How to Use the SQL Formatter

1. 1Paste or type your raw, minified, or unformatted SQL query into the dark input area above.
2. 2Choose your preferred indentation size (2 spaces, 4 spaces, or tab) from the options.
3. 3Select whether you want SQL keywords in UPPERCASE or lowercase output.
4. 4Click Format SQL to instantly beautify and indent your query with proper structure.
5. 5Review the formatted output, then click Copy to copy it to your clipboard for use in your editor or documentation.

Key Features

How the SQL Formatter Works

The formatter tokenises your SQL input and rebuilds it with consistent structure based on keyword hierarchy. Here is the core formatting logic applied:

The formatter normalises whitespace, removes redundant spaces, applies your chosen keyword case, and rebuilds indentation from scratch. The result is consistently readable SQL regardless of how compressed or inconsistently written the input was.

Practical Examples

-- Input (minified):
select u.id,u.name,a.balance from users u inner join accounts a on u.id=a.user_id where a.balance>10000 and u.status='active' order by a.balance desc limit 50

-- Formatted Output:
SELECT
    u.id,
    u.name,
    a.balance
FROM users u
    INNER JOIN accounts a
        ON u.id = a.user_id
WHERE a.balance > 10000
    AND u.status = 'active'
ORDER BY a.balance DESC
LIMIT 50

-- Input (messy):
select p.product_name,sum(o.quantity) as total_sold,avg(o.price) as avg_price from orders o join products p on o.product_id=p.id where o.order_date between '2024-01-01' and '2024-12-31' group by p.product_name having sum(o.quantity)>100 order by total_sold desc

-- Formatted Output:
SELECT
    p.product_name,
    SUM(o.quantity) AS total_sold,
    AVG(o.price) AS avg_price
FROM orders o
    JOIN products p
        ON o.product_id = p.id
WHERE o.order_date BETWEEN '2024-01-01' AND '2024-12-31'
GROUP BY p.product_name
HAVING SUM(o.quantity) > 100
ORDER BY total_sold DESC

-- Input (CTE, unformatted):
with ranked_users as (select id,name,row_number() over(partition by region order by created_at desc) as rn from users) select id,name from ranked_users where rn=1

-- Formatted Output:
WITH ranked_users AS (
    SELECT
        id,
        name,
        ROW_NUMBER() OVER (
            PARTITION BY region
            ORDER BY created_at DESC
        ) AS rn
    FROM users
)
SELECT
    id,
    name
FROM ranked_users
WHERE rn = 1

What Is an SQL Formatter?

An SQL Formatter is a tool that takes raw, minified, or inconsistently written SQL queries and restructures them into clean, readable, properly indented code. In database development, queries are often written quickly, generated by ORMs, or exported from tools in a single compressed line. Reading and debugging such queries is difficult without proper formatting.

Formatted SQL is easier to debug, review, and document. Developers can immediately see the query structure — which tables are joined, what the WHERE conditions are, and how GROUP BY and ORDER BY relate to the SELECT columns. This reduces the time spent understanding a query from minutes to seconds.

This tool handles the formatting entirely in your browser, making it safe for use with sensitive database queries. There is no server upload, no logging, and no risk of your query data leaving your device.

Frequently Asked Questions