SQL Server Data Types

String data types:

Data type Description Max size Storage

char(n) Fixed width character string 8,000 characters Defined width

varchar(n) Variable width character string 8,000 characters 2 bytes + number of chars

varchar(max) Variable width character string 1,073,741,824 characters 2 bytes + number of chars

text Variable width character string 2GB of text data 4 bytes + number of chars

nchar Fixed width Unicode string 4,000 characters Defined width x 2

nvarchar(max) Variable width Unicode string 536,870,912 characters

ntext Variable width Unicode string 2GB of text data

binary(n) Fixed width binary string 8,000 bytes

varbinary Variable width binary string 8,000 bytes

varbinary(max) Variable width binary string 2GB

image Variable width binary string 2GB

Number data types:

bit Integer that can be 0, 1, or NULL

tinyint Allows whole numbers from 0 to 255 1 byte

smallint Allows whole numbers between -32,768 and 32,767 2 bytes

int Allows whole numbers between -2,147,483,648 and 2,147,483,647 4 bytes

bigint Allows whole numbers between -9,223,372,036,854,775,808 and 9,223,372,036,854,775,807 8 bytes

5-17 bytes
decimal(p,s) Fixed precision and scale numbers.

Allows numbers from -10^38 +1 to 10^38 –1.

The p parameter indicates the maximum total number of digits that can be stored (both to the
 left and to the right of the decimal point). p must be a value from 1 to 38. Default is 18.

The s parameter indicates the maximum number of digits stored to the right of the decimal
point. s must be a value from 0 to p. Default value is 0

numeric(p,s) Fixed precision and scale numbers. 5-17 bytes

Allows numbers from -10^38 +1 to 10^38 –1.

The p parameter indicates the maximum total number of digits that can be stored (both to the
left and to the right of the decimal point). p must be a value from 1 to 38. Default is 18.

The s parameter indicates the maximum number of digits stored to the right of the decimal
point. s must be a value from 0 to p. Default value is 0

smallmoney Monetary data from -214,748.3648 to 214,748.3647 4 bytes

money Monetary data from -922,337,203,685,477.5808 to 922,337,203,685,477.5807 8 bytes

float(n) Floating precision number data from -1.79E + 308 to 1.79E + 308. 4 or 8 bytes

The n parameter indicates whether the field should hold 4 or 8 bytes. float(24) holds a 4-byte
field and float(53) holds an 8-byte field. Default value of n is 53.

real Floating precision number data from -3.40E + 38 to 3.40E + 38 4 bytes

Date data types:

Data type Description Storage

datetime2 From January 1, 0001 to December 31, 9999 with an accuracy of 100 nanoseconds 6-8 bytes

smalldatetime From January 1, 1900 to June 6, 2079 with an accuracy of 1 minute 4 bytes

date Store a date only. From January 1, 0001 to December 31, 9999 3 bytes

time Store a time only to an accuracy of 100 nanoseconds 3-5 bytes

datetimeoffset The same as datetime2 with the addition of a time zone offset 8-10 bytes

timestamp Stores a unique number that gets updated every time a row gets created or modified. The
timestamp value is based upon an internal clock and does not correspond to real time. Each
table may have only one timestamp variable

Other data types:

sql_variant Stores up to 8,000 bytes of data of various data types, except text, ntext, and timestamp

uniqueidentifier Stores a globally unique identifier (GUID)

xml Stores XML formatted data. Maximum 2GB

cursor Stores a reference to a cursor used for database operations

table Stores a result-set for later processing