How to Describe a Table in Snowflake
Last updated July 25, 2026 · By the SaturnSQL team
Use DESCRIBE TABLE (or DESC TABLE) to list a table's columns, types, defaults, and comments. SHOW COLUMNS works across a whole schema, and information_schema.columns gives you the same metadata as a queryable result set.
DESCRIBE TABLE orders;
-- or the short form
DESC TABLE orders;SHOW COLUMNS for one table or a whole schema
SHOW COLUMNS IN TABLE orders;
SHOW COLUMNS IN SCHEMA analytics.public;Query information_schema.columns
Use information_schema when you want to filter, join, or sort the metadata like any other table.
SELECT column_name, data_type, is_nullable
FROM analytics.information_schema.columns
WHERE table_schema = 'PUBLIC'
AND table_name = 'ORDERS'
ORDER BY ordinal_position;Run this in SaturnSQL
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