---
sidebar_position: 2
title: Specify MotherDuck database
description: Specify MotherDuck database
---

When you connect to MotherDuck you can specify a database name or omit the database name and connect to the default database.

- If you use `md:` without a database name, you connect to a default MotherDuck database called `my_db`.
- If you use `md:<database name>`, you connect to the `<database name>` database.


After you establish the connection, either the default database or the one you specify becomes the current database.

You can run the `USE` command to switch the current database, as shown in the following example.

```python
#list the current database
con.sql("SELECT current_database()").show()
# ('database1') 

#switch the current database to database2
con.sql("USE database2")
```

To query a table in the current database, you can specify just the table name. To query a table in a different database, you can include the database name when you specify the table. You don't need to switch the current database. The following examples demonstrate each method.

```sql
#querying a table in the current database
con.sql("SELECT count(*) FROM mytable").show()

#querying a table in another database
con.sql("SELECT count(*) FROM another_db.another_table").show()
```