---
tags: database, potsgresql, sql, english
---

# INSERT ... RETURNING

You can return any information about any inserted element in the `INSERT` statement by using the `RETURNING ...` clause

## Example

```sql
INSERT INTO roles (name)
VALUES ('master')
RETURNING role_id
```

So after `RETURNING` you choose all the columns you want to get

Very useful along [[The WITH statement]] to chain a bunch of insertions atomically without using transactions

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## What led to learning this

- Started using the SQL language in PostgreSQL. Working on a [tiny family project](https://github.com/taionca/taionca/)