When writing queries, what sort key strategy would you use?

A good sort key strategy starts with understanding the query’s ORDER BY clauses and the columns that drive the sort. First, create indexes that include the sort columns, preferably B‑tree indexes, so the database can retrieve rows in the desired order without an extra sort step. If the query also filters on other columns, consider composite indexes that place the filter columns first and the sort columns second. For large result sets, use covering indexes that include all columns needed by the query to avoid lookups. When the sort key is a date or timestamp, indexing that column can also speed up range queries. Finally, evaluate the cost of maintaining indexes versus the performance benefit; for write‑heavy tables, keep the index set minimal. By aligning indexes with ORDER BY and WHERE predicates, you reduce sorting overhead and improve overall query performance.