UPDATE

The UPDATE statement modifies existing rows in a dataset. Each UPDATE assigns new values to one or more columns, optionally filtered by a WHERE clause.

UPDATE runs against datasets you own. To update rows during a materialized view refresh, use the MERGE ON clause inside CREATE MATERIALIZED VIEW instead.

Syntax

UPDATE table_reference
SET
  column1 = expression1
  [, column2 = expression2, ...]
[WHERE condition]

The SET clause lists column assignments. The right-hand side of each assignment can be any NQL expression valid for the target column’s data type, including references to other columns in the same row.
The WHERE clause is optional. If omitted, every row in the dataset is updated — include a WHERE clause unless that is the intended behavior.
The SET expressions and the WHERE condition can reference only the target dataset. Subqueries that read from another dataset (for example, WHERE id IN (SELECT id FROM company_data."456")) are not supported.

Examples

Update a single column with a literal:

UPDATE company_data."123"
SET status = 'archived'
WHERE user_id = 42

Update multiple columns using an expression:

UPDATE company_data."123"
SET
  email = LOWER(email),
  last_updated_at = CURRENT_TIMESTAMP
WHERE email IS NOT NULL

Conditional update across many rows:

UPDATE company_data.pipeline_log
SET status = 'stale'
WHERE
  status = 'created'
  AND created_at < CURRENT_TIMESTAMP - INTERVAL '30' DAY

Execution context

UPDATE statements can run in two places:

Execution surface	When to use
NQL query endpoint	Ad-hoc updates from an API client or Data Studio
`ExecuteDml` workflow task	Scheduled or event-driven updates inside a workflow

Running UPDATE without a WHERE clause modifies every row in the target dataset. Review the statement — or run the corresponding SELECT with the same predicate first — before executing.

INSERT

Add rows to a dataset

DELETE

Remove rows from a dataset

Incremental Upserts with MERGE ON

Update or insert rows during materialized view refresh

ExecuteDml workflow task

Run DML statements from a workflow

Overview

Data Types

SQL Commands

Operators

Functions

General Reference

Syntax

Examples

Execution context

INSERT

DELETE

Incremental Upserts with MERGE ON

ExecuteDml workflow task

​Syntax

​Examples

​Execution context

​Related content

INSERT

DELETE

Incremental Upserts with MERGE ON

ExecuteDml workflow task

Syntax

Examples

Execution context

Related content