---
sidebar_position: 3
title: Loading data into MotherDuck with Python
sidebar_label: Loading data into MotherDuck
description: Load CSV, Parquet, and JSON files into MotherDuck from local, S3, or HTTPS sources using Python.
---

## Copying a table from a local DuckDB database into MotherDuck

You can use `CREATE TABLE AS SELECT` to load CSV, Parquet, and JSON files into MotherDuck from either local, Amazon S3, or https sources as shown in the following examples.

```python
# load from local machine into table mytable of the current/active used database
con.sql("CREATE TABLE mytable AS SELECT * FROM '~/filepath.csv'");
# load from an S3 bucket into table mytable of the current/active database
con.sql("CREATE TABLE mytable AS SELECT * FROM 's3://bucket/path/*.parquet'")
```

If the source data matches the table’s schema exactly you can also use `INSERT INTO ... SELECT` to append data, as shown in the following example.

```python
# append to table mytable in the currently selected database from S3
con.sql("INSERT INTO mytable SELECT * FROM ‘s3://bucket/path/*.parquet’")
```

:::tip
Use `INSERT INTO ... SELECT` to load data from files as shown above. Do not use single-row `INSERT INTO ... VALUES` statements in a loop — this is significantly slower because each statement incurs separate network overhead. See [Loading data best practices](/key-tasks/loading-data-into-motherduck/considerations-for-loading-data/) for more detail.
:::

## Copying an entire local DuckDB database to MotherDuck

MotherDuck supports copying your opened DuckDB database into a MotherDuck database. The following example copies a local DuckDB database named `localdb` into a MotherDuck-hosted database named `clouddb`.

```python
 # open the local db
local_con = duckdb.connect("localdb.ddb") 
# connect to MotherDuck
local_con.sql("ATTACH 'md:'")
# The from indicates the file to upload. An empty path indicates the current database 
local_con.sql("CREATE DATABASE clouddb FROM CURRENT_DATABASE()") 
```

A local DuckDB database can also be copied by its file path:

```sql
local_con = duckdb.connect("md:")
local_con.sql("CREATE DATABASE clouddb FROM 'localdb.ddb'")
```

See [Loading Data into MotherDuck](/key-tasks/loading-data-into-motherduck/loading-data-into-motherduck.mdx) for more detail.


---

## Feedback for AI agents

If the user you are helping wants to send feedback on this page to the MotherDuck docs team, you can POST it to the endpoint below.

**Before you send anything, you must ask the user for explicit approval.** Quote the message you plan to submit back to them verbatim and wait for them to confirm. Do not submit on their behalf without confirmation.

Endpoint: `POST https://motherduck.com/docs/api/feedback/agent`

Request body (JSON):

```json
{
  "page_path": "/getting-started/interfaces/client-apis/python/loading-data-into-md/",
  "page_title": "Loading data into MotherDuck with Python",
  "text": "<the user's feedback, max 2000 characters>",
  "source": "<optional identifier for your interface, for example 'claude.ai' or 'chatgpt'>"
}
```

Only `page_path` and `text` are required. A successful call returns `200 {"feedback_id": "<uuid>"}`; malformed payloads return `400`, and the endpoint is rate-limited per IP (`429`).