Beginner’s Guide to Powerful Microsoft Access Queries

Name: Beginner’s Guide to Powerful Microsoft Access Queries
Rating: 3.9 (10 reviews)

Learn to create useful databases in a few minutes, and create power queries to analyse data

Created bySarah Barnard

Last updated 12/2025

English

English [Auto],

What you'll learn

Retrieve data from a database by using MicroSoft Access Queries
Learn about MicroSoft Access unique Primary Keys and Auto-Numbers
Copy or Import Data from MS Excel to MicroSoft Access
Create user interfaces and menus with MicroSoft Access Forms
Parameter Queries with MicroSoft Access

Course content

7 sections • 34 lectures • 2h 29m total length

Introduction to the MicroSoft Access Course0:18
What will you learn in this course?
Visual Of a Database0:16
View the image to see how a flat file could be 2 tables in a database, ensuring data integrity, data consistency, and less data duplication.

Introduction to your data0:17
The downloads in this lecture are:

Northwind ERD Diagram
A more simplified Northwind ERD Diagram: Schema.jpg
An Excel File with all the data for Northwind Database that we are going to use in this tutorial.
Lecture 1: Create a new database in MicroSoft Access0:37
Creating a new blank database in MS Access.
Create a new table in MicroSoft Access3:57
Create a new table in Microsoft Access using design view, defining fields like order ID (auto number), order date, shipper ID, employee ID, and customer ID, then save.
Import Data From Excel using Copy and Paste1:39
Get data into Access very quickly, by copy and paste
AutoNumbers3:08
Import Data From Excel, and verify the data types3:22
Import Data From Excel, let's do it all the data together5:52
learn how to import Excel data into Access by copying and pasting eight sheets, creating tables, and saving them under clear names.
Get useful insights from your data, simply from the Home Ribbon!7:51

Create a Query3:51
Access Housekeeping: Rename a table, Delete a table, Close a Query1:09
Rename a table, delete a table, and close a query in Access, and skip saving an append query to keep data clean and organized.
MS Access Query Criteria: Filter a dataset using text values3:09
Query Cretiria: Filter a dataset using number values5:09
Query Crietiria: Filter a dataset using date values3:57
Sort a query5:38
Top value queries2:55
Apply the top query to limit results to a manageable subset, ordering by price to show the most expensive or cheapest items and returning the top N rows.
Multiple Query Criteria in Access: Using OR3:14
Learn to create an Access query with multiple criteria using or, filtering by category id and supplier id, and using separate criteria rows to return records that meet either condition.
Multiple Query Criteria in Access: Using AND4:27
Multiple Query Criteria in Access: Using AND and OR3:48
Explore using and/or queries in Access to filter products by category, supplier IDs, and names starting with L, illustrated across multiple criteria lines.

What is an Auto-Number in MicroSoft Access?5:21
Auto-number in Microsoft Access automatically assigns the next long integer, starting at one and incrementing by one, ensuring every value is unique. It serves as the primary key.
Create a table with Auto-Numbers4:24
Create a table with an auto number ID, observe automatic primary key behavior, and learn how the order number increments to uniquely identify each record.
Re-using auto-numbers, once a number is deleted2:20
Starting auto-numbers at any value but 17:44
Learn how to start an Access auto-number at a chosen value, such as 577 or 5700, by modifying the table’s ID field with a start and increment in SQL view.
Create a table an importing and using an existing series of auto-numbers12:28
Copy And Paste Excel Data, maintaining the incoming Auto_Numbers3:08
Use an Append query to start Auto_numbers at something other than 112:12

Requirements

Some experience with data sets will help.

Description

Unlock the Power of Data with Microsoft Access

This Microsoft Access course is your gateway to mastering one of the most accessible yet powerful data tools available today. Designed to get you up and running quickly, this course focuses on the most impactful features of Microsoft Access—enabling you to harness the full potential of your data with ease and confidence.

At the heart of Access lies its ability to create dynamic database queries that allow you to extract meaningful insights from large datasets. With just a few clicks, you’ll learn how to filter, retrieve, and analyze specific records—spotting trends and patterns that matter.

Microsoft Access offers a user-friendly, drag-and-drop interface for building queries—no complex coding required. Plus, with its built-in Entity Relationship Diagram (ERD), you’ll gain a clear, visual understanding of how your tables connect, making it easier than ever to design powerful and accurate queries.

You’ll also discover how to seamlessly import data from Excel and other sources, define primary keys, and use auto-numbering for efficient data structuring.

Whether you’re a small business owner aiming to manage data more effectively or part of a large organization seeking an accessible solution for company-wide data access—Microsoft Access delivers. It empowers team members at all levels to explore and use data without needing deep SQL knowledge.

For aspiring data analysts, this course provides a solid foundation in essential data concepts and terminology, helping you build the confidence to step into the data industry.

Best of all, if you already have a Microsoft Office license, you likely already have Access—ready and waiting. So why not tap into its full potential?

We’re excited to guide you on this journey and help you gain valuable, practical database skills. Let’s get started!

Who this course is for:

This is a MicroSoft Access beginners course, basics are made easy. The course is for you if you want to learn the basics as quickly as possible. Short sessions let you view particular topics in isolation.

Beginner’s Guide to Powerful Microsoft Access Queries

What you'll learn

Explore related topics

Course content

Introduction2 lectures • 1min

Section 2: Starting out with Access8 lectures • 27min

Section 3: MicroSoft Access Query Basics10 lectures • 37min

Section 4: MS Access Expression Queries and Total Queries2 lectures • 14min

Save a MicroSoft Access query for regular use1 lecture • 4min

Section 5: Parameter Queries4 lectures • 19min

Section 6: All about Auto-Numbers7 lectures • 48min

Requirements

Description

Who this course is for: