DELETE rows in SQL

DELETE removes whole rows; there is no undo outside a transaction.

DELETE FROM sessions
WHERE expires_at < CURRENT_TIMESTAMP
  AND user_id IN (
      SELECT id
      FROM users
      WHERE deleted_at IS NOT NULL
  );

How it works

1. Run the same WHERE as a SELECT first to see what will go.
2. A subquery can scope the delete to rows found elsewhere.
3. Deleting by primary key is the safest form.

Keywords and builtins used here

• AND
• CURRENT_TIMESTAMP
• DELETE
• FROM
• IN
• IS
• NOT
• NULL
• SELECT
• WHERE

The run, in numbers

Lines

7

Characters to type

127

Tokens

22

Three-star pace

80 tpm

At the three-star pace of 80 tokens a minute, this run takes about 16 seconds.

Type this snippet

Step 7 of 8 in Tables & rows, step 20 of 23 in Language basics.

← Previous Next →