SQL language reference

This is a SQL command reference for Databricks SQL and Databricks Runtime.

For information about using SQL with Delta Live Tables, see Delta Live Tables SQL language reference.

General reference

This general reference describes data types, functions, identifiers, literals, and semantics:

• "Applies to" label
• How to read a syntax diagram
• How to add comments to SQL statements
• Configuration parameters
• Data types and literals
• Functions
• SQL data type rules
• Datetime patterns
• H3 geospatial functions
• Lambda functions
• Window functions
• Identifiers
• Names
• IDENTIFIER clause
• NULL semantics
• Expressions
• Parameter markers
• Variables
• Name resolution
• JSON path expressions
• Partitions
• ANSI compliance in Databricks Runtime
• Apache Hive compatibility
• Principals
• Privileges and securable objects in Unity Catalog
• Privileges and securable objects in the Hive metastore
• Refresh Unity Catalog metadata
• External locations
• External tables
• Storage credentials
• Volumes
• Delta Sharing
• Federated queries (Lakehouse Federation)
• Information schema
• Reserved words

DDL statements

You use data definition statements to create or modify the structure of database objects in a database:

• ALTER CATALOG
• ALTER CONNECTION
• ALTER CREDENTIAL
• ALTER DATABASE
• ALTER LOCATION
• ALTER PROVIDER
• ALTER RECIPIENT
• ALTER STREAMING TABLE
• ALTER TABLE
• ALTER SCHEMA
• ALTER SHARE
• ALTER VIEW
• ALTER VOLUME
• COMMENT ON
• CREATE BLOOMFILTER INDEX
• CREATE CATALOG
• CREATE CONNECTION
• CREATE DATABASE
• CREATE FUNCTION (SQL)
• CREATE FUNCTION (External)
• CREATE LOCATION
• CREATE MATERIALIZED VIEW
• CREATE RECIPIENT
• CREATE SCHEMA
• CREATE SERVER
• CREATE SHARE
• CREATE STREAMING TABLE
• CREATE TABLE
• CREATE VIEW
• CREATE VOLUME
• DECLARE VARIABLE
• DROP BLOOMFILTER INDEX
• DROP CATALOG
• DROP CONNECTION
• DROP DATABASE
• DROP CREDENTIAL
• DROP FUNCTION
• DROP LOCATION
• DROP PROVIDER
• DROP RECIPIENT
• DROP SCHEMA
• DROP SHARE
• DROP TABLE
• DROP VARIABLE
• DROP VIEW
• DROP VOLUME
• MSCK REPAIR TABLE
• REFRESH FOREIGN (CATALOG, SCHEMA, or TABLE)
• REFRESH (MATERIALIZED VIEW or STREAMING TABLE)
• SYNC
• TRUNCATE TABLE
• UNDROP TABLE

DML statements

You use data manipulation statements to add, change, or delete data from a Delta Lake table:

• COPY INTO
• DELETE FROM
• INSERT INTO
• INSERT OVERWRITE DIRECTORY
• INSERT OVERWRITE DIRECTORY with Hive format
• LOAD DATA
• MERGE INTO
• UPDATE

Data retrieval statements

You use a query to retrieve rows from one or more tables according to the specified clauses. The full syntax and brief description of supported clauses are explained in the Query article. The related SQL statements SELECT and VALUES are also included in this section.

• Query
• SELECT
• VALUES

Databricks SQL also provides the ability to generate the logical and physical plan for a query using the EXPLAIN statement.

• EXPLAIN

Delta Lake statements

You use Delta Lake SQL statements to manage tables stored in Delta Lake format:

• CACHE SELECT
• CONVERT TO DELTA
• DESCRIBE HISTORY
• FSCK REPAIR TABLE
• GENERATE
• OPTIMIZE
• REORG TABLE
• RESTORE
• VACUUM

For details on using Delta Lake statements, see What is Delta Lake?.

Auxiliary statements

You use auxiliary statements to collect statistics, manage caching, explore metadata, set configurations, and manage resources:

• Analyze statement
• Apache Spark Cache statements
• Describe statements
• Show statements
• Configuration, variable management, and misc statements
• Resource management

Analyze statement

• ANALYZE TABLE

Apache Spark Cache statements

Applies to: Databricks Runtime

• CACHE TABLE
• CLEAR CACHE
• REFRESH CACHE
• REFRESH FUNCTION
• REFRESH TABLE
• UNCACHE TABLE

Describe statements

• DESCRIBE CATALOG
• DESCRIBE CONNECTION
• DESCRIBE CREDENTIAL
• DESCRIBE DATABASE
• DESCRIBE FUNCTION
• DESCRIBE LOCATION
• DESCRIBE PROVIDER
• DESCRIBE QUERY
• DESCRIBE RECIPIENT
• DESCRIBE SCHEMA
• DESCRIBE SHARE
• DESCRIBE TABLE
• DESCRIBE VOLUME

Show statements

• LIST
• SHOW ALL IN SHARE
• SHOW CATALOGS
• SHOW COLUMNS
• SHOW CONNECTIONS
• SHOW CREATE TABLE
• SHOW CREDENTIALS
• SHOW DATABASES
• SHOW FUNCTIONS
• SHOW GROUPS
• SHOW LOCATIONS
• SHOW PARTITIONS
• SHOW PROVIDERS
• SHOW RECIPIENTS
• SHOW SCHEMAS
• SHOW SHARES
• SHOW SHARES IN PROVIDER
• SHOW TABLE
• SHOW TABLES
• SHOW TABLES DROPPED
• SHOW TBLPROPERTIES
• SHOW USERS
• SHOW VIEWS
• SHOW VOLUMES

Configuration, variable management, and misc statements

• EXECUTE IMMEDIATE
• RESET
• SET
• SET TIMEZONE
• SET VARIABLE
• USE CATALOG
• USE DATABASE
• USE SCHEMA

Resource management

Applies to: Databricks Runtime

• ADD ARCHIVE
• ADD FILE
• ADD JAR
• LIST ARCHIVE
• LIST FILE
• LIST JAR

Security statements

You use security SQL statements to manage access to data:

• ALTER GROUP
• CREATE GROUP
• DENY
• DROP GROUP
• GRANT
• GRANT SHARE
• REPAIR PRIVILEGES
• REVOKE
• REVOKE SHARE
• SHOW GRANTS
• SHOW GRANTS ON SHARE
• SHOW GRANTS TO RECIPIENT

For details about using these statements, see Hive metastore privileges and securable objects (legacy).