How to create temp table using Create statement in SQL Server?

How to create a temp table similarly to creating a normal table?

Example:

CREATE TABLE table_name ( column1 datatype, column2 datatype, column3 datatype, .... ); 

2 Answers

Same thing, Just start the table name with # or ##:

CREATE TABLE #TemporaryTable -- Local temporary table - starts with single # ( Col1 int, Col2 varchar(10) .... ); CREATE TABLE ##GlobalTemporaryTable -- Global temporary table - note it starts with ##. ( Col1 int, Col2 varchar(10) .... ); 

Temporary table names start with # or ## - The first is a local temporary table and the last is a global temporary table.

Here is one of many articles describing the differences between them.

A temporary table can have 3 kinds, the # is the most used. This is a temp table that only exists in the current session. An equivalent of this is @, a declared table variable. This has a little less "functions" (like indexes etc) and is also only used for the current session. The ## is one that is the same as the #, however, the scope is wider, so you can use it within the same session, within other stored procedures.

You can create a temp table in various ways:

declare @table table (id int) create table #table (id int) create table ##table (id int) select * into #table from xyz