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Delete vs. Truncate in Snowflake?

SQLmedium0.4 min readPremium
Frequency
Low
Asked at 1 company
Category
487
questions in SQL
Difficulty Split
130E|271M|86H
in this category
Total Bank
1,863
across 7 categories
Asked at these companies
Cognizant
Key Concepts Tested
partitionsnowflake
Expert AnswerPremium
77 wordsInterview-ready
**Architectural Logic**: DELETE = row-level, transactional; TRUNCATE = metadata-only, fast. **DELETE**: Removes rows with full transactional logging; supports WHERE; can ROLLBACK; generates undo. **TRUNCATE**: Drops all rows by invalidating micro-partitions; no scan; minimal logging; cannot ROLLBACK. **Why TRUNCATE for Staging**: Idempotent full refresh—truncate + load; 100x faster than DELETE. **Time Travel**: Both respect retention; deleted/truncated data recoverable within period....
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