What is the key characteristic that differentiates a datamart from a data warehouse?

A datamart is characterized by its smaller size and more specialized focus compared to a data warehouse. This distinction is important because a data warehouse is designed to hold a vast amount of data from various sources, serving as a central repository for an entire organization’s information. It integrates data across different subjects, making it comprehensive and suitable for extensive analytical tasks.

On the other hand, a datamart is tailored to meet the needs of a specific business line or department, making it more agile and focused. For instance, a marketing department may utilize a datamart to store and analyze data relevant to its operations, customer interactions, and campaigns, rather than the broader data involved in a full data warehouse. By concentrating on a narrower range of data, a datamart is not only smaller in scale but also more efficient for specific analytical queries, supporting quicker access and decision-making in its specialized domain.