UPDATE

Syntax#

UPDATE table
SET column_name = value, column_name2 = value_2, …, column_name_n = value_n
WHERE condition (logical operator condition_n)

Updating All Rows

This example uses the Cars Table from the Example Databases.

UPDATE Cars
SET Status = 'READY'

This statement will set the ‘status’ column of all rows of the ‘Cars’ table to “READY” because it does not have a WHERE clause to filter the set of rows.

Updating Specified Rows

This example uses the Cars Table from the Example Databases.

UPDATE 
    Cars
SET 
    Status = 'READY'
WHERE 
    Id = 4

This statement will set the status of the row of ‘Cars’ with id 4 to “READY”.

WHERE clause contains a logical expression which is evaluated for each row. If a row fulfills the criteria, its value is updated. Otherwise, a row remains unchanged.

Modifying existing values

This example uses the Cars Table from the Example Databases.

UPDATE Cars
SET TotalCost = TotalCost + 100
WHERE Id = 3 or Id = 4

Update operations can include current values in the updated row. In this simple example the TotalCost is incremented by 100 for two rows:

The TotalCost of Car #3 is increased from 100 to 200
The TotalCost of Car #4 is increased from 1254 to 1354

A column’s new value may be derived from its previous value or from any other column’s value in the same table or a joined table.

UPDATE with data from another table

The examples below fill in a PhoneNumber for any Employee who is also a Customer and currently does not have a phone number set in the Employees Table.

(These examples use the Employees and Customers tables from the Example Databases.)

Standard SQL

Update using a correlated subquery:

UPDATE 
    Employees
SET PhoneNumber =
    (SELECT 
         c.PhoneNumber
     FROM 
         Customers c
     WHERE 
         c.FName = Employees.FName 
         AND c.LName = Employees.LName)
WHERE Employees.PhoneNumber IS NULL

SQL:2003

Update using MERGE:

MERGE INTO 
    Employees e
USING 
    Customers c 
ON 
    e.FName = c.Fname 
    AND e.LName = c.LName
    AND e.PhoneNumber IS NULL
WHEN MATCHED THEN
   UPDATE 
      SET PhoneNumber = c.PhoneNumber

SQL Server

Update using INNER JOIN:

UPDATE 
    Employees
SET 
    PhoneNumber = c.PhoneNumber
FROM 
    Employees e
INNER JOIN Customers c
        ON e.FName = c.FName 
        AND e.LName = c.LName
WHERE 
    PhoneNumber IS NULL

Capturing Updated records

Sometimes one wants to capture the records that have just been updated.

CREATE TABLE #TempUpdated(ID INT)

Update TableName SET Col1 = 42
    OUTPUT inserted.ID INTO #TempUpdated
    WHERE Id > 50