Large Numbers Not Displaying Correctly in wpDataTables?

❓ Why does this happen?

When working with large integer numbers in wpDataTables, you might notice that numbers over 2,147,483,647 don’t display correctly — for example, a value like 5,587,900,382 appears as 2,147,483,647.

This happens because:

• MySQL’s INT type is 4 bytes long, limiting the value range to -2,147,483,648 to 2,147,483,647.

• Numbers beyond this range cause an overflow and are automatically capped.

This is not a bug in wpDataTables itself, but a limitation of how the database stores numbers. However, it is related to wpDataTables because during table creation, the Plugin defines integer columns as INT by default.

More details: MySQL Integer Types Documentation

🛠 How can I fix it?

You have two options:

🔄 Option 1: Re-create the Manual Table with Correct Column Type

If you can re-create the table:

1. Create a new Manual Table from your source file (Excel, CSV, Google Sheet).

2. During the column configuration step:

   • Set the Type to Integer (for wpDataTables).

   • Set the Type in Database to BIGINT.

3. Leave the Type Value field blank (it’s no longer used for display width in modern MySQL versions).

✅ Result: Your table will now store and display large integer numbers correctly.

🛡 Option 2: Update the Existing Table’s Column Type in the Database

If you don’t want to re-create the table:

1. Access your database using a tool like phpMyAdmin.

2. Find the table name used by wpDataTables (check this in the “MySQL Table name for editing” field).

3. In phpMyAdmin:

   • Open the table.

   • Find the column with large numbers.

   • Click Change (the pencil icon).

   • Change the column type from INT to BIGINT.

   • Save the changes.

⚠ Important:

If the table already contains rows with incorrect (capped) numbers, simply changing the column type will not automatically fix the existing wrong values.

To update them:

• Use the Update manual tables from source files (CSV, Excel or Google sheet) feature to replace rows with source data.
  

📝 Which method should I choose?

• 🆕 New table: Easier if you are just starting — create the table again and select BIGINT.

• 🛠 Database edit: Better if you already configured the table and want to keep your settings.

💬 Need help?

If you encounter any issues or need further assistance, feel free to reach out to our support team — we’re here to help!

✅ Summary

• Large number issues are caused by database limitations on INT columns.

• Use BIGINT instead to properly store large integers.

• You can either re-create the table or update the database column directly.