INSERT, UPDATE, DELETE in SQL

From the SQL cheat sheet · Data Modification · verified Jul 2026

INSERT, UPDATE, DELETE

Add, modify, and remove rows.

sql

-- INSERT single row
INSERT INTO users (name, email, age)
VALUES ('Alice', 'alice@email.com', 30);

-- INSERT multiple rows
INSERT INTO users (name, email) VALUES
  ('Bob', 'bob@email.com'),
  ('Carol', 'carol@email.com');

-- UPDATE
UPDATE users SET age = 31 WHERE id = 1;

-- DELETE
DELETE FROM users WHERE id = 5;

💡 Always use WHERE with UPDATE and DELETE — without it, every row is affected

⚡ INSERT INTO ... SELECT copies data between tables in one statement

📌 TRUNCATE is faster than DELETE for clearing all rows but cannot be rolled back

🟢 SELECT INTO creates a new table from query results — great for backups

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