Table Variable in SQL Server

Table Variable in SQL Server store a set of records like SQL tables and these are the best alternative to Temp Tables. Like Local Variables, Table variable scope is limited to User Defined Functions or Stored procedures. The table variable is very fast when compared to temporary tables, and it is recommended to use this for less amount of data.

Table Variable in SQL Server Syntax

The syntax of the SQL Server Table variable is similar to the Create Table Statement

-- SQL Server Table variable Syntax
DECLARE @Table_Variable_Name TABLE
(
    Column_Name1 Data_Type(Size) [NULL | NOT NULL],
    Column_Name2 Data_Type(Size) [NULL | NOT NULL],
     …
    Column_NameN Data_Type(Size) [NULL | NOT NULL]
);

TIP: You cannot use a table variable as either Input or an Output Parameter.

Table Variable in SQL Server Example

In this example, we will show you, How to Create a table variable, How to insert new records into it, and how to select records from the table variable.

-- Creating SQL Server Table Variable
DECLARE @TempTableVariable TABLE
(
  [CustomerKey] [int] IDENTITY(1,1) NOT NULL,
  [FirstName] [varchar](50) NULL,
  [LastName] [varchar](50) NULL,
  [BirthDate] [date] NULL,
  [EmailAddress] [nvarchar](50) NULL,
  [Yearly Income] [money] NULL,
  [Profession] [nvarchar](100) NULL
)
-- Inserting Values in SQL Table Variable
INSERT INTO @TempTableVariable 
VALUES ('Imran', 'Khan', '10-08-1985', '[email protected]', 15900, 'Skilled Professional')
      ,('Doe', 'Lara', '10-08-1985', '[email protected]', 15000, 'Management')
      ,('Ramesh', 'Kumar', '10-08-1985', '[email protected]', 65000, 'Professional')

-- Selecting Values from SQL Server Table Variable
SELECT * FROM @TempTableVariable

OUTPUT

As you can see from the above screenshot, we are executing all the statements together. let me show you, what will happen when we execute them independently.

OUTPUT

There won’t be any problem to declare a table variable

OUTPUT

Hope you understood the scope of a table variable.

NOTE: You don’t need any DELETE, or DROP statement to drop the table variable. Database Engine will automatically delete when it exits from the scope