Question: Can you force-delete a DynamoDB table?

Answer

DynamoDB has no force-delete flag that bypasses deletion protection, permissions or table-state restrictions. To delete a table, resolve the specific blocker and call DeleteTable with an authorized identity.

First confirm the account, Region and table name, and retain a backup if the data must be recoverable. If deletion protection is enabled, disable it deliberately and wait for the table update to finish before deletion:

aws dynamodb update-table --table-name DisposableTable --no-deletion-protection-enabled
aws dynamodb wait table-exists --table-name DisposableTable
aws dynamodb delete-table --table-name DisposableTable
aws dynamodb wait table-not-exists --table-name DisposableTable

Run these only against the table you intend to remove. If a policy denies deletion, fix the relevant IAM, resource or organization policy through the appropriate administrative process. Repeating the request does not override an explicit deny. If the table is already deleting, wait for completion.

Global tables and infrastructure-managed resources need additional care: check replica restrictions and the infrastructure definition so a deployment does not recreate the table unexpectedly. Existing on-demand backups can remain and continue costing storage.

If the goal is only to empty the table, delete its items instead. That preserves its resource and configuration, but consumes write capacity. See deleting a table and deleting all items.

Source: AWS table deletion and protection.