# Add default value to column

**URL:** <https://community.cratedb.com/t/add-default-value-to-column/2078>\
**Category:** Community\
**Created:** [December 1, 2025, 1:20pm UTC](https://community.cratedb.com/t/add-default-value-to-column/2078 "2025-12-01T13:20:39Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Bhupendra\_Rane](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex020/user_avatar/community.cratedb.com/bhupendra_rane/32/1444_2.png) [@Bhupendra\_Rane](https://community.cratedb.com/u/Bhupendra_Rane)\
**Post date:** [December 1, 2025, 1:20pm UTC](https://community.cratedb.com/t/add-default-value-to-column/2078/1 "2025-12-01T13:20:39Z")

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I have a table in CrateDB, and I need to add the default value for a column of type `timestamp with time zone`. How can I do that? My CrateDB version is 5.10.9.

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**Author:** ![surister](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex020/user_avatar/community.cratedb.com/surister/32/1087_2.png) [@surister](https://community.cratedb.com/u/surister)\
**Post date:** [December 1, 2025, 1:26pm UTC](https://community.cratedb.com/t/add-default-value-to-column/2078/2 "2025-12-01T13:26:24Z")

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Hi, if the table already exists you cannot currently do that, the feature request is tracked at [Support `ALTER TABLE x ALTER COLUMN y SET DEFAULT` · Issue #18784 · crate/crate · GitHub](https://github.com/crate/crate/issues/18784)

Alternatively as noted in the issue, some manual steps could be done to do this.