SQL SELECT INTO Statement

With SQL, you can copy information from one table into another.

The SELECT INTO statement copies data from one table and inserts it into a new table.

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The SQL SELECT INTO Statement

The SELECT INTO statement selects data from one table and inserts it into a new table.

SQL SELECT INTO Syntax

We can copy all columns into the new table:

SELECT *
INTO newtable [IN externaldb]
FROM table1;

Or we can copy only the columns we want into the new table:

SELECT column_name(s)
INTO newtable [IN externaldb]
FROM table1;

	Tip: The new table will be created with the column-names and types as defined in the SELECT statement. You can apply new names using the AS clause.

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SQL SELECT INTO Examples

Create a backup copy of Customers:

SELECT *
INTO CustomersBackup2013
FROM Customers;

Use the IN clause to copy the table into another database:

SELECT *
INTO CustomersBackup2013 IN 'Backup.mdb'
FROM Customers;

Copy only a few columns into the new table:

SELECT CustomerName, ContactName
INTO CustomersBackup2013
FROM Customers;

Copy only the German customers into the new table:

SELECT *
INTO CustomersBackup2013
FROM Customers
WHERE Country='Germany';

Copy data from more than one table into the new table:

SELECT Customers.CustomerName, Orders.OrderID
INTO CustomersOrderBackup2013
FROM Customers
LEFT JOIN Orders
ON Customers.CustomerID=Orders.CustomerID;

Tip: The SELECT INTO statement can also be used to create a new, empty table using the schema of another. Just add a WHERE clause that causes the query to return no data:

SELECT *
INTO newtable
FROM table1
WHERE 1=0;

SQL INSERT INTO Statement

The INSERT INTO statement is used to insert new records in a table.

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The SQL INSERT INTO Statement

The INSERT INTO statement is used to insert new records in a table.

SQL INSERT INTO Syntax

It is possible to write the INSERT INTO statement in two forms.

The first form does not specify the column names where the data will be inserted, only their values:

INSERT INTO table_name
VALUES (value1,value2,value3,...);

The second form specifies both the column names and the values to be inserted:

INSERT INTO table_name (column1,column2,column3,...)
VALUES (value1,value2,value3,...);

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Demo Database

In this tutorial we will use the well-known Northwind sample database.

Below is a selection from the "Customers" table:

CustomerID	CustomerName	ContactName	Address	City	PostalCode	Country
87	Wartian Herkku	Pirkko Koskitalo	Torikatu 38	Oulu	90110	Finland
88	Wellington Importadora	Paula Parente	Rua do Mercado, 12	Resende	08737-363	Brazil
89	White Clover Markets	Karl Jablonski	305 - 14th Ave. S. Suite 3B	Seattle	98128	USA
90	Wilman Kala	Matti Karttunen	Keskuskatu 45	Helsinki	21240	Finland
91	Wolski	Zbyszek	ul. Filtrowa 68	Walla	01-012	Poland

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INSERT INTO Example

Assume we wish to insert a new row in the "Customers" table.

We can use the following SQL statement:

Example

INSERT INTO Customers (CustomerName, ContactName, Address, City, PostalCode, Country)
VALUES ('Cardinal','Tom B. Erichsen','Skagen 21','Stavanger','4006','Norway');

Try it yourself »

The selection from the "Customers" table will now look like this:

CustomerID	CustomerName	ContactName	Address	City	PostalCode	Country
87	Wartian Herkku	Pirkko Koskitalo	Torikatu 38	Oulu	90110	Finland
88	Wellington Importadora	Paula Parente	Rua do Mercado, 12	Resende	08737-363	Brazil
89	White Clover Markets	Karl Jablonski	305 - 14th Ave. S. Suite 3B	Seattle	98128	USA
90	Wilman Kala	Matti Karttunen	Keskuskatu 45	Helsinki	21240	Finland
91	Wolski	Zbyszek	ul. Filtrowa 68	Walla	01-012	Poland
92	Cardinal	Tom B. Erichsen	Skagen 21	Stavanger	4006	Norway

	Did you notice that we did not insert any number into the CustomerID field? The CustomerID column is automatically updated with a unique number for each record in the table.

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Insert Data Only in Specified Columns

It is also possible to only insert data in specific columns.

The following SQL statement will insert a new row, but only insert data in the "CustomerName", "City", and "Country" columns (and the CustomerID field will of course also be updated automatically):

Example

INSERT INTO Customers (CustomerName, City, Country)
VALUES ('Cardinal', 'Stavanger', 'Norway');

Try it yourself »

The selection from the "Customers" table will now look like this:

CustomerID	CustomerName	ContactName	Address	City	PostalCode	Country
87	Wartian Herkku	Pirkko Koskitalo	Torikatu 38	Oulu	90110	Finland
88	Wellington Importadora	Paula Parente	Rua do Mercado, 12	Resende	08737-363	Brazil
89	White Clover Markets	Karl Jablonski	305 - 14th Ave. S. Suite 3B	Seattle	98128	USA
90	Wilman Kala	Matti Karttunen	Keskuskatu 45	Helsinki	21240	Finland
91	Wolski	Zbyszek	ul. Filtrowa 68	Walla	01-012	Poland
92	Cardinal	null	null	Stavanger	null	Norway