EC
1048
MariaDBERRORCommonConstraint ViolationHIGH confidence

Column cannot be null

What this means

Error 1048 (SQLSTATE 23000) is raised when an INSERT or UPDATE attempts to set a NOT NULL column to NULL, and strict SQL mode is enabled. In non-strict mode, MariaDB may substitute the column's implicit default value and produce a warning instead of an error.

Why it happens
  1. 1Inserting a row without providing a value for a NOT NULL column that has no DEFAULT
  2. 2Explicitly passing NULL for a NOT NULL column
  3. 3Bulk loading data (LOAD DATA INFILE) where some rows have missing values for NOT NULL columns
How to reproduce

An INSERT omits a required NOT NULL column with no DEFAULT.

trigger — this will error
trigger — this will error
CREATE TABLE orders (
  id INT PRIMARY KEY AUTO_INCREMENT,
  customer_id INT NOT NULL,
  amount DECIMAL(10,2) NOT NULL
);

INSERT INTO orders (customer_id) VALUES (42);  -- amount is NULL

expected output

ERROR 1048 (23000): Column 'amount' cannot be null

Fix 1

Provide a value for every NOT NULL column

WHEN Always.

Provide a value for every NOT NULL column
INSERT INTO orders (customer_id, amount) VALUES (42, 99.99);

Why this works

Explicitly providing all NOT NULL column values in the INSERT column list satisfies the constraint check before the row is written to the storage engine.

Fix 2

Add a DEFAULT value to the column

WHEN When a sensible default exists.

Add a DEFAULT value to the column
ALTER TABLE orders MODIFY amount DECIMAL(10,2) NOT NULL DEFAULT 0.00;
INSERT INTO orders (customer_id) VALUES (42);  -- amount defaults to 0.00

Why this works

When a DEFAULT is defined and the column is omitted from the INSERT, the server substitutes the default value before constraint validation.

What not to do

✕ Disable strict mode to make the error a warning

In non-strict mode, MariaDB silently substitutes a zero/empty default, creating logically incorrect data (e.g., zero-amount orders) that is harder to detect.

Version notes
MariaDB 10.2+

Strict mode (STRICT_TRANS_TABLES) is enabled by default. Changing sql_mode to non-strict will downgrade this error to a warning.

Sources
Official documentation ↗

MariaDB Server error code 1048 / ER_BAD_NULL_ERROR

MariaDB SQL mode ↗

Content generated with AI assistance and reviewed for accuracy. Found an error? hello@errcodes.dev

← All MariaDB errors