元组演算是埃德加·科德导入的演算，是关系模型的一部分，发展目的是提供宣告式的数据库查询语言。数据库查询语言QUEL和后来的SQL中的一些灵感是由元组演算而来。SQL和原来的关系模型和演算已有许多不同，后来成为实际上的数据库查询语言标准，几乎所有的关系数据库管理系统中都会用到SQL或是其变体。后来Lacroix和Pirotte提出了接近于一阶逻辑的域演算，并证明了这两种演算和关系代数在表达能力上是等价的。若关系数据库的查询语言可以表达一种以上上述的查询方式，则可称为具有「关系完备性」。

域关系演算与元组关系演算最大的区别是域关系演算中的变量表示数据库的表属性，而元组关系演算的变量表示元组，即数据库的一行。

Tuple calculus is a calculus that was introduced by Edgar F. Codd as part of the relational model, in order to provide a declarative database-query language for this data model. It formed the inspiration for the database-query languages QUEL and SQL, of which the latter, although far less faithful to the original relational model and calculus, is now the de facto standard database-query language; a dialect of SQL is used by nearly every relational-database-management system. Lacroix and Pirotte proposed domain calculus, which is closer to first-order logic and which showed that both of these calculi (as well as relational algebra) are equivalent in expressive power. Subsequently, query languages for the relational model were called relationally complete if they could express at least all of these queries.