Mysql: Insert into … values ( SELECT … FROM … )

I am trying to INSERT INTO a table using the input from another table. Although this is entirely feasible for many database engines, I always seem to struggle to remember the correct syntax for the SQL engine of the day (MySQL, Oracle, SQL Server, Informix, and DB2).

Is there a silver-bullet syntax coming from an SQL standard (for example, SQL-92) that would allow me to insert the values without worrying about the underlying database?

 Answers

Try:

INSERT INTO table1 ( column1 )
SELECT  col1
FROM    table2  

This is standard ANSI SQL and should work on any DBMS

It definitely works for:

• Oracle
• MS SQL Server
• MySQL
• Postgres
• SQLite v3
• Teradata
• DB2
• Sybase
• Vertica
• HSQLDB
• H2
• AWS RedShift
• SAP HANA

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To get only one value in a multi value INSERT from another table I did the following in SQLite3:

INSERT INTO column_1 ( val_1, val_from_other_table ) 
VALUES('val_1', (SELECT  val_2 FROM table_2 WHERE val_2 = something))

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Most of the databases follow the basic syntax,

INSERT INTO TABLE_NAME
SELECT COL1, COL2 ...
FROM TABLE_YOU_NEED_TO_TAKE_FROM
;

Every database I have used follow this syntax namely, DB2, SQL Server, MY SQL, PostgresQL

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This can be done without specifying the columns in the INSERT INTO part if you are supplying values for all columns in the SELECT part.

Let's say table1 has two columns. This query should work:

INSERT INTO table1
SELECT  col1, col2
FROM    table2

This WOULD NOT work (value for col2 is not specified):

INSERT INTO table1
SELECT  col1
FROM    table2

I'm using MS SQL Server. I don't know how other RDMS work.

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This is another example using values with select:

INSERT INTO table1(desc, id, email) 
SELECT "Hello World", 3, email FROM table2 WHERE ...

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Here's how to insert from multiple tables. This particular example is where you have a mapping table in a many to many scenario:

insert into StudentCourseMap (StudentId, CourseId) 
SELECT  Student.Id, Course.Id FROM Student, Course 
WHERE Student.Name = 'Paddy Murphy' AND Course.Name = 'Basket weaving for beginners'

(I realise matching on the student name might return more than one value but you get the idea. Matching on something other than an Id is necessary when the Id is an Identity column and is unknown.)

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Its simple, instead of VALUES part of INSERT query, just use SELECT query as below.

INSERT INTO table1 ( column1 , 2, 3... ) SELECT col1, 2, 3... FROM table2

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I actually prefer the following in SQL Server 2008:

SELECT Table1.Column1, Table1.Column2, Table2.Column1, Table2.Column2, 'Some String' AS SomeString, 8 AS SomeInt
INTO Table3
FROM Table1 INNER JOIN Table2 ON Table1.Column1 = Table2.Column3

It eliminates the step of adding the Insert () set, and you just select which values go in the table.

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This worked for me:

insert into table1 select * from table2

The sentence is a bit different from Oracle's.

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• The INSERT INTO SELECT statement copies data from one table and inserts it into another table.
• INSERT INTO SELECT requires that data types in source and target tables match The existing records in the target table are unaffected

INSERT INTO SELECT Syntax:-

INSERT INTO table2
SELECT * FROM table1
WHERE condition;

INSERT INTO SELECT Example:-

INSERT INTO Customers (CustomerName, ContactName, Address, City, PostalCode, Country)
SELECT SupplierName, ContactName, Address, City, PostalCode, Country FROM Suppliers;

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INSERT INTO FIRST_TABLE_NAME (COLUMN_NAME) SELECT COLUMN_NAME FROM ANOTHER_TABLE_NAME WHERE CONDITION;