How to Create a Table in SQL Server

Last updated July 25, 2026 · By the SaturnSQL team

Use CREATE TABLE with column definitions, and IDENTITY(1,1) for an auto-incrementing key. Add PRIMARY KEY, NOT NULL, and DEFAULT constraints inline.

CREATE TABLE orders (
  id INT IDENTITY(1,1) PRIMARY KEY,
  customer_id INT NOT NULL,
  amount DECIMAL(12,2) NOT NULL,
  status VARCHAR(20) NOT NULL DEFAULT 'pending',
  created_at DATETIME2 NOT NULL DEFAULT SYSDATETIME()
);

Create only if it does not exist

IF OBJECT_ID('dbo.orders', 'U') IS NULL
CREATE TABLE dbo.orders (
  id INT IDENTITY(1,1) PRIMARY KEY,
  customer_id INT NOT NULL
);

IDENTITY(seed, increment) starts at the seed and never reuses values, even after rollbacks, so gaps in the sequence are normal.

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