SQL WHERE Clause

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The WHERE clause is used to filter records.

The SQL WHERE Clause

The WHERE clause is used to extract only those records that fulfill a specified
criterion.

SQL WHERE Syntax

SELECT column_name,column_name
FROM table_name
WHERE column_name operator value;

Demo Database
In this tutorial we will use the well-known Northwind sample database.
Below is a selection from the "Customers" table:
CustomerI CustomerNam ContactNam Address
D
e
e

City

PostalCod Country
e

Alfreds
Futterkiste

Berlin

12209

German
y

Ana Trujillo
Ana Trujillo
Emparedados y
helados

Avda. de la
Constitucin
2222

Mxic
o D.F.

05021

Mexico

Antonio
Moreno
Taquera

Antonio
Moreno

Mataderos
2312

Mxic
o D.F.

05023

Mexico

Around the
Horn

Thomas
Hardy

120 Hanover Londo

Sq.
n

WA1 1DP

UK

Berglunds
snabbkp

Christina
Berglund

Berguvsvge Lule
n8

S-958 22

Sweden

Maria Anders Obere Str.

57

WHERE Clause Example

The following SQL statement selects all the customers from the country "Mexico", in
the "Customers" table:

Example
SELECT * FROM Customers
WHERE Country='Mexico';
Try it yourself

Text Fields vs. Numeric Fields

SQL requires single quotes around text values (most database systems will also
allow double quotes).
However, numeric fields should not be enclosed in quotes:

Example
SELECT * FROM Customers
WHERE CustomerID=1;
Try it yourself

Operators in The WHERE Clause

The following operators can be used in the WHERE clause:
Operator

Description

Equal

<>

Not equal. Note: In some versions of SQL this operator may be

written as !=

>

Greater than

<

Less than

>=

Greater than or equal

<=

Less than or equal

BETWEEN

Between an inclusive range

LIKE

Search for a pattern

IN

To specify multiple possible values for a column

The SQL AND & OR Operators

The AND operator displays a record if both the first condition AND the second
condition are true.
The OR operator displays a record if either the first condition OR the second
condition is true.

Demo Database
In this tutorial we will use the well-known Northwind sample database.
Below is a selection from the "Customers" table:
CustomerI
D

CustomerNam ContactNam Address

e
e

City

PostalCod Country
e

Alfreds
Futterkiste

Maria Anders

Obere Str. 57 Berlin

Ana Trujillo
Emparedados y
helados

Ana Trujillo

Avda. de la
Constitucin
2222

Mxico 05021
D.F.

Mexico

Antonio Moreno Antonio

Taquera
Moreno

Mataderos
2312

Mxico 05023
D.F.

Mexico

Around the
Horn

Thomas
Hardy

120 Hanover
Sq.

Londo
n

WA1 1DP

UK

Berglunds
snabbkp

Christina
Berglund

Berguvsvge
n8

Lule

S-958 22

Sweden

12209

AND Operator Example

The following SQL statement selects all customers from the country "Germany" AND
the city "Berlin", in the "Customers" table:

Example
SELECT * FROM Customers
WHERE Country='Germany'
AND City='Berlin';
Try it yourself

OR Operator Example

German
y

The following SQL statement selects all customers from the city "Berlin" OR
"Mnchen", in the "Customers" table:

Example
SELECT * FROM Customers
WHERE City='Berlin'
OR City='Mnchen';
Try it yourself

Combining AND & OR

You can also combine AND and OR (use parenthesis to form complex expressions).
The following SQL statement selects all customers from the country "Germany" AND
the city must be equal to "Berlin" OR "Mnchen", in the "Customers" table:

Example
SELECT * FROM Customers
WHERE Country='Germany'
AND (City='Berlin' OR City='Mnchen');

The SQL ORDER BY Keyword

The ORDER BY keyword is used to sort the result-set by one or more columns.
The ORDER BY keyword sorts the records in ascending order by default. To sort the
records in a descending order, you can use the DESC keyword.

SQL ORDER BY Syntax

SELECT column_name,column_name
FROM table_name
ORDER BY column_name,column_name ASC|DESC;

Demo Database
In this tutorial we will use the well-known Northwind sample database.
Below is a selection from the "Customers" table:
CustomerI CustomerNa
D
me

ContactNa
me

Address

City

PostalCo
de

Countr
y

Alfreds
Futterkiste

Maria
Anders

Obere Str.
57

Berlin

12209

German
y

Ana Trujillo

Ana Trujillo

Avda. de la

Mxic

05021

Mexico

Emparedados
y helados

Constitucin o D.F.
2222

Antonio
Moreno
Taquera

Antonio
Moreno

Mataderos
2312

Mxic 05023
o D.F.

Around the
Horn

Thomas
Hardy

120
Londo WA1 1DP
Hanover Sq. n

UK

Berglunds
snabbkp

Christina
Berglund

Berguvsvg
en 8

Sweden

Lule

S-958 22

Mexico

ORDER BY Example
The following SQL statement selects all customers from the "Customers" table,
sorted by the "Country" column:

Example
SELECT * FROM Customers
ORDER BY Country;

The SQL INSERT INTO Statement

The INSERT INTO statement is used to insert new records in a table.

SQL INSERT INTO Syntax

It is possible to write the INSERT INTO statement in two forms.
The first form does not specify the column names where the data will be inserted,
only their values:
INSERT INTO table_name
VALUES (value1,value2,value3,...);
The second form specifies both the column names and the values to be inserted:
INSERT INTO table_name (column1,column2,column3,...)
VALUES (value1,value2,value3,...);

Demo Database
In this tutorial we will use the well-known Northwind sample database.
Below is a selection from the "Customers" table:

CustomerI
D

CustomerNam ContactNam
e
e

Address

87

Wartian Herkku

Pirkko
Koskitalo

88

Wellington
Importadora

Paula Parente

89

White Clover
Markets

90
91

City

PostalCod
e

Countr
y

Torikatu 38 Oulu

90110

Finland

Rua do
Mercado,
12

Resend
e

08737-363

Brazil

Karl Jablonski 305 - 14th

Ave. S.
Suite 3B

Seattle

98128

USA

Wilman Kala

Matti
Karttunen

Keskuskat
u 45

Helsinki

21240

Finland

Wolski

Zbyszek

ul. Filtrowa Walla

68

01-012

Poland

INSERT INTO Example

Assume we wish to insert a new row in the "Customers" table.
We can use the following SQL statement:

Example
INSERT INTO Customers (CustomerName, ContactName, Address, City, PostalCode,
Country)
VALUES ('Cardinal','Tom B. Erichsen','Skagen 21','Stavanger','4006','Norway');

The SQL UPDATE Statement

The UPDATE statement is used to update existing records in a table.

SQL UPDATE Syntax

UPDATE table_name
SET column1=value1,column2=value2,...
WHERE some_column=some_value;

Demo Database
In this tutorial we will use the well-known Northwind sample database.
Below is a selection from the "Customers" table:
CustomerI

CustomerName

ContactName

Address

City

Posta

D
1

Alfreds Futterkiste

Maria Anders

Obere Str. 57

Berlin

12209

Ana Trujillo Emparedados Ana Trujillo

y helados

Avda. de la
Constitucin 2222

Mxico
D.F.

05021

Antonio Moreno Taquera

Antonio Moreno

Mataderos 2312

Mxico
D.F.

05023

Around the Horn

Thomas Hardy

120 Hanover Sq.

London

WA1 1

Berglunds snabbkp

Christina
Berglund

Berguvsvgen 8

Lule

S-958

SQL UPDATE Example

Assume we wish to update the customer "Alfreds Futterkiste" with a new contact
person and city.
We use the following SQL statement:

Example
UPDATE Customers
SET ContactName='Alfred Schmidt', City='Hamburg'
WHERE CustomerName='Alfreds Futterkiste';
Try it yourself

The selection from the "Customers" table will now look like this:
CustomerI
D

CustomerName

ContactName

Address

City

Posta

Alfreds Futterkiste

Alfred Schmidt

Obere Str. 57

Hamburg

12209

Ana Trujillo
Emparedados y helados

Ana Trujillo

Avda. de la
Constitucin 2222

Mxico
D.F.

05021

Antonio Moreno Taquera Antonio Moreno Mataderos 2312

Mxico
D.F.

05023

Around the Horn

Thomas Hardy

120 Hanover Sq.

London

WA1 1

Berglunds snabbkp

Christina
Berglund

Berguvsvgen 8

Lule

S-958

Update Warning!
Be careful when updating records. If we had omitted the WHERE clause, in the
example above, like this:
UPDATE Customers
SET ContactName='Alfred Schmidt', City='Hamburg';
The "Customers" table would have looked like this:
CustomerI CustomerNam ContactNam Address
D
e
e
1

Alfreds
Futterkiste

Alfred
Schmidt

City

PostalCod Country
e

Obere Str. 57 Hambur

g

12209

German
y

Ana Trujillo
Alfred
Emparedados y Schmidt
helados

Avda. de la
Constitucin
2222

Hambur
g

05021

Mexico

Antonio Moreno Alfred

Taquera
Schmidt

Mataderos
2312

Hambur
g

05023

Mexico

Around the
Horn

Alfred
Schmidt

120 Hanover
Sq.

Hambur
g

WA1 1DP

UK

Berglunds
snabbkp

Alfred
Schmidt

Berguvsvge
n8

Hambur
g

S-958 22

Sweden

The SQL DELETE Statement

The DELETE statement is used to delete rows in a table.

SQL DELETE Syntax

DELETE FROM table_name
WHERE some_column=some_value;

Demo Database
In this tutorial we will use the well-known Northwind sample database.
Below is a selection from the "Customers" table:
CustomerI
D

CustomerName

ContactName

Address

City

Posta

Alfreds Futterkiste

Maria Anders

Obere Str. 57

Berlin

12209

Ana Trujillo Emparedados Ana Trujillo

y helados

Avda. de la
Constitucin 2222

Mxico
D.F.

05021

Antonio Moreno Taquera

Antonio Moreno

Mataderos 2312

Mxico
D.F.

05023

Around the Horn

Thomas Hardy

120 Hanover Sq.

London

WA1 1

Berglunds snabbkp

Christina
Berglund

Berguvsvgen 8

Lule

S-958

SQL DELETE Example

Assume we wish to delete the customer "Alfreds Futterkiste" from the "Customers"
table.
We use the following SQL statement:

Example
DELETE FROM Customers
WHERE CustomerName='Alfreds Futterkiste' AND ContactName='Maria Anders';

The "Customers" table will now look like this:

CustomerI
D

CustomerName

ContactName

Address

City

Posta

Ana Trujillo Emparedados Ana Trujillo

y helados

Avda. de la
Constitucin 2222

Mxico
D.F.

0502

Antonio Moreno Taquera

Antonio Moreno

Mataderos 2312

Mxico
D.F.

0502

Around the Horn

Thomas Hardy

120 Hanover Sq.

London

WA1

Berglunds snabbkp

Christina
Berglund

Berguvsvgen 8

Lule

S-958

Delete All Data

It is possible to delete all rows in a table without deleting the table. This means that
the table structure, attributes, and indexes will be intact:

DELETE FROM table_name;

or
DELETE * FROM table_name;

The SQL LIKE Operator

The LIKE operator is used to search for a specified pattern in a column.

SQL LIKE Syntax

SELECT column_name(s)
FROM table_name
WHERE column_name LIKE pattern;

Demo Database
In this tutorial we will use the well-known Northwind sample database.
Below is a selection from the "Customers" table:
CustomerI
D

CustomerName

ContactName

Address

City

Posta

Alfreds Futterkiste

Maria Anders

Obere Str. 57

Berlin

12209

Ana Trujillo Emparedados Ana Trujillo

y helados

Avda. de la
Constitucin 2222

Mxico
D.F.

05021

Antonio Moreno Taquera

Antonio Moreno

Mataderos 2312

Mxico
D.F.

05023

Around the Horn

Thomas Hardy

120 Hanover Sq.

London

WA1 1

Berglunds snabbkp

Christina
Berglund

Berguvsvgen 8

Lule

S-958

SQL LIKE Operator Examples

The following SQL statement selects all customers with a City starting with the letter
"s":

Example

SELECT * FROM Customers

WHERE City LIKE 's%';
Tip: The "%" sign is used to define wildcards (missing letters) both before and after
the pattern. You will learn more about wildcards in the next chapter.
The following SQL statement selects all customers with a City ending with the letter
"s":

Example
SELECT * FROM Customers
WHERE City LIKE '%s';
Try it yourself

The following SQL statement selects all customers with a Country containing the
pattern "land":

Example
SELECT * FROM Customers
WHERE Country LIKE '%land%';
Try it yourself

Using the NOT keyword allows you to select records that does NOT match the
pattern.
The following SQL statement selects all customers with a Country NOT containing
the pattern "land":

Example
SELECT * FROM Customers
WHERE Country NOT LIKE '%land%';

The IN Operator
The IN operator allows you to specify multiple values in a WHERE clause.

SQL IN Syntax
SELECT column_name(s)
FROM table_name
WHERE column_name IN (value1,value2,...);

Demo Database
In this tutorial we will use the well-known Northwind sample database.

Below is a selection from the "Customers" table:

CustomerI
D

CustomerName

ContactName

Address

City

Posta

Alfreds Futterkiste

Maria Anders

Obere Str. 57

Berlin

12209

Ana Trujillo Emparedados Ana Trujillo

y helados

Avda. de la
Constitucin 2222

Mxico
D.F.

05021

Antonio Moreno Taquera

Antonio Moreno

Mataderos 2312

Mxico
D.F.

05023

Around the Horn

Thomas Hardy

120 Hanover Sq.

London

WA1 1

Berglunds snabbkp

Christina
Berglund

Berguvsvgen 8

Lule

S-958

IN Operator Example
The following SQL statement selects all customers with a City of "Paris" or "London":

Example
SELECT * FROM Customers
WHERE City IN ('Paris','London');

The SQL BETWEEN Operator

The BETWEEN operator selects values within a range. The values can be numbers,
text, or dates.

SQL BETWEEN Syntax

SELECT column_name(s)
FROM table_name
WHERE column_name BETWEEN value1 AND value2;

Demo Database
In this tutorial we will use the well-known Northwind sample database.
Below is a selection from the "Products" table:
ProductID

ProductName

SupplierID

CategoryID

Unit

Chais

10 boxes x 20 b

Chang

24 - 12 oz bottl

Aniseed Syrup

12 - 550 ml bot

Chef Anton's Cajun Seasoning

48 - 6 oz jars

Chef Anton's Gumbo Mix

36 boxes

BETWEEN Operator Example

The following SQL statement selects all products with a price BETWEEN 10 and 20:

Example
SELECT * FROM Products
WHERE Price BETWEEN 10 AND 20;

NOT BETWEEN Operator Example

To display the products outside the range of the previous example, use NOT
BETWEEN:

Example
SELECT * FROM Products
WHERE Price NOT BETWEEN 10 AND 20;
Try it yourself

BETWEEN Operator with IN Example

The following SQL statement selects all products with a price BETWEEN 10 and 20,
but products with a CategoryID of 1,2, or 3 should not be displayed:

Example
SELECT * FROM Products
WHERE (Price BETWEEN 10 AND 20)
AND NOT CategoryID IN (1,2,3);
Try it yourself

BETWEEN Operator with Text Value Example

The following SQL statement selects all products with a ProductName beginning with
any of the letter BETWEEN 'C' and 'M':

Example
SELECT * FROM Products
WHERE ProductName BETWEEN 'C' AND 'M';
Try it yourself

NOT BETWEEN Operator with Text Value Example

The following SQL statement selects all products with a ProductName beginning with
any of the letter NOT BETWEEN 'C' and 'M':

Example
SELECT * FROM Products
WHERE ProductName NOT BETWEEN 'C' AND 'M';
Try it yourself

Sample Table
Below is a selection from the "Orders" table:
OrderID

CustomerID

EmployeeID

OrderDate

Ship

10248

90

7/4/1996

10249

81

7/5/1996

10250

34

7/8/1996

10251

84

7/9/1996

10252

76

7/10/1996

BETWEEN Operator with Date Value Example

The following SQL statement selects all orders with an OrderDate BETWEEN '04-July1996' and '09-July-1996':

Example
SELECT * FROM Orders
WHERE OrderDate BETWEEN #07/04/1996# AND #07/09/1996#;

SQL Aliases

SQL aliases are used to give a database table, or a column in a table, a temporary
name.
Basically aliases are created to make column names more readable.

SQL Alias Syntax for Columns

SELECT column_name AS alias_name
FROM table_name;

SQL Alias Syntax for Tables

SELECT column_name(s)
FROM table_name AS alias_name;

Demo Database
In this tutorial we will use the well-known Northwind sample database.
Below is a selection from the "Customers" table:
CustomerI
D

CustomerName

ContactName Address

City

Posta
e

Ana Trujillo Emparedados

y helados

Ana Trujillo

Avda. de la
Constitucin 2222

Mxico
D.F.

0502

Antonio Moreno Taquera

Antonio
Moreno

Mataderos 2312

Mxico
D.F.

0502

Around the Horn

Thomas Hardy

120 Hanover Sq.

London

WA1

And a selection from the "Orders" table:

OrderID

CustomerID

EmployeeID

OrderDate

Ship

10354

58

1996-11-14

10355

1996-11-15

10356

86

1996-11-18

Alias Example for Table Columns

The following SQL statement specifies two aliases, one for the CustomerName
column and one for the ContactName column. Tip: It requires double quotation
marks or square brackets if the column name contains spaces:

Example
SELECT CustomerName AS Customer, ContactName AS [Contact Person]
FROM Customers;
Try it yourself

In the following SQL statement we combine four columns (Address, City, PostalCode,
and Country) and create an alias named "Address":

Example
SELECT CustomerName, Address+', '+City+', '+PostalCode+', '+Country AS Address
FROM Customers;
Try it yourself

Note: To get the SQL statement above to work in MySQL use the following:
SELECT CustomerName, CONCAT(Address,', ',City,', ',PostalCode,', ',Country) AS
Address
FROM Customers;

Alias Example for Tables

The following SQL statement selects all the orders from the customer with
CustomerID=4 (Around the Horn). We use the "Customers" and "Orders" tables, and
give them the table aliases of "c" and "o" respectively (Here we have used aliases to
make the SQL shorter):

Example
SELECT o.OrderID, o.OrderDate, c.CustomerName
FROM Customers AS c, Orders AS o
WHERE c.CustomerName="Around the Horn" AND c.CustomerID=o.CustomerID;
Try it yourself

The same SQL statement without aliases:

Example
SELECT Orders.OrderID, Orders.OrderDate, Customers.CustomerName
FROM Customers, Orders
WHERE Customers.CustomerName="Around the Horn" AND
Customers.CustomerID=Orders.CustomerID;

SQL JOIN
An SQL JOIN clause is used to combine rows from two or more tables, based on a
common field between them.

The most common type of join is: SQL INNER JOIN (simple join). An SQL INNER
JOIN return all rows from multiple tables where the join condition is met.
Let's look at a selection from the "Orders" table:
OrderID

CustomerID

OrderDate

10308

1996-09-18

10309

37

1996-09-19

10310

77

1996-09-20

Then, have a look at a selection from the "Customers" table:

CustomerID

CustomerName

ContactName

Alfreds Futterkiste

Maria Anders

Ana Trujillo Emparedados y helados

Ana Trujillo

Antonio Moreno Taquera

Antonio Moreno

Notice that the "CustomerID" column in the "Orders" table refers to the
"CustomerID" in the "Customers" table. The relationship between the two tables
above is the "CustomerID" column.
Then, if we run the following SQL statement (that contains an INNER JOIN):

Example
SELECT Orders.OrderID, Customers.CustomerName, Orders.OrderDate
FROM Orders
INNER JOIN Customers
ON Orders.CustomerID=Customers.CustomerID;
Try it yourself

it will produce something like this:

OrderID

CustomerName

10308

Ana Trujillo Emparedados y helados

10365

Antonio Moreno Taquera

10383

Around the Horn

10355

Around the Horn

10278

Berglunds snabbkp

Different SQL JOINs

Before we continue with examples, we will list the types the different SQL JOINs you
can use:

INNER JOIN: Returns all rows when there is at least one match in BOTH
tables

LEFT JOIN: Return all rows from the left table, and the matched rows from
the right table

RIGHT JOIN: Return all rows from the right table, and the matched rows
from the left table

FULL JOIN: Return all rows when there is a match in ONE of the tables

SQL INNER JOIN Keyword

The INNER JOIN keyword selects all rows from both tables as long as there is
a match between the columns in both tables.

SQL INNER JOIN Syntax

SELECT column_name(s)
FROM table1
INNER JOIN table2
ON table1.column_name=table2.column_name;
or:
SELECT column_name(s)
FROM table1
JOIN table2
ON table1.column_name=table2.column_name;
PS! INNER JOIN is the same as JOIN.

Demo Database

In this tutorial we will use the well-known Northwind sample database.

Below is a selection from the "Customers" table:

CustomerID

CustomerName

ContactName Address

City

Posta

Alfreds Futterkiste

Maria Anders

Berlin

12209

Obere Str. 57

Ana Trujillo Emparedados Ana Trujillo

y helados

Avda. de la
Constitucin 2222

Mxico
D.F.

05021

Antonio Moreno Taquera

Mataderos 2312

Mxico
D.F.

05023

Antonio
Moreno

And a selection from the "Orders" table:

OrderID

CustomerID

EmployeeID

OrderDate

Ship

10308

1996-09-18

10309

37

1996-09-19

10310

77

1996-09-20

SQL INNER JOIN Example

The following SQL statement will return all customers with orders:

Example

SELECT Customers.CustomerName, Orders.OrderID

FROM Customers
INNER JOIN Orders
ON Customers.CustomerID=Orders.CustomerID
ORDER BY Customers.CustomerName;

SQL LEFT JOIN Keyword

The LEFT JOIN keyword returns all rows from the left table (table1), with the
matching rows in the right table (table2). The result is NULL in the right side
when there is no match.

SQL LEFT JOIN Syntax

SELECT column_name(s)
FROM table1
LEFT JOIN table2
ON table1.column_name=table2.column_name;
or:
SELECT column_name(s)
FROM table1
LEFT OUTER JOIN table2
ON table1.column_name=table2.column_name;
PS! In some databases LEFT JOIN is called LEFT OUTER JOIN.

Demo Database

In this tutorial we will use the well-known Northwind sample database.

Below is a selection from the "Customers" table:

CustomerID

CustomerName

ContactName Address

City

Posta

Alfreds Futterkiste

Maria Anders

Obere Str. 57

Berlin

12209

Ana Trujillo Emparedados Ana Trujillo

y helados

Avda. de la
Constitucin 2222

Mxico
D.F.

05021

Antonio Moreno Taquera

Mataderos 2312

Mxico
D.F.

05023

Antonio
Moreno

And a selection from the "Orders" table:

OrderID

CustomerID

EmployeeID

OrderDate

Ship

10308

1996-09-18

10309

37

1996-09-19

10310

77

1996-09-20

SQL LEFT JOIN Example

The following SQL statement will return all customers, and any orders they
might have:

Example

SELECT Customers.CustomerName, Orders.OrderID

FROM Customers
LEFT JOIN Orders
ON Customers.CustomerID=Orders.CustomerID
ORDER BY Customers.CustomerName;
Try it yourself

Note: The LEFT JOIN keyword returns all the rows from the left table
(Customers), even if there are no matches in the right table (Orders).

SQL RIGHT JOIN Keyword

The RIGHT JOIN keyword returns all rows from the right table (table2), with
the matching rows in the left table (table1). The result is NULL in the left side
when there is no match.

SQL RIGHT JOIN Syntax

SELECT column_name(s)
FROM table1
RIGHT JOIN table2
ON table1.column_name=table2.column_name;
or:

SELECT column_name(s)
FROM table1
RIGHT OUTER JOIN table2
ON table1.column_name=table2.column_name;
PS! In some databases RIGHT JOIN is called RIGHT OUTER JOIN.

Demo Database

In this tutorial we will use the well-known Northwind sample database.

Below is a selection from the "Orders" table:

OrderID

CustomerID

EmployeeID

OrderDate

Ship

10308

1996-09-18

10309

37

1996-09-19

10310

77

1996-09-20

And a selection from the "Employees" table:

EmployeeID LastName FirstName BirthDate

Photo

Notes

Davolio

Nancy

12/8/1968

EmpID1.pic

Education includes a BA in psyc

Fuller

Andrew

2/19/1952

EmpID2.pic

Andrew received his BTS comm

Leverling

Janet

8/30/1963

EmpID3.pic

Janet has a BS degree in chem

SQL RIGHT JOIN Example

The following SQL statement will return all employees, and any orders they
have placed:

Example
SELECT Orders.OrderID, Employees.FirstName
FROM Orders
RIGHT JOIN Employees
ON Orders.EmployeeID=Employees.EmployeeID
ORDER BY Orders.OrderID;

SQL FULL OUTER JOIN Keyword

The FULL OUTER JOIN keyword returns all rows from the left table (table1)
and from the right table (table2).
The FULL OUTER JOIN keyword combines the result of both LEFT and RIGHT
joins.

SQL FULL OUTER JOIN Syntax

SELECT column_name(s)
FROM table1
FULL OUTER JOIN table2
ON table1.column_name=table2.column_name;

Demo Database

In this tutorial we will use the well-known Northwind sample database.

Below is a selection from the "Customers" table:

CustomerID

CustomerName

ContactName Address

City

Posta

Alfreds Futterkiste

Maria Anders

Obere Str. 57

Berlin

12209

Ana Trujillo Emparedados Ana Trujillo

y helados

Avda. de la
Constitucin 2222

Mxico
D.F.

05021

Antonio Moreno Taquera

Mataderos 2312

Mxico
D.F.

05023

Antonio
Moreno

And a selection from the "Orders" table:

OrderID

CustomerID

EmployeeID

OrderDate

Ship

10308

1996-09-18

10309

37

1996-09-19

10310

77

1996-09-20

SQL FULL OUTER JOIN Example

The following SQL statement selects all customers, and all orders:
SELECT Customers.CustomerName, Orders.OrderID
FROM Customers
FULL OUTER JOIN Orders

ON Customers.CustomerID=Orders.CustomerID
ORDER BY Customers.CustomerName;
A selection from the result set may look like this:

CustomerName

OrderI

Alfreds Futterkiste
Ana Trujillo Emparedados y helados

10308

Antonio Moreno Taquera

10365
10382
10351

The SQL UNION Operator

The UNION operator is used to combine the result-set of two or more SELECT
statements.
Notice that each SELECT statement within the UNION must have the same number
of columns. The columns must also have similar data types. Also, the columns in
each SELECT statement must be in the same order.

SQL UNION Syntax

SELECT column_name(s) FROM table1
UNION
SELECT column_name(s) FROM table2;
Note: The UNION operator selects only distinct values by default. To allow duplicate
values, use the ALL keyword with UNION.

SQL UNION ALL Syntax

SELECT column_name(s) FROM table1
UNION ALL
SELECT column_name(s) FROM table2;
PS: The column names in the result-set of a UNION are usually equal to the column
names in the first SELECT statement in the UNION.

Demo Database
In this tutorial we will use the well-known Northwind sample database.
Below is a selection from the "Customers" table:
CustomerID

CustomerName

ContactName Address

City

Posta

Alfreds Futterkiste

2
3

Maria Anders

Obere Str. 57

Berlin

12209

Ana Trujillo Emparedados Ana Trujillo

y helados

Avda. de la
Constitucin 2222

Mxico
D.F.

05021

Antonio Moreno Taquera

Mataderos 2312

Mxico
D.F.

05023

Antonio
Moreno

And a selection from the "Suppliers" table:

SupplierID

SupplierName

ContactName

Address

City

Posta
e

Exotic Liquid

Charlotte
Cooper

49 Gilbert St.

Londona

EC1 4

New Orleans Cajun

Delights

Shelley Burke

P.O. Box
78934

New
Orleans

7011

Grandma Kelly's
Homestead

Regina Murphy

707 Oxford
Rd.

Ann Arbor

4810

SQL UNION Example

The following SQL statement selects all the different cities (only distinct values)
from the "Customers" and the "Suppliers" tables:

Example
SELECT City FROM Customers
UNION
SELECT City FROM Suppliers
ORDER BY City;
Try it yourself

Note: UNION cannot be used to list ALL cities from the two tables. If several
customers and suppliers share the same city, each city will only be listed once.
UNION selects only distinct values. Use UNION ALL to also select duplicate values!

SQL UNION ALL Example

The following SQL statement uses UNION ALL to select all (duplicate values also)
cities from the "Customers" and "Suppliers" tables:

Example

SELECT City FROM Customers

UNION ALL
SELECT City FROM Suppliers
ORDER BY City;
Try it yourself

SQL UNION ALL With WHERE

The following SQL statement uses UNION ALL to select all (duplicate values
also) German cities from the "Customers" and "Suppliers" tables:

Example
SELECT City, Country FROM Customers
WHERE Country='Germany'
UNION ALL
SELECT City, Country FROM Suppliers
WHERE Country='Germany'
ORDER BY City;

The SQL SELECT INTO Statement

The SELECT INTO statement selects data from one table and inserts it into a new
table.

SQL SELECT INTO Syntax

We can copy all columns into the new table:
SELECT *
INTO newtable [IN externaldb]
FROM table1;
Or we can copy only the columns we want into the new table:
SELECT column_name(s)
INTO newtable [IN externaldb]
FROM table1;
The new table will be created with the column-names and types as defined in the
SELECT statement. You can apply new names using the AS clause.

SQL SELECT INTO Examples

Create a backup copy of Customers:

SELECT *
INTO CustomersBackup2013
FROM Customers;
Use the IN clause to copy the table into another database:
SELECT *
INTO CustomersBackup2013 IN 'Backup.mdb'
FROM Customers;
Copy only a few columns into the new table:
SELECT CustomerName, ContactName
INTO CustomersBackup2013
FROM Customers;
Copy only the German customers into the new table:
SELECT *
INTO CustomersBackup2013
FROM Customers
WHERE Country='Germany';
Copy data from more than one table into the new table:
SELECT Customers.CustomerName, Orders.OrderID
INTO CustomersOrderBackup2013
FROM Customers
LEFT JOIN Orders
ON Customers.CustomerID=Orders.CustomerID;
Tip: The SELECT INTO statement can also be used to create a new, empty table
using the schema of another. Just add a WHERE clause that causes the query to
return no data:
SELECT *
INTO newtable
FROM table1
WHERE 1=0;

The SQL INSERT INTO SELECT Statement

The INSERT INTO SELECT statement selects data from one table and inserts it into
an existing table. Any existing rows in the target table are unaffected.

SQL INSERT INTO SELECT Syntax

We can copy all columns from one table to another, existing table:
INSERT INTO table2
SELECT * FROM table1;
Or we can copy only the columns we want to into another, existing table:

INSERT INTO table2

(column_name(s))
SELECT column_name(s)
FROM table1;

Demo Database
In this tutorial we will use the well-known Northwind sample database.
Below is a selection from the "Customers" table:
CustomerID

CustomerName

ContactName Address

City

Posta

Alfreds Futterkiste

Maria Anders

Obere Str. 57

Berlin

12209

Ana Trujillo Emparedados Ana Trujillo

y helados

Avda. de la
Constitucin 2222

Mxico
D.F.

05021

Antonio Moreno Taquera

Mataderos 2312

Mxico
D.F.

05023

Antonio
Moreno

And a selection from the "Suppliers" table:

SupplierI
D

SupplierName

ContactName

Address

City

Postal
Code

Coun

Exotic Liquid

Charlotte
Cooper

49 Gilbert
St.

Londona

EC1 4SD

UK

New Orleans Cajun

Delights

Shelley Burke

P.O. Box
78934

New
Orleans

70117

USA

Grandma Kelly's
Homestead

Regina Murphy

707 Oxford
Rd.

Ann Arbor

48104

USA

SQL INSERT INTO SELECT Examples

Copy only a few columns from "Suppliers" into "Customers":

Example
INSERT INTO Customers (CustomerName, Country)
SELECT SupplierName, Country FROM Suppliers;
Try it yourself

Copy only the German suppliers into "Customers":

Example
INSERT INTO Customers (CustomerName, Country)
SELECT SupplierName, Country FROM Suppliers
WHERE Country='Germany';

SQL Views
Previous
Next Chapter
A view is a virtual table.
This chapter shows how to create, update, and delete a view.

SQL CREATE VIEW Statement

In SQL, a view is a virtual table based on the result-set of an SQL statement.
A view contains rows and columns, just like a real table. The fields in a view are
fields from one or more real tables in the database.
You can add SQL functions, WHERE, and JOIN statements to a view and present the
data as if the data were coming from one single table.

SQL CREATE VIEW Syntax

CREATE VIEW view_name AS
SELECT column_name(s)
FROM table_name
WHERE condition
Note: A view always shows up-to-date data! The database engine recreates the
data, using the view's SQL statement, every time a user queries a view.

SQL CREATE VIEW Examples

If you have the Northwind database you can see that it has several views installed
by default.
The view "Current Product List" lists all active products (products that are not
discontinued) from the "Products" table. The view is created with the following SQL:
CREATE VIEW [Current Product List] AS
SELECT ProductID,ProductName
FROM Products
WHERE Discontinued=No
We can query the view above as follows:
SELECT * FROM [Current Product List]

Another view in the Northwind sample database selects every product in the
"Products" table with a unit price higher than the average unit price:
CREATE VIEW [Products Above Average Price] AS
SELECT ProductName,UnitPrice
FROM Products
WHERE UnitPrice>(SELECT AVG(UnitPrice) FROM Products)
We can query the view above as follows:
SELECT * FROM [Products Above Average Price]
Another view in the Northwind database calculates the total sale for each category in
1997. Note that this view selects its data from another view called "Product Sales for
1997":
CREATE VIEW [Category Sales For 1997] AS
SELECT DISTINCT CategoryName,Sum(ProductSales) AS CategorySales
FROM [Product Sales for 1997]
GROUP BY CategoryName
We can query the view above as follows:
SELECT * FROM [Category Sales For 1997]
We can also add a condition to the query. Now we want to see the total sale only for
the category "Beverages":
SELECT * FROM [Category Sales For 1997]
WHERE CategoryName='Beverages'

SQL Updating a View

You can update a view by using the following syntax:

SQL CREATE OR REPLACE VIEW Syntax

CREATE OR REPLACE VIEW view_name AS
SELECT column_name(s)
FROM table_name
WHERE condition
Now we want to add the "Category" column to the "Current Product List" view. We
will update the view with the following SQL:
CREATE VIEW [Current Product List] AS
SELECT ProductID,ProductName,Category
FROM Products
WHERE Discontinued=No

SQL Dropping a View

You can delete a view with the DROP VIEW command.

SQL DROP VIEW Syntax

DROP VIEW view_name

SQL Constraints
SQL constraints are used to specify rules for the data in a table.
If there is any violation between the constraint and the data action, the action is
aborted by the constraint.
Constraints can be specified when the table is created (inside the CREATE TABLE
statement) or after the table is created (inside the ALTER TABLE statement).

SQL CREATE TABLE + CONSTRAINT Syntax

CREATE TABLE table_name
(
column_name1 data_type(size) constraint_name,
column_name2 data_type(size) constraint_name,
column_name3 data_type(size) constraint_name,
....
);
In SQL, we have the following constraints:

NOT NULL - Indicates that a column cannot store NULL value

UNIQUE - Ensures that each row for a column must have a unique value

PRIMARY KEY - A combination of a NOT NULL and UNIQUE. Ensures that a

column (or combination of two or more columns) have an unique identity
which helps to find a particular record in a table more easily and quickly

FOREIGN KEY - Ensure the referential integrity of the data in one table to
match values in another table

CHECK - Ensures that the value in a column meets a specific condition

DEFAULT - Specifies a default value when specified none for this column

SQL FOREIGN KEY Constraint

A FOREIGN KEY in one table points to a PRIMARY KEY in another table.

Let's illustrate the foreign key with an example. Look at the following two
tables:

The "Persons" table:

P_Id

LastName

FirstName

Address

City

Hansen

Ola

Timoteivn 10

Sandn

Svendson

Tove

Borgvn 23

Sandn

Pettersen

Kari

Storgt 20

Stavan

The "Orders" table:

O_Id

OrderNo P_Id

77895

44678

22456

24562

Note that the "P_Id" column in the "Orders" table points to the "P_Id" column
in the "Persons" table.
The "P_Id" column in the "Persons" table is the PRIMARY KEY in the "Persons"
table.
The "P_Id" column in the "Orders" table is a FOREIGN KEY in the "Orders"
table.
The FOREIGN KEY constraint is used to prevent actions that would destroy
links between tables.
The FOREIGN KEY constraint also prevents invalid data from being inserted
into the foreign key column, because it has to be one of the values contained
in the table it points to.

SQL FOREIGN KEY Constraint on CREATE TABLE

The following SQL creates a FOREIGN KEY on the "P_Id" column when the
"Orders" table is created:
MySQL:
CREATE TABLE Orders
(
O_Id int NOT NULL,
OrderNo int NOT NULL,
P_Id int,
PRIMARY KEY (O_Id),
FOREIGN KEY (P_Id) REFERENCES Persons(P_Id)
)
SQL Server / Oracle / MS Access:
CREATE TABLE Orders
(
O_Id int NOT NULL PRIMARY KEY,
OrderNo int NOT NULL,

P_Id int FOREIGN KEY REFERENCES Persons(P_Id)

)
To allow naming of a FOREIGN KEY constraint, and for defining a FOREIGN
KEY constraint on multiple columns, use the following SQL syntax:
MySQL / SQL Server / Oracle / MS Access:
CREATE TABLE Orders
(
O_Id int NOT NULL,
OrderNo int NOT NULL,
P_Id int,
PRIMARY KEY (O_Id),
CONSTRAINT fk_PerOrders FOREIGN KEY (P_Id)
REFERENCES Persons(P_Id)
)

SQL FOREIGN KEY Constraint on ALTER TABLE

To create a FOREIGN KEY constraint on the "P_Id" column when the "Orders"
table is already created, use the following SQL:
MySQL / SQL Server / Oracle / MS Access:
ALTER TABLE Orders
ADD FOREIGN KEY (P_Id)
REFERENCES Persons(P_Id)
To allow naming of a FOREIGN KEY constraint, and for defining a FOREIGN
KEY constraint on multiple columns, use the following SQL syntax:
MySQL / SQL Server / Oracle / MS Access:
ALTER TABLE Orders
ADD CONSTRAINT fk_PerOrders
FOREIGN KEY (P_Id)
REFERENCES Persons(P_Id)

To DROP a FOREIGN KEY Constraint

To drop a FOREIGN KEY constraint, use the following SQL:

MySQL:
ALTER TABLE Orders
DROP FOREIGN KEY fk_PerOrders
SQL Server / Oracle / MS Access:
ALTER TABLE Orders
DROP CONSTRAINT fk_PerOrders

SQL CREATE INDEX Statement

Previous
Next Chapter
The CREATE INDEX statement is used to create indexes in tables.

Indexes allow the database application to find data fast; without reading the whole
table.

Indexes
An index can be created in a table to find data more quickly and efficiently.
The users cannot see the indexes, they are just used to speed up searches/queries.
Note: Updating a table with indexes takes more time than updating a table without
(because the indexes also need an update). So you should only create indexes on
columns (and tables) that will be frequently searched against.

SQL CREATE INDEX Syntax

Creates an index on a table. Duplicate values are allowed:
CREATE INDEX index_name
ON table_name (column_name)

SQL CREATE UNIQUE INDEX Syntax

Creates a unique index on a table. Duplicate values are not allowed:
CREATE UNIQUE INDEX index_name
ON table_name (column_name)
Note: The syntax for creating indexes varies amongst different databases.
Therefore: Check the syntax for creating indexes in your database.

CREATE INDEX Example

The SQL statement below creates an index named "PIndex" on the "LastName"
column in the "Persons" table:
CREATE INDEX PIndex
ON Persons (LastName)
If you want to create an index on a combination of columns, you can list the column
names within the parentheses, separated by commas:
CREATE INDEX PIndex
ON Persons (LastName, FirstName)

SQL AUTO INCREMENT Field

 Previous
Next Chapter
Auto-increment allows a unique number to be generated when a new record is
inserted into a table.

AUTO INCREMENT a Field

Very often we would like the value of the primary key field to be created
automatically every time a new record is inserted.
We would like to create an auto-increment field in a table.

Syntax for MySQL

The following SQL statement defines the "ID" column to be an auto-increment
primary key field in the "Persons" table:
CREATE TABLE Persons
(
ID int NOT NULL AUTO_INCREMENT,
LastName varchar(255) NOT NULL,
FirstName varchar(255),
Address varchar(255),
City varchar(255),
PRIMARY KEY (ID)
)
MySQL uses the AUTO_INCREMENT keyword to perform an auto-increment feature.
By default, the starting value for AUTO_INCREMENT is 1, and it will increment by 1
for each new record.
To let the AUTO_INCREMENT sequence start with another value, use the following
SQL statement:
ALTER TABLE Persons AUTO_INCREMENT=100
To insert a new record into the "Persons" table, we will NOT have to specify a value
for the "ID" column (a unique value will be added automatically):
INSERT INTO Persons (FirstName,LastName)
VALUES ('Lars','Monsen')
The SQL statement above would insert a new record into the "Persons" table. The
"ID" column would be assigned a unique value. The "FirstName" column would be
set to "Lars" and the "LastName" column would be set to "Monsen".

Syntax for SQL Server

The following SQL statement defines the "ID" column to be an auto-increment
primary key field in the "Persons" table:
CREATE TABLE Persons
(
ID int IDENTITY(1,1) PRIMARY KEY,
LastName varchar(255) NOT NULL,
FirstName varchar(255),
Address varchar(255),
City varchar(255)
)
The MS SQL Server uses the IDENTITY keyword to perform an auto-increment
feature.
In the example above, the starting value for IDENTITY is 1, and it will increment by
1 for each new record.
Tip: To specify that the "ID" column should start at value 10 and increment by 5,
change it to IDENTITY(10,5).
To insert a new record into the "Persons" table, we will NOT have to specify a value
for the "ID" column (a unique value will be added automatically):
INSERT INTO Persons (FirstName,LastName)
VALUES ('Lars','Monsen')
The SQL statement above would insert a new record into the "Persons" table. The
"ID" column would be assigned a unique value. The "FirstName" column would be
set to "Lars" and the "LastName" column would be set to "Monsen".

Syntax for Access

The following SQL statement defines the "ID" column to be an auto-increment
primary key field in the "Persons" table:
CREATE TABLE Persons
(
ID Integer PRIMARY KEY AUTOINCREMENT,
LastName varchar(255) NOT NULL,
FirstName varchar(255),
Address varchar(255),
City varchar(255)
)
The MS Access uses the AUTOINCREMENT keyword to perform an auto-increment
feature.

By default, the starting value for AUTOINCREMENT is 1, and it will increment by 1

for each new record.
Tip: To specify that the "ID" column should start at value 10 and increment by 5,
change the autoincrement to AUTOINCREMENT(10,5).
To insert a new record into the "Persons" table, we will NOT have to specify a value
for the "ID" column (a unique value will be added automatically):
INSERT INTO Persons (FirstName,LastName)
VALUES ('Lars','Monsen')
The SQL statement above would insert a new record into the "Persons" table. The
"P_Id" column would be assigned a unique value. The "FirstName" column would be
set to "Lars" and the "LastName" column would be set to "Monsen".

Syntax for Oracle

In Oracle the code is a little bit more tricky.
You will have to create an auto-increment field with the sequence object (this object
generates a number sequence).
Use the following CREATE SEQUENCE syntax:
CREATE SEQUENCE seq_person
MINVALUE 1
START WITH 1
INCREMENT BY 1
CACHE 10
The code above creates a sequence object called seq_person, that starts with 1 and
will increment by 1. It will also cache up to 10 values for performance. The cache
option specifies how many sequence values will be stored in memory for faster
access.
To insert a new record into the "Persons" table, we will have to use the nextval
function (this function retrieves the next value from seq_person sequence):
INSERT INTO Persons (ID,FirstName,LastName)
VALUES (seq_person.nextval,'Lars','Monsen')
The SQL statement above would insert a new record into the "Persons" table. The
"ID" column would be assigned the next number from the seq_person sequence. The
"FirstName" column would be set to "Lars" and the "LastName" column would be set
to "Monsen".

SQL UNIQUE Constraint

The UNIQUE constraint uniquely identifies each record in a database table.

The UNIQUE and PRIMARY KEY constraints both provide a guarantee for uniqueness
for a column or set of columns.
A PRIMARY KEY constraint automatically has a UNIQUE constraint defined on it.
Note that you can have many UNIQUE constraints per table, but only one PRIMARY
KEY constraint per table.

SQL UNIQUE Constraint on CREATE TABLE

The following SQL creates a UNIQUE constraint on the "P_Id" column when the
"Persons" table is created:
SQL Server / Oracle / MS Access:
CREATE TABLE Persons
(
P_Id int NOT NULL UNIQUE,
LastName varchar(255) NOT NULL,
FirstName varchar(255),
Address varchar(255),
City varchar(255)
)
MySQL:
CREATE TABLE Persons
(
P_Id int NOT NULL,
LastName varchar(255) NOT NULL,
FirstName varchar(255),
Address varchar(255),
City varchar(255),
UNIQUE (P_Id)
)
To allow naming of a UNIQUE constraint, and for defining a UNIQUE constraint on
multiple columns, use the following SQL syntax:
MySQL / SQL Server / Oracle / MS Access:
CREATE TABLE Persons
(
P_Id int NOT NULL,
LastName varchar(255) NOT NULL,
FirstName varchar(255),
Address varchar(255),
City varchar(255),
CONSTRAINT uc_PersonID UNIQUE (P_Id,LastName)
)

SQL UNIQUE Constraint on ALTER TABLE

To create a UNIQUE constraint on the "P_Id" column when the table is already
created, use the following SQL:
MySQL / SQL Server / Oracle / MS Access:
ALTER TABLE Persons
ADD UNIQUE (P_Id)
To allow naming of a UNIQUE constraint, and for defining a UNIQUE constraint on
multiple columns, use the following SQL syntax:
MySQL / SQL Server / Oracle / MS Access:
ALTER TABLE Persons
ADD CONSTRAINT uc_PersonID UNIQUE (P_Id,LastName)

To DROP a UNIQUE Constraint

To drop a UNIQUE constraint, use the following SQL:
MySQL:
ALTER TABLE Persons
DROP INDEX uc_PersonID
SQL Server / Oracle / MS Access:
ALTER TABLE Persons
DROP CONSTRAINT uc_PersonID