Integer types (TINYINT, INT, BIGINT) in MySQL - Interactive Code Practice

Practice - 5 Tasks

1fill in blank

easy

Complete the code to create a column that stores very small integers.

MySQL

CREATE TABLE example (age [1]);

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

ATINYINT

BVARCHAR(10)

CTEXT

DDATE

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using VARCHAR or TEXT for numbers causes storage inefficiency.

Using DATE type for numbers is incorrect.

The TINYINT type stores very small integers, using 1 byte.

2fill in blank

medium

Complete the code to create a column that stores standard integers.

MySQL

CREATE TABLE example (score [1]);

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ACHAR(5)

BFLOAT

CBOOLEAN

DINT

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using FLOAT stores decimal numbers, not integers.

CHAR and BOOLEAN are not integer types.

The INT type stores standard integers, using 4 bytes.

3fill in blank

hard

Fix the error in the code to create a column for very large integers.

MySQL

CREATE TABLE example (population [1]);

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

AINT

BBIGINT

CTEXT

DVARCHAR(20)

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using INT for very large numbers can cause overflow.

VARCHAR and TEXT are for strings, not numbers.

BIGINT stores very large integers, using 8 bytes.

4fill in blank

hard

Fill both blanks to create a table with a small and a large integer column.

MySQL

CREATE TABLE data (small_num [1], large_num [2]);

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

ATINYINT

BVARCHAR(10)

CBIGINT

DTEXT

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using VARCHAR or TEXT for numbers.

Mixing up the sizes of integer types.

TINYINT is for small integers, and BIGINT is for large integers.

5fill in blank

hard

Fill all three blanks to create a table with three integer columns of increasing size.

MySQL

CREATE TABLE numbers (small [1], medium [2], large [3]);

Drag options to blanks, or click blank then click option'

ATINYINT

BINT

CBIGINT

DVARCHAR(5)

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using VARCHAR for integer columns.

Confusing the order of integer sizes.

TINYINT is the smallest integer type, INT is medium, and BIGINT is the largest.

Practice

1. Which MySQL integer type should you use to store a small number between 0 and 255 efficiently?

easy

A. BIGINT

B. INT

C. TINYINT

D. SMALLINT

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand the range of TINYINT and compare with other types

   TINYINT can store values from 0 to 255 when unsigned, which fits small numbers efficiently. INT and BIGINT store much larger numbers but use more space. SMALLINT also uses more space unnecessarily.

2. Final Answer:

   TINYINT -> Option C

3. Quick Check:

   Small numbers (0-255) = TINYINT [OK]

Hint: Use TINYINT for numbers up to 255 to save space [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Choosing INT for small numbers wastes space
• Confusing TINYINT with SMALLINT
• Not considering unsigned range

2. Which of the following is the correct syntax to declare a NOT NULL BIGINT column named user_id in MySQL?

easy

A. user_id BIGINT;

B. BIGINT user_id;

C. user_id INT BIG;

D. user_id BIGINT NOT NULL;

Solution

1. Step 1: Check correct order of declaration

   In MySQL, the column name comes first, then the data type, optionally followed by constraints like NOT NULL. Only A follows this: user_id BIGINT NOT NULL;.

2. Final Answer:

   user_id BIGINT NOT NULL; -> Option D

3. Quick Check:

   Column name + type + constraints = correct syntax [OK]

Hint: Column name first, then type, then constraints [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Putting type before column name
• Using invalid order of keywords
• Missing semicolon in some contexts

3. Given the table orders with a column order_count TINYINT UNSIGNED, what will be the result of this query?

INSERT INTO orders (order_count) VALUES (300);
SELECT order_count FROM orders;

medium

A. 300

B. Error: Out of range value

C. 0

D. 44

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand TINYINT UNSIGNED range and insert effect

   TINYINT UNSIGNED stores 0-255 only. 300 exceeds range, so INSERT throws 'Error: Out of range value' (default strict mode).

2. Final Answer:

   Error: Out of range value -> Option B

3. Quick Check:

   Value > 255 in TINYINT UNSIGNED causes error [OK]

Hint: Check value fits type range before insert [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Assuming values wrap around silently
• Ignoring unsigned range limits
• Expecting automatic truncation without error

4. You have a column defined as INT but you want to store numbers larger than 4,294,967,295. Which change fixes the problem?

medium

A. Change the column type to BIGINT

B. Change the column type to TINYINT

C. Add UNSIGNED to the INT column

D. Use VARCHAR instead of INT

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand INT range limits and select proper type

   Signed INT max ~2.1 billion, UNSIGNED INT max 4,294,967,295. BIGINT handles much larger (up to ~9 quintillion).

2. Final Answer:

   Change the column type to BIGINT -> Option A

3. Quick Check:

   BIGINT stores bigger numbers than INT [OK]

Hint: Use BIGINT for numbers bigger than INT max [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using TINYINT which is smaller
• Adding UNSIGNED but still too small
• Switching to VARCHAR loses numeric benefits

5. You want to store user scores that can be very large, but you also want to save space when scores are small. Which MySQL integer type strategy is best?

hard

A. Use INT for most scores and BIGINT only if scores exceed INT range

B. Use TINYINT and switch to BIGINT if needed later

C. Always use BIGINT for all scores

D. Use BIGINT but compress data manually

Solution

1. Step 1: Balance storage and range needs

   TINYINT too small; always BIGINT wastes space. Use INT initially (efficient for small/medium), ALTER to BIGINT later if needed.

2. Final Answer:

   Use INT for most scores and BIGINT only if scores exceed INT range -> Option A

3. Quick Check:

   Balance size and range with INT then BIGINT [OK]

Hint: Start with INT, upgrade to BIGINT if needed [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Always using BIGINT wastes space
• Starting with TINYINT causes overflow
• Manual compression is complex and error-prone