---
title: "Vector search SQL"
slug: "dev-database-reference-sql-vector-search"
updated: 2026-10-30T18:19:11Z
published: 2026-10-30T18:19:11Z
canonical: "docs.vastdata.com/dev-database-reference-sql-vector-search"
---

> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.vastdata.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Vector search SQL

*Applies to VAST Cluster 5.5.*

VAST Vector Search runs through the VAST Query Engine, with the SQL on this page. Its reference lives in the VAST Vector Search section: [SQL reference for VAST Vector Search](/develop/docs/dev-vector-search-reference-sql). This page is a short index into it.

| Topic | Where |
| --- | --- |
| Vector column types: `VECTOR(FLOAT, <dim>)`, `VECTOR(FLOAT16, <dim>)`, `VECTOR(INTEGER, <dim>)` | [Vector column types](/develop/docs/dev-vector-search-reference-sql#vector-column-types) |
| Creating a vector index: `CREATE TABLE ... VECTOR CLUSTER BY <column> (metric = '...')`, its properties and rules | [CREATE TABLE with a vector index](/develop/docs/dev-vector-search-reference-sql#create-table-with-a-vector-index) |
| `DESCRIBE` and `SHOW` on a vector-indexed table, and reading the index settings | [DESCRIBE and SHOW](/develop/docs/dev-vector-search-reference-sql#describe-and-show) |
| `INSERT`, `UPDATE` and `DELETE` on a vector-indexed table | [Changing data (DML)](/develop/docs/dev-vector-search-reference-sql#changing-data-dml) |
| Distance functions | [Distance functions](/develop/docs/dev-vector-search-reference-sql#distance-functions) |
| The query shape that uses the index | [Query shape that uses the index](/develop/docs/dev-vector-search-reference-sql#query-shape-that-uses-the-index) |
| Errors from vector DDL and queries | [Errors you'll see](/develop/docs/dev-vector-search-reference-sql#errors-youll-see) |

## Distance functions

These vector distance functions are available (see [Vector Search](/docs-5-5/docs/vector-search)):

- `array_distance`
- `array_cosine_distance`
- `array_negative_inner_product`

Which function matches which index metric, and how to write the query so that it uses the index, is in [distance functions](/develop/docs/dev-vector-search-reference-sql#distance-functions).

## Trino and Spark

Trino and Spark have no vector type and don't use the vector index; see [Trino](/develop/docs/dev-database-integrations-trino#not-available-through-trino) and [Spark](/develop/docs/dev-database-integrations-spark#what-vast-database-does-for-your-query).