs”

Load data directly from a URL:

SELECT * FROM 'https://example.com/data.parquet';

For URLs without CORS headers, PondPilot automatically uses the CORS Proxy.

Writing Your First Query

Section titled “Writing Your First Query”
  1. Click New Script or press Ctrl+K → “New SQL Script”
  2. Write your SQL query:
SELECT * FROM my_data LIMIT 100;
  1. Press Ctrl+Enter to execute

Query Tips

Section titled “Query Tips”
  • Run entire script: Ctrl+Enter / ⌘+Enter
  • Run statement under cursor: Ctrl+Shift+Enter / ⌘+Shift+Enter
  • Open AI assistant: Ctrl+I / ⌘+I

Exploring Results

Section titled “Exploring Results”

Query results appear in an interactive table below your editor:

  • Sort columns - Click column headers
  • Filter data - Use column filters
  • Navigate pages - Use pagination controls for large results
  • Copy cells - Select and copy individual values

Using the Data Explorer

Section titled “Using the Data Explorer”

The left sidebar shows all your loaded data sources:

  • Tables - Your loaded files and database tables
  • Columns - Expand tables to see column names and types
  • Search - Use the search box to find tables or columns

Right-click on any table for quick actions:

  • Open in new tab
  • Compare with another table
  • View schema details

Using the Spotlight Menu

Section titled “Using the Spotlight Menu”

Press Ctrl+K (or ⌘+K) to open Spotlight - your command center for:

  • Creating new scripts
  • Adding data sources
  • Navigating to tables and columns
  • Accessing settings
  • Opening comparison tools

Exporting Results

Section titled “Exporting Results”

After running a query, export your results:

  1. Click the Export button in the results panel
  2. Choose your format (CSV, Excel, JSON, Parquet, SQL, Markdown)
  3. Configure export options
  4. Download your file

See Export & Import for detailed options.

Next Steps

Section titled “Next Steps”

Now that you’re familiar with the basics: