my $query = qq{ SELECT ( select count(*) from table_one ) AS t1, ( select count(*) from table_two ) AS t2; }; # Gives # +----+----+ # | t1 | t2 | # +----+----+ # | 4 | 2 | # +----+----+ my @table_status = $dbh->selectrow_array($query); # @table_status = ( 4, 2 );