1---2name: google-skills-bigquery-basics3description: BigQuery Basics4---56# BigQuery Basics78BigQuery is a serverless, AI-ready data platform that enables high-speed9analysis of large datasets using SQL and Python. Its disaggregated architecture10separates compute and storage, allowing them to scale independently while11providing built-in machine learning, geospatial analysis, and business12intelligence capabilities.1314## Setup and Basic Usage15161. **Enable the BigQuery API:**17 ```bash18 gcloud services enable bigquery.googleapis.com19 ```20212. **Create a Dataset:**22 ```bash23 bq mk --dataset --location=US my_dataset24 ```25263. **Create a Table:**2728 Create a file named `schema.json` with your table schema:2930 ```json31 [32 {33 "name": "name",34 "type": "STRING",35 "mode": "REQUIRED"36 },37 {38 "name": "post_abbr",39 "type": "STRING",40 "mode": "NULLABLE"41 }42 ]43 ```4445 Then create the table with the `bq` tool:4647 ```bash48 bq mk --table my_dataset.mytable schema.json49 ```50514. **Run a Query:**52 ```bash53 bq query --use_legacy_sql=false \54 'SELECT name FROM `bigquery-public-data.usa_names.usa_1910_2013` \55 WHERE state = "TX" LIMIT 10'56 ```5758## Reference Directory5960- [Core Concepts](references/core-concepts.md): Storage types, analytics61 workflows, and BigQuery Studio features.6263- [CLI Usage](references/cli-usage.md): Essential `bq` command-line tool64 operations for managing data and jobs.6566- [Client Libraries](references/client-library-usage.md): Using Google Cloud67 client libraries for Python, Java, Node.js, and Go.6869- [MCP Usage](references/mcp-usage.md): Using the BigQuery remote MCP server and70 Gemini CLI extension.7172- [Infrastructure as Code](references/iac-usage.md): Terraform examples for73 datasets, tables, and reservations.7475- [IAM & Security](references/iam-security.md): Roles, permissions, and data76 governance best practices.7778*If you need product information not found in these references, use the79Developer Knowledge MCP server `search_documents` tool.*8081## Related Skills8283- [BigQuery AI & ML Skill](https://github.com/google/adk-python/tree/main/src/google/adk/tools/bigquery/skills/bigquery-ai-ml):84 SKILL.md file for BigQuery AI and ML capabilities.85- [BigQuery AI & ML References](https://github.com/google/adk-python/tree/main/src/google/adk/tools/bigquery/skills/bigquery-ai-ml/references):86 Reference files published for the BigQuery AI and ML skill.87 - [bigquery_ai_classify.md](https://github.com/google/adk-python/blob/main/src/google/adk/tools/bigquery/skills/bigquery-ai-ml/references/bigquery_ai_classify.md)88 - [bigquery_ai_detect_anomalies.md](https://github.com/google/adk-python/blob/main/src/google/adk/tools/bigquery/skills/bigquery-ai-ml/references/bigquery_ai_detect_anomalies.md)89 - [bigquery_ai_forecast.md](https://github.com/google/adk-python/blob/main/src/google/adk/tools/bigquery/skills/bigquery-ai-ml/references/bigquery_ai_forecast.md)90 - [bigquery_ai_generate.md](https://github.com/google/adk-python/blob/main/src/google/adk/tools/bigquery/skills/bigquery-ai-ml/references/bigquery_ai_generate.md)91 - [bigquery_ai_generate_bool.md](https://github.com/google/adk-python/blob/main/src/google/adk/tools/bigquery/skills/bigquery-ai-ml/references/bigquery_ai_generate_bool.md)92 - [bigquery_ai_generate_double.md](https://github.com/google/adk-python/blob/main/src/google/adk/tools/bigquery/skills/bigquery-ai-ml/references/bigquery_ai_generate_double.md)93 - [bigquery_ai_generate_int.md](https://github.com/google/adk-python/blob/main/src/google/adk/tools/bigquery/skills/bigquery-ai-ml/references/bigquery_ai_generate_int.md)94 - [bigquery_ai_if.md](https://github.com/google/adk-python/blob/main/src/google/adk/tools/bigquery/skills/bigquery-ai-ml/references/bigquery_ai_if.md)95 - [bigquery_ai_score.md](https://github.com/google/adk-python/blob/main/src/google/adk/tools/bigquery/skills/bigquery-ai-ml/references/bigquery_ai_score.md)96 - [bigquery_ai_search.md](https://github.com/google/adk-python/blob/main/src/google/adk/tools/bigquery/skills/bigquery-ai-ml/references/bigquery_ai_search.md)97 - [bigquery_ai_similarity.md](https://github.com/google/adk-python/blob/main/src/google/adk/tools/bigquery/skills/bigquery-ai-ml/references/bigquery_ai_similarity.md)9899---100> Source: [google/skills](https://github.com/google/skills) — distributed by [TomeVault](https://tomevault.io).101<!-- tomevault:4.0:skill_md:2026-05-01 -->