Deleting all records of a collection in MongoDB Shell?

To delete all records of a collection in MongoDB shell, use the remove() method with an empty filter document. This operation removes all documents from the collection but keeps the collection structure intact.

Syntax

db.collectionName.remove({});

Create Sample Data

Let us create a collection with sample documents ?

db.deleteAllRecordsDemo.insertMany([
    {"StudentName": "John"},
    {"StudentName": "Carol", "StudentAge": 21},
    {"StudentName": "Mike", "StudentAge": 23, "Hobby": ["Learning", "Photography"]}
]);

{
    "acknowledged": true,
    "insertedIds": [
        ObjectId("5c8f6ca32f684a30fbdfd596"),
        ObjectId("5c8f6cb22f684a30fbdfd597"),
        ObjectId("5c8f6cde2f684a30fbdfd598")
    ]
}

Display Current Documents

db.deleteAllRecordsDemo.find().pretty();

{
    "_id": ObjectId("5c8f6ca32f684a30fbdfd596"),
    "StudentName": "John"
}
{
    "_id": ObjectId("5c8f6cb22f684a30fbdfd597"),
    "StudentName": "Carol",
    "StudentAge": 21
}
{
    "_id": ObjectId("5c8f6cde2f684a30fbdfd598"),
    "StudentName": "Mike",
    "StudentAge": 23,
    "Hobby": [
        "Learning",
        "Photography"
    ]
}

Delete All Records

db.deleteAllRecordsDemo.remove({});

WriteResult({ "nRemoved": 3 })

Verify Result

Check if all documents have been deleted ?

db.deleteAllRecordsDemo.find();

The collection is now empty as all documents have been successfully removed.

Conclusion

The remove({}) method with an empty filter deletes all documents from a MongoDB collection while preserving the collection structure. Use deleteMany({}) for the same operation in modern MongoDB versions.