How to Update Rows in PostgreSQL

Last updated July 24, 2026 · By the SaturnSQL team

Use UPDATE ... SET ... WHERE, with FROM to join another table. RETURNING shows exactly which rows changed, which doubles as a safety check.

UPDATE orders
SET status = 'shipped'
WHERE id = 42
RETURNING id, status;

Update from another table

UPDATE orders o
SET region = c.region
FROM customers c
WHERE c.id = o.customer_id;

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