Databricks-DA-Assoc Importing Data Practice Question
When importing data into Databricks using the 'Add Data' UI, what is the default file format for the created table if the source is a CSV file?
⚠ Common exam trap
Candidates often assume the uploaded file retains its original CSV format, failing to realize that Databricks automatically converts all ingested data into Delta format to ensure ACID compliance and performance.
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Delta
Databricks defaults to Delta Lake for all managed table creation because it provides ACID transactions, scalability, and time travel. Even when importing simple CSV files, Databricks automatically converts them into the Delta format to ensure that the data is queryable with high performance and reliability. Recognizing this default behavior is essential for understanding how Databricks standardizes data storage behind the scenes for all analytical workloads.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
CSV
Why it's wrong here
While the source file is CSV, Databricks automatically converts this into the Delta Lake format upon ingestion. Keeping the data in raw CSV format would prevent the use of advanced features like ACID transactions, schema enforcement, and time travel, which are standard for all tables within the Databricks ecosystem.
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Parquet
Why it's wrong here
Parquet is the underlying storage format for Delta Lake, but the table itself is defined as a Delta table. Simply storing as Parquet would miss the transaction log features provided by the Delta format. Delta provides a management layer on top of Parquet files to ensure data integrity during operations.
- ✓
Delta
Why this is correct
Delta Lake is the default table format in Databricks. When you use the UI to import a CSV file, Databricks performs an internal transformation to load that data into a Delta table, enabling all the benefits of the Lakehouse architecture, including ACID guarantees and optimized performance for SQL queries.
- ✗
JSON
Why it's wrong here
JSON is a semi-structured format that is not the default for table storage in Databricks. While Databricks can process JSON, it is not optimized for large-scale table storage compared to the Delta format, which provides indexing and metadata management that JSON files lack, leading to significantly worse performance for analytics.
About these practice questions
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JA
Written and reviewed by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
Last reviewed September 2026 · checked against the official Databricks exam blueprint
This Databricks-DA-Assoc practice question is part of Courseiva's free Databricks certification practice question bank. Courseiva provides original exam-style practice questions with explanations, topic-based practice, mock exams, readiness tracking, and study analytics to help learners prepare for the Databricks-DA-Assoc exam.