Export data from SQL Server to CSV via command line on Linux

Want to export SQL Server data to CSV file via Command Line Interface (CLI) on Linux (Ubuntu/RedHat/CentOS…)?

Using mssql-cmd, Command Line Interface (CLI) client for SQL Server, you can unload SQL Server data to CSV/TSV/TXT easily and fast. Direct Interaction or Scripting and Automation.

• No need to install SQL Server client library.
• Convenient to deploy to cloud. No need to run installation file, just uncompress and run, immediately.
• Commands are entered into a terminal or command prompt, accessed from local or remote (like SSH).
• Support Windows, Linux, and MacOS.

Download mssql-cmd Linux version
mssql-cmd.linux-386.zip
mssql-cmd.linux-amd64.zip
mssql-cmd.linux-arm64.zip

Export SQL Server data to CSV/TSV/TXT via command line on Linux (Ubuntu/RedHat/CentOS…)

1. Unload Table.

1) In interactive mode:

mssql-cmd> unload
      > table=media_messages 
      > datafile=/data/media_messages.csv 
      > delimiter=, 
      > quote=" 
      > header=y;

2) In batch mode:

mssql-cmd dsn="pan:withdata@192.168.0.102/test" task=unload table=media_messages datafile=/data/media_messages.csv delimiter=, quote=" header=y quit=y

2. Unload Query.

1) In interactive mode:

mssql-cmd> unload
      > query="select * from media_messages where id > 100"
      > datafile=/data/media_messages.csv 
      > delimiter=, 
      > quote=" 
      > header=y;

2) In batch mode:

mssql-cmd dsn="pan:withdata@192.168.0.102/test" task=unload query="select * from media_messages where id > 100" datafile=/data/media_messages.csv delimiter=, quote=" header=y quit=y

3. Unload All Tables.

1) In interactive mode:

mssql-cmd> unload
      > table=all 
      > folder=/data/tables_data
      > delimiter=, 
      > quote=" 
      > header=y;

2) In batch mode:

mssql-cmd dsn="pan:withdata@192.168.0.102/test" task=unload table=all folder=/data/tables_data delimiter=, quote=" header=y quit=y

See parameters detail.

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More about mssql-cmd – Command Line Interface (CLI) tool for SQL Server

SQL Server → CSV reference

Type mapping

Value kind	in SQL Server	in CSV
Int	int	1234
Bigint	bigint	9007199254740993
Decimal	decimal(p,s)	1234.56
Float	float	1.234e+10
Text	nvarchar(n)	quoted only when it contains a comma or a quote
Long text	nvarchar(max)	must be quoted; line breaks inside force multi-line records
Date	date	2026-09-18
Datetime	datetime2	2026-09-18 14:30:00
Binary	varbinary(max)	not representable - base64 or hex string
Boolean	bit	TRUE / FALSE, or 1 / 0 depending on the writer
JSON	nvarchar(max)	the whole JSON value quoted, with internal quotes doubled

Dialect differences

SQL Server is a database server and CSV is a file format, so the gap is wider than a dialect difference - the rows below are where values and structure stop lining up.

Property	in SQL Server	in CSV
port	1433	—
identifiers	[square brackets]	Double quotes; a literal quote is doubled ("" )
row limit	SELECT TOP n	—
dates	datetime, datetime2, date, time	Conventional text: 2026-09-18 or 2026-09-18 14:30:00
long text	nvarchar(max)	—
binary	varbinary(max)	Not supported
separator	—	Comma ","
encoding	—	No declaration - UTF-8 works only with a BOM
typing	—	None - every field is text
shape	Tables of rows and columns	Flat table, optional header row
ceiling	—	No formal limit; row count bounded by memory

Command line

Side	Command
SQL Server	bcp
SQL Server (load)	bcp, or BULK INSERT

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