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SQL for Beginners: Learn SQL Quickly with Hands-on Exercises

Name: SQL for Beginners: Learn SQL Quickly with Hands-on Exercises
Rating: 4.3 (64 reviews)

Master SQL Fundamentals Quickly and Effectively with MySQL

Created byDave Hollingworth

Last updated 4/2026

English

What you'll learn

The basics of what databases are and why we use them
Use SQL to save data to a database
How to create your own databases or use existing ones
Use SQL to extract data from a database in many different ways
Use SQL to create and modify databases in MySQL
SQL best practices

Coding Exercises

This course includes our updated coding exercises so you can practice your skills as you learn.

Course content

16 sections • 94 lectures • 3h 7m total length

Introduction and Welcome0:50
How to get the most out of the course
What is a Database, and What is SQL?3:41
Exactly what databases and SQL are, and how they are related
SQL or Sequel?1:00
Is it pronounced ess-q-el or sequel?

Introduction: Required Software0:56
An introduction to the software we'll use on the course
What to Do if You Already have MySQL Installed (e.g. XAMPP)0:45
Windows: Install MySQL Server and Command-line Client2:57
How to install the server and CLI on Windows
Windows: Install MySQL Workbench1:56
How to install the Workbench GUI client on Windows
macOS: Install MySQL Server and Command-line Client2:39
How to install the server and CLI on macOS
macOS: Running the MySQL Command-Line Client0:19
Additional options for running the CLI program on macOS
macOS: Install MySQL Workbench1:49
How to install the Workbench GUI client on macOS
Ubuntu Linux: Install MySQL Server, Workbench and the Command-line Client0:15
How to install all the required software on Ubuntu Linux

List and Create Databases2:46
List all databases, create new ones, and best practices for naming
Delete Databases0:51
Delete individual databases
Select a Current Database1:02
Select the currently-active database
View and Create Tables: An Introduction to Data Types4:31
Create a table, choosing the appropriate data type for each column
Configure NULL and Default Values2:37
What NULL values mean, and how to configure a column to accept null values. Also what the default value of a column is if we don't specify one when inserting data
Add Columns to Existing Tables1:52
How to alter a table to add more columns; the difference between signed and unsigned integers, and adding columns in specific positions using the FIRST and AFTER keywords.
Modifying Columns1:54
How to modify existing columns, including renaming them and changing attributes like defaults
Removing Columns0:52
How to remove one or more columns from a table
Rename or Delete a Table1:55
How to rename or delete a table; avoiding errors if a table doesn't exist when removing it using IF EXISTS, how to view the details of a warning message
Creating Databases and Tables

List, Create and Delete Databases using the GUI3:06
How to view all databases, create new ones, and delete existing ones
View and Create Tables using the GUI4:14
Using the GUI table wizard to generate the SQL to create new tables; also making sure the table is created in the correct database by setting the default schema
Edit and Delete Tables using the GUI2:29
Editing a table name; adding and removing columns; editing columns; changing column order; deleting tables

Recreating Databases using Scripts2:52
What scripts are and how to run them in MySQL Workbench
Comments in SQL1:04
What comments are and two ways to add them to an SQL script
Rename a Database using the GUI Client3:00
Using MySQL Workbench to rename a database
Rename a Database in the Command-line Client1:29
Using the command-line client to rename a database
Run a Script in the GUI Client1:08
How to run a script in MySQL Workbench
Run a Script in the Command-line Client0:49
Two ways to run a script in the CLI client

Insert One or More Records into a Table2:29
How to insert data into a table
Specifying Columns and Using Default Values1:20
Inserting records while specifying which columns to insert the data into, and how default values are used
Dates: Providing Explicit Values1:32
How to insert values into a DATE column, the correct format to use, and the default if the century isn't specified
Defaulting to the Current Date1:02
How to default a column to the current date when a record is inserted
Times: Specifying Time Values and the Current Time as a Default1:45
How to default a column to the current date and time, and how to format literal time values
Inserting Special Characters1:54
How to insert characters like single quotes and newline characters using escape sequences
Inserting Data
Inserting Data into a Table

Column Data Types and Type Conversions2:54
How the database maintains data integrity by enforcing strict data types, and how some values are converted automatically when possible
Accepting NULL Values0:54
How NULL defaults are handled if the column is configured not to accept NULL values
Enforcing unique values with UNIQUE Constraints3:42
How unique constraints enforce unique values in a column. How to add and remove these constraints, optionally specifying the constraint name
Limiting Value Ranges with CHECK Constraints2:48
Adding and removing CHECK constraints to limit the range of values in a column
Adding Constraints when Creating a Table2:52
How to specify constraints when creating a table, including constraints that act on multiple columns
Specifying CHECK Constraints in MySQL Workbench0:41
How to specify CHECK constraints in MySQL Workbench
Enforcing Data Integrity

Run a Script to Set Up the Database for this Section1:00
An example of how to run the attached script to set up the database for the rest of the lectures in this section
Selecting Specific Columns and Using Aliases1:49
How to select specific columns when retrieving data, where the column names come from in the result set, and how to rename them
Selecting Specific Columns
Selecting Data using the GUI1:05
How to select data using MySQL Workbench
Filtering Results with the WHERE Clause: Comparison operators and BETWEEN2:50
How to limit the number of rows in the result set by filtering them with a WHERE clause
Filtering Results When Selecting Data
Filtering NULL Values0:46
How to use a WHERE clause with NULL values
Combining Conditions with AND, OR & NOT, and the IN Operator3:32
How to combine multiple WHERE clauses with different operators
Combining WHERE Conditions With Logical Operators
String Patterns: The LIKE Operator and Wildcards2:05
How to filter results comparing columns to a pattern instead of a literal value
Filtering String Columns with the LIKE Operator
Filtering Results using Regular Expressions: The REGEXP Operator1:36
How to use a regular expression in a WHERE clause
Removing Duplicates using the DISTINCT Keyword0:55
How to remove duplicate entries in the result set
Selecting Unique Values with DISTINCT

Selecting Literal values and Expressions2:39
How to include literal values and the results of expressions and functions in the resultset
Using the IFNULL or COALESCE Functions
Numeric, String and Date Functions2:48
How to use functions on numeric, string and date values
Choosing an Appropriate Function
Multiple Conditions with the CASE Expression2:22
Using the CASE expression to return different values based on conditions
The CASE Statement
Subqueries0:51
How one query can be used inside another
Creating Tables and Copying Data using Subqueries1:33
Using subqueries to create new tables and insert data into an existing table

Updating Existing Records2:16
Updating one or more columns of existing records, with optional filters using WHERE clauses
Updating Records
Setting the Current Date and Time When Updating Records1:38
Automatically setting a column to the current date and time when a record is updated
Deleting Records0:54
Deleting one or more records from a table, filtering with a WHERE clause
Deleting Records
Deleting All the Records from a Table1:21
Two methods to delete all the records from a table
Using Transactions to Restore Deleted Records2:34
The basics of how transactions work to allow actions to be undone
ACID Transactions: Making Sure All Statements Run in a Group3:12
How to make sure all operations in a group run or none of them do (ACID: Atomicity, Consistency, Isolation, and Durability)
Transactions

Requirements

No experience needed of databases, SQL, or MySQL - complete beginners are welcome.
All you need is a working computer - instructions are included for Windows, Mac and Linux.

Description

Learn the fundamentals of databases and SQL, from scratch, step-by-step. In this hands-on course, you’ll learn everything from the basics of SQL syntax to advanced query techniques. You'll do this with practical examples, quizzes, and coding exercises.

Learn and Master SQL Fundamentals Quickly Using One of the World's Most Popular Database Management Systems

What you'll learn:

Set up and configure MySQL on your computer
Understand core database concepts
Create and manage databases
Write SQL to insert, edit and delete data
Create simple queries to extract data from a database
Write complex queries using JOINs, GROUP BY, and subqueries
Optimise your queries for better performance

Learn SQL fundamentals from scratch using MySQL

SQL is one of the most in-demand skills you could learn. In this hands-on course, you'll learn the basics of databases and SQL syntax, through to advanced query techniques. You'll do this quickly by learning with practical examples, and reinforcing them with quizzes and in-browser coding exercises. We'll do this using MySQL - one of the world's most popular and database systems.

Starting from first principles, you'll learn what databases are and how they are used.

Then you'll learn what SQL is, and how it's used to interact with relational databases like MySQL.

At all stages practical examples are used, which you're encouraged to experiment with yourself.

You'll learn how to create and manage databases, at all times using best practices for doing so.

Then you'll learn the SQL to manage data inside databases - inserting new data and editing and deleting existing data.

Following this you'll learn the basics of how to get data from a database, then more advanced queries, including best practices and how to optimise them.

Why Take This Course?

No prior experience required - perfect for beginners
Clear, step-by-step lessons with practical examples
Build real skills you can use at work or in freelance projects
Lifetime access to course materials
Hands-on content and downloadable resources
Certificate of Completion to showcase your new skills

Who this course is for:

Anyone interested in learning SQL with no prior knowledge
Anyone who wants to confidently work with SQL and MySQL
Anyone who wants to learn SQL quickly and efficiently

SQL for Beginners: Learn SQL Quickly with Hands-on Exercises

What you'll learn

Explore related topics

Coding Exercises

Course content

Introduction3 lectures • 6min

Software Installation and Setup8 lectures • 12min

Creating Databases and Tables Using the Command-Line Client9 lectures • 18min

Creating Databases and Tables Using a GUI3 lectures • 10min

SQL Scripts6 lectures • 10min

Inserting Data into a Table6 lectures • 10min

Enforcing Data Integrity with Constraints6 lectures • 14min

Selecting Data: The Basics9 lectures • 16min

Selecting Data: Expressions, Functions and Subqueries5 lectures • 10min

Updating and Deleting Data6 lectures • 12min

Requirements

Description

Who this course is for: