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1.1 (stable)
Types

DuckDB is a strongly typed database system. As such, every column has a single type specified. This type is constant over the entire column. That is to say, a column that is labeled as an INTEGER column will only contain INTEGER values.

DuckDB also supports columns of composite types. For example, it is possible to define an array of integers (INTEGER[]). It is also possible to define types as arbitrary structs (ROW(i INTEGER, j VARCHAR)). For that reason, native DuckDB type objects are not mere enums, but a class that can potentially be nested.

Types in the C API are modeled using an enum (duckdb_type) and a complex class (duckdb_logical_type). For most primitive types, e.g., integers or varchars, the enum is sufficient. For more complex types, such as lists, structs or decimals, the logical type must be used.

typedef enum DUCKDB_TYPE {
  DUCKDB_TYPE_INVALID = 0,
  DUCKDB_TYPE_BOOLEAN = 1,
  DUCKDB_TYPE_TINYINT = 2,
  DUCKDB_TYPE_SMALLINT = 3,
  DUCKDB_TYPE_INTEGER = 4,
  DUCKDB_TYPE_BIGINT = 5,
  DUCKDB_TYPE_UTINYINT = 6,
  DUCKDB_TYPE_USMALLINT = 7,
  DUCKDB_TYPE_UINTEGER = 8,
  DUCKDB_TYPE_UBIGINT = 9,
  DUCKDB_TYPE_FLOAT = 10,
  DUCKDB_TYPE_DOUBLE = 11,
  DUCKDB_TYPE_TIMESTAMP = 12,
  DUCKDB_TYPE_DATE = 13,
  DUCKDB_TYPE_TIME = 14,
  DUCKDB_TYPE_INTERVAL = 15,
  DUCKDB_TYPE_HUGEINT = 16,
  DUCKDB_TYPE_UHUGEINT = 32,
  DUCKDB_TYPE_VARCHAR = 17,
  DUCKDB_TYPE_BLOB = 18,
  DUCKDB_TYPE_DECIMAL = 19,
  DUCKDB_TYPE_TIMESTAMP_S = 20,
  DUCKDB_TYPE_TIMESTAMP_MS = 21,
  DUCKDB_TYPE_TIMESTAMP_NS = 22,
  DUCKDB_TYPE_ENUM = 23,
  DUCKDB_TYPE_LIST = 24,
  DUCKDB_TYPE_STRUCT = 25,
  DUCKDB_TYPE_MAP = 26,
  DUCKDB_TYPE_ARRAY = 33,
  DUCKDB_TYPE_UUID = 27,
  DUCKDB_TYPE_UNION = 28,
  DUCKDB_TYPE_BIT = 29,
  DUCKDB_TYPE_TIME_TZ = 30,
  DUCKDB_TYPE_TIMESTAMP_TZ = 31,
} duckdb_type;

Functions

The enum type of a column in the result can be obtained using the duckdb_column_type function. The logical type of a column can be obtained using the duckdb_column_logical_type function.

duckdb_value

The duckdb_value functions will auto-cast values as required. For example, it is no problem to use duckdb_value_double on a column of type duckdb_value_int32. The value will be auto-cast and returned as a double. Note that in certain cases the cast may fail. For example, this can happen if we request a duckdb_value_int8 and the value does not fit within an int8 value. In this case, a default value will be returned (usually 0 or nullptr). The same default value will also be returned if the corresponding value is NULL.

The duckdb_value_is_null function can be used to check if a specific value is NULL or not.

The exception to the auto-cast rule is the duckdb_value_varchar_internal function. This function does not auto-cast and only works for VARCHAR columns. The reason this function exists is that the result does not need to be freed.

duckdb_value_varchar and duckdb_value_blob require the result to be de-allocated using duckdb_free.

duckdb_fetch_chunk

The duckdb_fetch_chunk function can be used to read data chunks from a DuckDB result set, and is the most efficient way of reading data from a DuckDB result using the C API. It is also the only way of reading data of certain types from a DuckDB result. For example, the duckdb_value functions do not support structural reading of composite types (lists or structs) or more complex types like enums and decimals.

For more information about data chunks, see the documentation on data chunks.

API Reference Overview

duckdb_data_chunk duckdb_result_get_chunk(duckdb_result result, idx_t chunk_index);
bool duckdb_result_is_streaming(duckdb_result result);
idx_t duckdb_result_chunk_count(duckdb_result result);
duckdb_result_type duckdb_result_return_type(duckdb_result result);

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Date Time Timestamp Helpers

duckdb_date_struct duckdb_from_date(duckdb_date date);
duckdb_date duckdb_to_date(duckdb_date_struct date);
bool duckdb_is_finite_date(duckdb_date date);
duckdb_time_struct duckdb_from_time(duckdb_time time);
duckdb_time_tz duckdb_create_time_tz(int64_t micros, int32_t offset);
duckdb_time_tz_struct duckdb_from_time_tz(duckdb_time_tz micros);
duckdb_time duckdb_to_time(duckdb_time_struct time);
duckdb_timestamp_struct duckdb_from_timestamp(duckdb_timestamp ts);
duckdb_timestamp duckdb_to_timestamp(duckdb_timestamp_struct ts);
bool duckdb_is_finite_timestamp(duckdb_timestamp ts);

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Hugeint Helpers

double duckdb_hugeint_to_double(duckdb_hugeint val);
duckdb_hugeint duckdb_double_to_hugeint(double val);

</code></pre></div></div>

Decimal Helpers

duckdb_decimal duckdb_double_to_decimal(double val, uint8_t width, uint8_t scale);
double duckdb_decimal_to_double(duckdb_decimal val);

</code></pre></div></div>

Logical Type Interface

duckdb_logical_type duckdb_create_logical_type(duckdb_type type);
char *duckdb_logical_type_get_alias(duckdb_logical_type type);
void duckdb_logical_type_set_alias(duckdb_logical_type type, const char *alias);
duckdb_logical_type duckdb_create_list_type(duckdb_logical_type type);
duckdb_logical_type duckdb_create_array_type(duckdb_logical_type type, idx_t array_size);
duckdb_logical_type duckdb_create_map_type(duckdb_logical_type key_type, duckdb_logical_type value_type);
duckdb_logical_type duckdb_create_union_type(duckdb_logical_type *member_types, const char **member_names, idx_t member_count);
duckdb_logical_type duckdb_create_struct_type(duckdb_logical_type *member_types, const char **member_names, idx_t member_count);
duckdb_logical_type duckdb_create_enum_type(const char **member_names, idx_t member_count);
duckdb_logical_type duckdb_create_decimal_type(uint8_t width, uint8_t scale);
duckdb_type duckdb_get_type_id(duckdb_logical_type type);
uint8_t duckdb_decimal_width(duckdb_logical_type type);
uint8_t duckdb_decimal_scale(duckdb_logical_type type);
duckdb_type duckdb_decimal_internal_type(duckdb_logical_type type);
duckdb_type duckdb_enum_internal_type(duckdb_logical_type type);
uint32_t duckdb_enum_dictionary_size(duckdb_logical_type type);
char *duckdb_enum_dictionary_value(duckdb_logical_type type, idx_t index);
duckdb_logical_type duckdb_list_type_child_type(duckdb_logical_type type);
duckdb_logical_type duckdb_array_type_child_type(duckdb_logical_type type);
idx_t duckdb_array_type_array_size(duckdb_logical_type type);
duckdb_logical_type duckdb_map_type_key_type(duckdb_logical_type type);
duckdb_logical_type duckdb_map_type_value_type(duckdb_logical_type type);
idx_t duckdb_struct_type_child_count(duckdb_logical_type type);
char *duckdb_struct_type_child_name(duckdb_logical_type type, idx_t index);
duckdb_logical_type duckdb_struct_type_child_type(duckdb_logical_type type, idx_t index);
idx_t duckdb_union_type_member_count(duckdb_logical_type type);
char *duckdb_union_type_member_name(duckdb_logical_type type, idx_t index);
duckdb_logical_type duckdb_union_type_member_type(duckdb_logical_type type, idx_t index);
void duckdb_destroy_logical_type(duckdb_logical_type *type);
duckdb_state duckdb_register_logical_type(duckdb_connection con, duckdb_logical_type type, duckdb_create_type_info info);

duckdb_result_get_chunk

Warning Deprecation notice. This method is scheduled for removal in a future release.

Fetches a data chunk from the duckdb_result. This function should be called repeatedly until the result is exhausted.

The result must be destroyed with duckdb_destroy_data_chunk.

This function supersedes all duckdb_value functions, as well as the duckdb_column_data and duckdb_nullmask_data functions. It results in significantly better performance, and should be preferred in newer code-bases.

If this function is used, none of the other result functions can be used and vice versa (i.e., this function cannot be mixed with the legacy result functions).

Use duckdb_result_chunk_count to figure out how many chunks there are in the result.

Syntax
duckdb_data_chunk duckdb_result_get_chunk(
  duckdb_result result,
  idx_t chunk_index
);
Parameters
  • result: The result object to fetch the data chunk from.
  • chunk_index: The chunk index to fetch from.
Return Value

The resulting data chunk. Returns NULL if the chunk index is out of bounds.


duckdb_result_is_streaming

Warning Deprecation notice. This method is scheduled for removal in a future release.

Checks if the type of the internal result is StreamQueryResult.

Syntax
bool duckdb_result_is_streaming(
  duckdb_result result
);
Parameters
  • result: The result object to check.
Return Value

Whether or not the result object is of the type StreamQueryResult


duckdb_result_chunk_count

Warning Deprecation notice. This method is scheduled for removal in a future release.

Returns the number of data chunks present in the result.

Syntax
idx_t duckdb_result_chunk_count(
  duckdb_result result
);
Parameters
  • result: The result object
Return Value

Number of data chunks present in the result.


duckdb_result_return_type

Returns the return_type of the given result, or DUCKDB_RETURN_TYPE_INVALID on error

Syntax
duckdb_result_type duckdb_result_return_type(
  duckdb_result result
);
Parameters
  • result: The result object
Return Value

The return_type


duckdb_from_date

Decompose a duckdb_date object into year, month and date (stored as duckdb_date_struct).

Syntax
duckdb_date_struct duckdb_from_date(
  duckdb_date date
);
Parameters
  • date: The date object, as obtained from a DUCKDB_TYPE_DATE column.
Return Value

The duckdb_date_struct with the decomposed elements.


duckdb_to_date

Re-compose a duckdb_date from year, month and date (duckdb_date_struct).

Syntax
duckdb_date duckdb_to_date(
  duckdb_date_struct date
);
Parameters
  • date: The year, month and date stored in a duckdb_date_struct.
Return Value

The duckdb_date element.


duckdb_is_finite_date

Test a duckdb_date to see if it is a finite value.

Syntax
bool duckdb_is_finite_date(
  duckdb_date date
);
Parameters
  • date: The date object, as obtained from a DUCKDB_TYPE_DATE column.
Return Value

True if the date is finite, false if it is ±infinity.


duckdb_from_time

Decompose a duckdb_time object into hour, minute, second and microsecond (stored as duckdb_time_struct).

Syntax
duckdb_time_struct duckdb_from_time(
  duckdb_time time
);
Parameters
  • time: The time object, as obtained from a DUCKDB_TYPE_TIME column.
Return Value

The duckdb_time_struct with the decomposed elements.


duckdb_create_time_tz

Create a duckdb_time_tz object from micros and a timezone offset.

Syntax
duckdb_time_tz duckdb_create_time_tz(
  int64_t micros,
  int32_t offset
);
Parameters
  • micros: The microsecond component of the time.
  • offset: The timezone offset component of the time.
Return Value

The duckdb_time_tz element.


duckdb_from_time_tz

Decompose a TIME_TZ objects into micros and a timezone offset.

Use duckdb_from_time to further decompose the micros into hour, minute, second and microsecond.

Syntax
duckdb_time_tz_struct duckdb_from_time_tz(
  duckdb_time_tz micros
);
Parameters
  • micros: The time object, as obtained from a DUCKDB_TYPE_TIME_TZ column.


duckdb_to_time

Re-compose a duckdb_time from hour, minute, second and microsecond (duckdb_time_struct).

Syntax
duckdb_time duckdb_to_time(
  duckdb_time_struct time
);
Parameters
  • time: The hour, minute, second and microsecond in a duckdb_time_struct.
Return Value

The duckdb_time element.


duckdb_from_timestamp

Decompose a duckdb_timestamp object into a duckdb_timestamp_struct.

Syntax
duckdb_timestamp_struct duckdb_from_timestamp(
  duckdb_timestamp ts
);
Parameters
  • ts: The ts object, as obtained from a DUCKDB_TYPE_TIMESTAMP column.
Return Value

The duckdb_timestamp_struct with the decomposed elements.


duckdb_to_timestamp

Re-compose a duckdb_timestamp from a duckdb_timestamp_struct.

Syntax
duckdb_timestamp duckdb_to_timestamp(
  duckdb_timestamp_struct ts
);
Parameters
  • ts: The de-composed elements in a duckdb_timestamp_struct.
Return Value

The duckdb_timestamp element.


duckdb_is_finite_timestamp

Test a duckdb_timestamp to see if it is a finite value.

Syntax
bool duckdb_is_finite_timestamp(
  duckdb_timestamp ts
);
Parameters
  • ts: The timestamp object, as obtained from a DUCKDB_TYPE_TIMESTAMP column.
Return Value

True if the timestamp is finite, false if it is ±infinity.


duckdb_hugeint_to_double

Converts a duckdb_hugeint object (as obtained from a DUCKDB_TYPE_HUGEINT column) into a double.

Syntax
double duckdb_hugeint_to_double(
  duckdb_hugeint val
);
Parameters
  • val: The hugeint value.
Return Value

The converted double element.


duckdb_double_to_hugeint

Converts a double value to a duckdb_hugeint object.

If the conversion fails because the double value is too big the result will be 0.

Syntax
duckdb_hugeint duckdb_double_to_hugeint(
  double val
);
Parameters
  • val: The double value.
Return Value

The converted duckdb_hugeint element.


duckdb_double_to_decimal

Converts a double value to a duckdb_decimal object.

If the conversion fails because the double value is too big, or the width/scale are invalid the result will be 0.

Syntax
duckdb_decimal duckdb_double_to_decimal(
  double val,
  uint8_t width,
  uint8_t scale
);
Parameters
  • val: The double value.
Return Value

The converted duckdb_decimal element.


duckdb_decimal_to_double

Converts a duckdb_decimal object (as obtained from a DUCKDB_TYPE_DECIMAL column) into a double.

Syntax
double duckdb_decimal_to_double(
  duckdb_decimal val
);
Parameters
  • val: The decimal value.
Return Value

The converted double element.


duckdb_create_logical_type

Creates a duckdb_logical_type from a primitive type. The resulting logical type must be destroyed with duckdb_destroy_logical_type.

Returns an invalid logical type, if type is: DUCKDB_TYPE_INVALID, DUCKDB_TYPE_DECIMAL, DUCKDB_TYPE_ENUM, DUCKDB_TYPE_LIST, DUCKDB_TYPE_STRUCT, DUCKDB_TYPE_MAP, DUCKDB_TYPE_ARRAY, or DUCKDB_TYPE_UNION.

Syntax
duckdb_logical_type duckdb_create_logical_type(
  duckdb_type type
);
Parameters
  • type: The primitive type to create.
Return Value

The logical type.


duckdb_logical_type_get_alias

Returns the alias of a duckdb_logical_type, if set, else nullptr. The result must be destroyed with duckdb_free.

Syntax
char *duckdb_logical_type_get_alias(
  duckdb_logical_type type
);
Parameters
  • type: The logical type
Return Value

The alias or nullptr


duckdb_logical_type_set_alias

Sets the alias of a duckdb_logical_type.

Syntax
void duckdb_logical_type_set_alias(
  duckdb_logical_type type,
  const char *alias
);
Parameters
  • type: The logical type
  • alias: The alias to set


duckdb_create_list_type

Creates a LIST type from its child type. The return type must be destroyed with duckdb_destroy_logical_type.

Syntax
duckdb_logical_type duckdb_create_list_type(
  duckdb_logical_type type
);
Parameters
  • type: The child type of the list
Return Value

The logical type.


duckdb_create_array_type

Creates an ARRAY type from its child type. The return type must be destroyed with duckdb_destroy_logical_type.

Syntax
duckdb_logical_type duckdb_create_array_type(
  duckdb_logical_type type,
  idx_t array_size
);
Parameters
  • type: The child type of the array.
  • array_size: The number of elements in the array.
Return Value

The logical type.


duckdb_create_map_type

Creates a MAP type from its key type and value type. The return type must be destroyed with duckdb_destroy_logical_type.

Syntax
duckdb_logical_type duckdb_create_map_type(
  duckdb_logical_type key_type,
  duckdb_logical_type value_type
);
Parameters
  • key_type: The map's key type.
  • value_type: The map's value type.
Return Value

The logical type.


duckdb_create_union_type

Creates a UNION type from the passed arrays. The return type must be destroyed with duckdb_destroy_logical_type.

Syntax
duckdb_logical_type duckdb_create_union_type(
  duckdb_logical_type *member_types,
  const char **member_names,
  idx_t member_count
);
Parameters
  • member_types: The array of union member types.
  • member_names: The union member names.
  • member_count: The number of union members.
Return Value

The logical type.


duckdb_create_struct_type

Creates a STRUCT type based on the member types and names. The resulting type must be destroyed with duckdb_destroy_logical_type.

Syntax
duckdb_logical_type duckdb_create_struct_type(
  duckdb_logical_type *member_types,
  const char **member_names,
  idx_t member_count
);
Parameters
  • member_types: The array of types of the struct members.
  • member_names: The array of names of the struct members.
  • member_count: The number of members of the struct.
Return Value

The logical type.


duckdb_create_enum_type

Creates an ENUM type from the passed member name array. The resulting type should be destroyed with duckdb_destroy_logical_type.

Syntax
duckdb_logical_type duckdb_create_enum_type(
  const char **member_names,
  idx_t member_count
);
Parameters
  • member_names: The array of names that the enum should consist of.
  • member_count: The number of elements that were specified in the array.
Return Value

The logical type.


duckdb_create_decimal_type

Creates a DECIMAL type with the specified width and scale. The resulting type should be destroyed with duckdb_destroy_logical_type.

Syntax
duckdb_logical_type duckdb_create_decimal_type(
  uint8_t width,
  uint8_t scale
);
Parameters
  • width: The width of the decimal type
  • scale: The scale of the decimal type
Return Value

The logical type.


duckdb_get_type_id

Retrieves the enum duckdb_type of a duckdb_logical_type.

Syntax
duckdb_type duckdb_get_type_id(
  duckdb_logical_type type
);
Parameters
  • type: The logical type.
Return Value

The duckdb_type id.


duckdb_decimal_width

Retrieves the width of a decimal type.

Syntax
uint8_t duckdb_decimal_width(
  duckdb_logical_type type
);
Parameters
  • type: The logical type object
Return Value

The width of the decimal type


duckdb_decimal_scale

Retrieves the scale of a decimal type.

Syntax
uint8_t duckdb_decimal_scale(
  duckdb_logical_type type
);
Parameters
  • type: The logical type object
Return Value

The scale of the decimal type


duckdb_decimal_internal_type

Retrieves the internal storage type of a decimal type.

Syntax
duckdb_type duckdb_decimal_internal_type(
  duckdb_logical_type type
);
Parameters
  • type: The logical type object
Return Value

The internal type of the decimal type


duckdb_enum_internal_type

Retrieves the internal storage type of an enum type.

Syntax
duckdb_type duckdb_enum_internal_type(
  duckdb_logical_type type
);
Parameters
  • type: The logical type object
Return Value

The internal type of the enum type


duckdb_enum_dictionary_size

Retrieves the dictionary size of the enum type.

Syntax
uint32_t duckdb_enum_dictionary_size(
  duckdb_logical_type type
);
Parameters
  • type: The logical type object
Return Value

The dictionary size of the enum type


duckdb_enum_dictionary_value

Retrieves the dictionary value at the specified position from the enum.

The result must be freed with duckdb_free.

Syntax
char *duckdb_enum_dictionary_value(
  duckdb_logical_type type,
  idx_t index
);
Parameters
  • type: The logical type object
  • index: The index in the dictionary
Return Value

The string value of the enum type. Must be freed with duckdb_free.


duckdb_list_type_child_type

Retrieves the child type of the given LIST type. Also accepts MAP types. The result must be freed with duckdb_destroy_logical_type.

Syntax
duckdb_logical_type duckdb_list_type_child_type(
  duckdb_logical_type type
);
Parameters
  • type: The logical type, either LIST or MAP.
Return Value

The child type of the LIST or MAP type.


duckdb_array_type_child_type

Retrieves the child type of the given ARRAY type.

The result must be freed with duckdb_destroy_logical_type.

Syntax
duckdb_logical_type duckdb_array_type_child_type(
  duckdb_logical_type type
);
Parameters
  • type: The logical type. Must be ARRAY.
Return Value

The child type of the ARRAY type.


duckdb_array_type_array_size

Retrieves the array size of the given array type.

Syntax
idx_t duckdb_array_type_array_size(
  duckdb_logical_type type
);
Parameters
  • type: The logical type object
Return Value

The fixed number of elements the values of this array type can store.


duckdb_map_type_key_type

Retrieves the key type of the given map type.

The result must be freed with duckdb_destroy_logical_type.

Syntax
duckdb_logical_type duckdb_map_type_key_type(
  duckdb_logical_type type
);
Parameters
  • type: The logical type object
Return Value

The key type of the map type. Must be destroyed with duckdb_destroy_logical_type.


duckdb_map_type_value_type

Retrieves the value type of the given map type.

The result must be freed with duckdb_destroy_logical_type.

Syntax
duckdb_logical_type duckdb_map_type_value_type(
  duckdb_logical_type type
);
Parameters
  • type: The logical type object
Return Value

The value type of the map type. Must be destroyed with duckdb_destroy_logical_type.


duckdb_struct_type_child_count

Returns the number of children of a struct type.

Syntax
idx_t duckdb_struct_type_child_count(
  duckdb_logical_type type
);
Parameters
  • type: The logical type object
Return Value

The number of children of a struct type.


duckdb_struct_type_child_name

Retrieves the name of the struct child.

The result must be freed with duckdb_free.

Syntax
char *duckdb_struct_type_child_name(
  duckdb_logical_type type,
  idx_t index
);
Parameters
  • type: The logical type object
  • index: The child index
Return Value

The name of the struct type. Must be freed with duckdb_free.


duckdb_struct_type_child_type

Retrieves the child type of the given struct type at the specified index.

The result must be freed with duckdb_destroy_logical_type.

Syntax
duckdb_logical_type duckdb_struct_type_child_type(
  duckdb_logical_type type,
  idx_t index
);
Parameters
  • type: The logical type object
  • index: The child index
Return Value

The child type of the struct type. Must be destroyed with duckdb_destroy_logical_type.


duckdb_union_type_member_count

Returns the number of members that the union type has.

Syntax
idx_t duckdb_union_type_member_count(
  duckdb_logical_type type
);
Parameters
  • type: The logical type (union) object
Return Value

The number of members of a union type.


duckdb_union_type_member_name

Retrieves the name of the union member.

The result must be freed with duckdb_free.

Syntax
char *duckdb_union_type_member_name(
  duckdb_logical_type type,
  idx_t index
);
Parameters
  • type: The logical type object
  • index: The child index
Return Value

The name of the union member. Must be freed with duckdb_free.


duckdb_union_type_member_type

Retrieves the child type of the given union member at the specified index.

The result must be freed with duckdb_destroy_logical_type.

Syntax
duckdb_logical_type duckdb_union_type_member_type(
  duckdb_logical_type type,
  idx_t index
);
Parameters
  • type: The logical type object
  • index: The child index
Return Value

The child type of the union member. Must be destroyed with duckdb_destroy_logical_type.


duckdb_destroy_logical_type

Destroys the logical type and de-allocates all memory allocated for that type.

Syntax
void duckdb_destroy_logical_type(
  duckdb_logical_type *type
);
Parameters
  • type: The logical type to destroy.


duckdb_register_logical_type

Registers a custom type within the given connection. The type must have an alias

Syntax
duckdb_state duckdb_register_logical_type(
  duckdb_connection con,
  duckdb_logical_type type,
  duckdb_create_type_info info
);
Parameters
  • con: The connection to use
  • type: The custom type to register
Return Value

Whether or not the registration was successful.