---
type: api
title: Run an async ES|QL query
description: Asynchronously run an ES|QL (Elasticsearch query language) query, monitor its progress, and retrieve results when they become available.
url: https://www.elastic.co/elastic/docs-builder/docs/4371/api/doc/elasticsearch/v8/operation/operation-esql-async-query
resource: https://www.elastic.co/elastic/docs-builder/docs/4371/api/doc/elasticsearch/v8/operation/operation-esql-async-query
products:
  - Elasticsearch
---

# Run an async ES|QL query

Availability: 8.13+

## Paths

- `POST` `/_query/async`

- [Api key auth](/elastic/docs-builder/docs/4371/api/doc/elasticsearch/v8/authentication#apikeyauth)
- [Basic auth](/elastic/docs-builder/docs/4371/api/doc/elasticsearch/v8/authentication#basicauth)
- [Bearer auth](/elastic/docs-builder/docs/4371/api/doc/elasticsearch/v8/authentication#bearerauth)

## Description

Asynchronously run an ES|QL (Elasticsearch query language) query, monitor its progress, and retrieve results when they become available.

The API accepts the same parameters and request body as the synchronous query API, along with additional async related properties.

## Required authorization

* Index privileges: `read`

[Read the reference documentation](https://www.elastic.co/guide/en/elasticsearch/reference/8.19/esql.html)

## Query String Parameters

- `allow_partial_results` (boolean · default: true)
  If `true`, partial results will be returned if there are shard failures, but the query can continue to execute on other clusters and shards.
If `false`, the query will fail if there are any failures.

To override the default behavior, you can set the `esql.query.allow_partial_results` cluster setting to `false`.
- `delimiter` (string · default: ,)
  The character to use between values within a CSV row.
It is valid only for the CSV format.
- `drop_null_columns` (boolean · default: false)
  Indicates whether columns that are entirely `null` will be removed from the `columns` and `values` portion of the results.
If `true`, the response will include an extra section under the name `all_columns` which has the name of all the columns.
- `format` (enum EsqlFormat)
  A short version of the Accept header, e.g. json, yaml.

`csv`, `tsv`, and `txt` formats will return results in a tabular format, excluding other metadata fields from the response.

For async requests, nothing will be returned if the async query doesn't finish within the timeout.
The query ID and running status are available in the `X-Elasticsearch-Async-Id` and `X-Elasticsearch-Async-Is-Running` HTTP headers of the response, respectively.
  Values: `csv`, `json`, `tsv`, `txt`, `yaml`, `cbor`, `smile`, `arrow`

## Request Body

`application/json`

- `columnar` (boolean) — optional
  By default, ES|QL returns results as rows. For example, FROM returns each individual document as one row. For the JSON, YAML, CBOR and smile formats, ES|QL can return the results in a columnar fashion where one row represents all the values of a certain column in the results.
- `filter` ({} QueryContainer) — optional
  Specify a Query DSL query in the filter parameter to filter the set of documents that an ES|QL query runs on.
  See [QueryContainer](https://www.elastic.co/elastic/docs-builder/docs/4371/api/doc/elasticsearch/v8/types/_types-query_dsl-querycontainer)
- `locale` (string) — optional
- `params` (ESQLParams) — optional
  To avoid any attempts of hacking or code injection, extract the values in a separate list of parameters. Use question mark placeholders (?) in the query string for each of the parameters.
- `profile` (boolean) — optional
  If provided and `true` the response will include an extra `profile` object
with information on how the query was executed. This information is for human debugging
and its format can change at any time but it can give some insight into the performance
of each part of the query.
- `query` (string) — required
  The ES|QL query API accepts an ES|QL query string in the query parameter, runs it, and returns the results.
- `tables` (map string to string to TableValuesContainer) — optional
  Tables to use with the LOOKUP operation. The top level key is the table
name and the next level key is the column name.
- `include_ccs_metadata` (boolean · default: false) — optional
  When set to `true` and performing a cross-cluster query, the response will include an extra `_clusters`
object with information about the clusters that participated in the search along with info such as shards
count.
- `wait_for_completion_timeout` (string Duration · default: 1s) — optional
  The period to wait for the request to finish.
By default, the request waits for 1 second for the query results.
If the query completes during this period, results are returned
Otherwise, a query ID is returned that can later be used to retrieve the results.
- `keep_alive` (string Duration · default: 5d) — optional
  The period for which the query and its results are stored in the cluster.
The default period is five days.
When this period expires, the query and its results are deleted, even if the query is still ongoing.
If the `keep_on_completion` parameter is false, Elasticsearch only stores async queries that do not complete within the period set by the `wait_for_completion_timeout` parameter, regardless of this value.
- `keep_on_completion` (boolean · default: false) — optional
  Indicates whether the query and its results are stored in the cluster.
If false, the query and its results are stored in the cluster only if the request does not complete during the period set by the `wait_for_completion_timeout` parameter.

## Response

`application/json`

- `took` (DurationValueUnitMillis)
- `is_partial` (boolean)
- `all_columns` ([] EsqlColumnInfo)
  - `name` (string)
  - `type` (string)
- `columns` ([] EsqlColumnInfo)
  - `name` (string)
  - `type` (string)
- `values` ([] union FieldValue)
  One of: `number` or `string` or `boolean` or `object`
- `_clusters` ({} EsqlClusterInfo)
  Cross-cluster search information. Present if `include_ccs_metadata` was `true` in the request
and a cross-cluster search was performed.
  - `total` (number)
  - `successful` (number)
  - `running` (number)
  - `skipped` (number)
  - `partial` (number)
  - `failed` (number)
  - `details` (map string to EsqlClusterDetails)
    Map values ({} EsqlClusterDetails)
    - `status` (enum EsqlClusterStatus)
      Values: `running`, `successful`, `partial`, `skipped`, `failed`
    - `indices` (string)
    - `took` (DurationValueUnitMillis)
    - `_shards` ({} EsqlShardInfo)
      - `total` (number)
      - `successful` (number)
      - `skipped` (number)
      - `failed` (number)
      - `failures` ([] EsqlShardFailure)
        - `shard` (string Id)
        - `index` (string IndexName)
        - `node` (string)
        - `reason` ({} ErrorCause)
          - `type` (string)
            The type of error
          - `reason` (union string) — nullable
            A human-readable explanation of the error, in English.
            One of: `string`
          - `stack_trace` (string)
            The server stack trace. Present only if the `error_trace=true` parameter was sent with the request.
          - `caused_by` ({} ErrorCause) — recursive
            Same fields as `reason` in `failures`
          - `root_cause` ([] ErrorCause) — recursive
            Same fields as `reason` in `failures`
          - `suppressed` ([] ErrorCause) — recursive
            Same fields as `reason` in `failures`
- `profile` (object)
  Profiling information. Present if `profile` was `true` in the request.
The contents of this field are currently unstable.
## Code Examples

#### Console

```console
POST /_query/async
{
  "query": """
    FROM library,remote-*:library
    | EVAL year = DATE_TRUNC(1 YEARS, release_date)
    | STATS MAX(page_count) BY year
    | SORT year
    | LIMIT 5
  """,
  "wait_for_completion_timeout": "2s",
  "include_ccs_metadata": true
}
```

#### JavaScript

```javascript
const response = await client.esql.asyncQuery({
  query:
    "\n    FROM library,remote-*:library\n    | EVAL year = DATE_TRUNC(1 YEARS, release_date)\n    | STATS MAX(page_count) BY year\n    | SORT year\n    | LIMIT 5\n  ",
  wait_for_completion_timeout: "2s",
  include_ccs_metadata: true,
});
```

#### Python

```python
resp = client.esql.async_query(
    query="\n    FROM library,remote-*:library\n    | EVAL year = DATE_TRUNC(1 YEARS, release_date)\n    | STATS MAX(page_count) BY year\n    | SORT year\n    | LIMIT 5\n  ",
    wait_for_completion_timeout="2s",
    include_ccs_metadata=True,
)
```

#### curl

```curl
curl -X POST "$ELASTICSEARCH_URL/_query/async" \
  -H "Authorization: ApiKey $ELASTIC_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "query": "\n    FROM library,remote-*:library\n    | EVAL year = DATE_TRUNC(1 YEARS, release_date)\n    | STATS MAX(page_count) BY year\n    | SORT year\n    | LIMIT 5\n  ",
    "wait_for_completion_timeout": "2s",
    "include_ccs_metadata": true
  }'
```

#### C#

```c#
var response = await client.Esql
    .AsyncQueryAsync(d1 => d1
        .IncludeCcsMetadata(true)
        .Query("\n    FROM library,remote-*:library\n    | EVAL year = DATE_TRUNC(1 YEARS, release_date)\n    | STATS MAX(page_count) BY year\n    | SORT year\n    | LIMIT 5\n  ")
        .WaitForCompletionTimeout("2s")
    );
```

#### PHP

```php
$resp = $client->esql()->asyncQuery([
    "body" => [
        "query" => "\n    FROM library,remote-*:library\n    | EVAL year = DATE_TRUNC(1 YEARS, release_date)\n    | STATS MAX(page_count) BY year\n    | SORT year\n    | LIMIT 5\n  ",
        "wait_for_completion_timeout" => "2s",
        "include_ccs_metadata" => true,
    ],
]);
```

#### Ruby

```ruby
response = client.esql.async_query(
  body: {
    "query": "\n    FROM library,remote-*:library\n    | EVAL year = DATE_TRUNC(1 YEARS, release_date)\n    | STATS MAX(page_count) BY year\n    | SORT year\n    | LIMIT 5\n  ",
    "wait_for_completion_timeout": "2s",
    "include_ccs_metadata": true
  }
)
```