How to Insert Data in PostgreSQL
Last updated July 24, 2026 · By the SaturnSQL team
Use INSERT INTO ... VALUES for literal rows or INSERT ... SELECT for query results. RETURNING gives back the inserted rows, including generated ids, without a second query.
INSERT INTO orders (customer_id, amount)
VALUES (101, 42.50), (102, 17.00)
RETURNING id;Bulk loads
For files, COPY is an order of magnitude faster than INSERT statements.
COPY orders (customer_id, amount) FROM '/tmp/orders.csv' WITH (FORMAT csv, HEADER);Run this in SaturnSQL
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