Run SQL queries against shapefile in QGIS?

Question

Is there any way I can import a shapefile into QGIS, then run spatial SQL queries against it?

I can obviously use ogr2ogr -sql to do this, but I have to import the output into QGIS each time to look at it, which is a pain.

It would be great if I could just import the shapefile into QGIS, then run SQL against it and see the results instantly.

Answer 1

You can use a virtual layer. Load your Shapefile in QGIS, then go to Layer / Add Layer / Add-Edit Virtual Layer. Type the SQL you want.

For instance, if your shapefile is named myshp and has attribute test you can query as:

select * from myshp a
where a.test = 1234;

Or you can make a spatial query using the geometry field:

select * from myshp 
where st_intersects(geometry, make_point(1,2));