# DESCRIBE

> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.redpanda.com/llms.txt). Component-specific: [cloud-data-platform-full.txt](https://docs.redpanda.com/cloud-data-platform-full.txt)

---
title: DESCRIBE
latest-operator-version: v26.1.4
latest-console-tag: v3.7.3
latest-connect-version: 4.93.0
latest-redpanda-tag: v26.1.9
docname: sql/sql-statements/describe
page-component-name: cloud-data-platform
page-version: master
page-component-version: master
page-component-title: Cloud
page-relative-src-path: sql/sql-statements/describe.adoc
page-edit-url: https://github.com/redpanda-data/cloud-docs/edit/main/modules/reference/pages/sql/sql-statements/describe.adoc
description: The DESCRIBE statement displays columns of a table or lists tables in a database.
page-topic-type: reference
page-git-created-date: "2026-05-26"
page-git-modified-date: "2026-05-26"
---

<!-- Source: https://docs.redpanda.com/cloud-data-platform/reference/sql/sql-statements/describe.md -->

The `DESCRIBE` statement displays columns of a table or lists tables in a database.

## [](#syntax)Syntax

```sql
DESCRIBE DATABASE;
DESCRIBE TABLE table_name;
DESCRIBE TABLE catalog_name=>table_name;
DESCRIBE REDPANDA CATALOG catalog_name;
DESCRIBE ICEBERG CATALOG catalog_name;
```

-   `table_name`: Name of the table to describe.

-   `catalog_name⇒table_name`: Describes a table that is mapped to a Redpanda topic through a catalog.

-   `catalog_name` (after `REDPANDA CATALOG`): Name of a Redpanda catalog. Lists the tables and topic mappings in that catalog.

-   `catalog_name` (after `ICEBERG CATALOG`): Name of an Iceberg catalog. Lists the catalog’s connection details, including its REST endpoint and warehouse.


> 📝 **NOTE**
>
> This statement is available to all users with the `USAGE` privilege on the schema where the table is located.

## [](#examples)Examples

### [](#describe-a-table)Describe a table

To show the columns of the `part` table, run the query:

```sql
DESCRIBE TABLE part;
```

The query returns:

```sql
+----------------+------------+-------------+-------+----------+
| database_name  | table_name |    name     | type  | nullable |
+----------------+------------+-------------+-------+----------+
| public         | part       | p_partkey   | INT   | f        |
| public         | part       | p_name      | TEXT  | f        |
| public         | part       | p_mfgr      | TEXT  | f        |
| public         | part       | p_category  | TEXT  | f        |
| public         | part       | p_brand     | TEXT  | f        |
| public         | part       | p_color     | TEXT  | f        |
| public         | part       | p_type      | TEXT  | f        |
| public         | part       | p_size      | INT   | f        |
| public         | part       | p_container | TEXT  | f        |
+----------------+------------+-------------+-------+----------+
```

> 💡 **TIP**
>
> Tables in this example use the `public` schema, the default in Redpanda SQL. For information on displaying tables from other schemas, see [Schema](https://docs.redpanda.com/cloud-data-platform/reference/sql/schema/).

### [](#describe-a-database)Describe a database

To list all tables in the database, run:

```sql
DESCRIBE DATABASE;
```

The query returns:

```sql
+-----------------------------+
| name                        |
+-----------------------------+
| supplier_scale_1_no_index   |
| features                    |
| orders                      |
| features2                   |
| featurestable               |
| featurestable1              |
| featurestable10             |
+-----------------------------+
```

### [](#describe-a-catalog-table)Describe a catalog table

To view column details for a table mapped through a Redpanda catalog, run:

```sql
DESCRIBE TABLE default_redpanda_catalog=>transactions;
```

The query returns:

```sql
+---------------------------+--------------+-------------+-------+----------+
| database_name             | table_name   |    name     | type  | nullable |
+---------------------------+--------------+-------------+-------+----------+
| default_redpanda_catalog  | transactions | tx_id       | INT   | f        |
| default_redpanda_catalog  | transactions | amount      | REAL  | f        |
| default_redpanda_catalog  | transactions | created_at  | TEXT  | f        |
+---------------------------+--------------+-------------+-------+----------+
```

### [](#describe-a-redpanda-catalog)Describe a Redpanda catalog

To list the tables and topic mappings in a Redpanda catalog, run:

```sql
DESCRIBE REDPANDA CATALOG default_redpanda_catalog;
```

The query returns:

```sql
+----------------+--------------+
| table_name     | topic_name   |
+----------------+--------------+
| transactions   | transactions |
| user_events    | user-events  |
+----------------+--------------+
```

### [](#describe-an-iceberg-catalog)Describe an Iceberg catalog

To list connection details for an Iceberg catalog, run:

```sql
DESCRIBE ICEBERG CATALOG lakehouse_catalog;
```

The query returns the catalog’s REST endpoint, warehouse, and authentication type.