Oracle MIN function.

Preamble

The Oracle/PLSQL MIN function returns the minimum value of the expression.

Oracle/PLSQL syntax of MIN function

SELECT MIN(aggregate_expression_id)
FROM tabs
[WHERE conds]

OR syntax for MIN function with results grouped in one or more columns:

SELECT expression1_id, expression2_id, ... expression_n_id,
MIN(aggregate_expression_id)
FROM tabs
[WHERE conds]
GROUP BY expression1_id, expression2_id, ... expression_n_id;

Parameters and arguments of the function

• expression1_id, expression2_id, …expression_n_id – expressions that are not encapsulated in the MIN function must be included in the GROUP BY operator at the end of the SQL sentence.
• aggregate_expression_id – is a column or expression from which the minimum value will be returned.
• tabs – tables from which you want to get records. At least one table must be specified in FROM operator.
• WHERE conds – optional. These are the conditions that must be met for the selected records.

MIN function in the following versions of Oracle/PLSQL

One Field Example

Let’s consider examples of the MIN function and learn how to use the MIN function in Oracle/PLSQL.

For example, you will want to know what is the minimum wage for all employees.

SELECT MIN(salary_id) AS "Lowest Salary"
FROM empls;

The query above will return the minimum wage for all employees from the employees table.

Example – Using GROUP BY

In some cases, you may need to use GROUP BY with MIN function.

For example, you might also want to use the MIN function to return the department and MIN(salary) to the department.

SELECT depart, MIN(salary_id) AS "Lowest salary".
FROM empls
GROUP BY depart;

Since your SELECT operator has one column that is not encapsulated in the MIN function, you must use GROUP BY. Therefore, the department field must be specified in the GROUP BY operator.

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