LIMIT and OFFSET for pagination in MySQL - Interactive Code Practice

Practice - 5 Tasks

1fill in blank

easy

Complete the code to limit the query to 5 rows.

MySQL

SELECT * FROM products [1] 5;

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

AOFFSET

BWHERE

CLIMIT

DORDER BY

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using OFFSET instead of LIMIT to restrict rows.

Using WHERE without a condition.

Using ORDER BY without specifying columns.

The LIMIT clause restricts the number of rows returned by the query. Here, LIMIT 5 returns only 5 rows.

2fill in blank

medium

Complete the code to skip the first 10 rows and return the next 5 rows.

MySQL

SELECT * FROM products [1] 5 OFFSET 10;

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

AWHERE

BLIMIT

CORDER BY

DGROUP BY

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using OFFSET without LIMIT.

Using WHERE instead of LIMIT.

Placing OFFSET before LIMIT.

The LIMIT clause specifies how many rows to return, and OFFSET skips the first rows. Here, LIMIT 5 OFFSET 10 skips 10 rows and returns the next 5.

3fill in blank

hard

Fix the error in the query to paginate results correctly.

MySQL

SELECT * FROM orders LIMIT [1] OFFSET 20;

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

A10

B20

C30

D0

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Using LIMIT 20 OFFSET 20 returns 20 rows after skipping 20, which may be too many.

Using LIMIT 0 returns no rows.

Using LIMIT 30 returns more rows than needed.

The query should return 10 rows after skipping 20. Using LIMIT 10 OFFSET 20 correctly paginates the results.

4fill in blank

hard

Fill both blanks to select 15 rows starting from the 5th row.

MySQL

SELECT * FROM customers [1] 15 [2] 5;

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

ALIMIT

BOFFSET

CWHERE

DORDER BY

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Swapping LIMIT and OFFSET keywords.

Using WHERE instead of OFFSET.

Omitting LIMIT.

Use LIMIT 15 OFFSET 5 to get 15 rows starting after skipping 5 rows.

5fill in blank

hard

Fill all three blanks to paginate the 'employees' table: skip 25 rows, return 10 rows, ordered by 'id'.

MySQL

SELECT * FROM employees [1] id [2] 10 [3] 25;

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

AORDER BY

BLIMIT

COFFSET

DGROUP BY

Attempts:

3 left

💡 Hint

Common Mistakes

Placing OFFSET before LIMIT.

Using GROUP BY instead of ORDER BY.

Omitting ORDER BY when paginating.

The query orders rows by id, then limits to 10 rows, skipping the first 25 rows using ORDER BY id LIMIT 10 OFFSET 25.

Practice

1. What does the LIMIT clause do in a MySQL query?

easy

A. It controls how many rows the query returns.

B. It controls the order of the rows returned.

C. It filters rows based on a condition.

D. It changes the database schema.

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand the purpose of LIMIT

   The LIMIT clause restricts the number of rows returned by a query.

2. Step 2: Compare with other options

   Ordering is done by ORDER BY, filtering by WHERE, and schema changes by DDL commands, not LIMIT.

3. Final Answer:

   It controls how many rows the query returns. -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   LIMIT = number of rows [OK]

Hint: LIMIT sets max rows returned, like page size [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Confusing LIMIT with ORDER BY
• Thinking LIMIT filters rows by condition
• Assuming LIMIT changes table structure

2. Which of the following is the correct syntax using the OFFSET keyword to get 10 rows starting from the 7th row in MySQL?

easy

A. SELECT * FROM table LIMIT 6, 10;

B. SELECT * FROM table LIMIT 10 OFFSET 6;

C. SELECT * FROM table OFFSET 6 LIMIT 10;

D. SELECT * FROM table LIMIT 10, 6;

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand LIMIT and OFFSET syntax

   MySQL supports both LIMIT count OFFSET offset and LIMIT offset, count syntax.

2. Step 2: Identify correct syntax for 10 rows starting at 7th row

   OFFSET 6 means skip first 6 rows, then LIMIT 10 means get next 10 rows. SELECT * FROM table LIMIT 10 OFFSET 6; uses this correctly.

3. Final Answer:

   SELECT * FROM table LIMIT 10 OFFSET 6; -> Option B

4. Quick Check:

   LIMIT count OFFSET offset = correct syntax [OK]

Hint: Use LIMIT count OFFSET offset for clarity [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Swapping LIMIT and OFFSET values
• Using OFFSET before LIMIT incorrectly
• Confusing LIMIT offset,count with LIMIT count OFFSET offset

3. Given the table users with rows numbered by id from 1 to 20, what rows will this query return?
SELECT * FROM users ORDER BY id ASC LIMIT 5 OFFSET 10;

medium

A. Rows with id 1 to 5

B. Rows with id 6 to 10

C. Rows with id 11 to 15

D. Rows with id 16 to 20

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand OFFSET and LIMIT effect on rows

   OFFSET 10 skips first 10 rows (id 1 to 10), LIMIT 5 returns next 5 rows.

2. Step 2: Identify which rows are returned

   After skipping 10 rows, rows with id 11 to 15 are returned.

3. Final Answer:

   Rows with id 11 to 15 -> Option C

4. Quick Check:

   OFFSET 10 + LIMIT 5 = rows 11-15 [OK]

Hint: OFFSET skips rows, LIMIT picks next rows [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Counting OFFSET as inclusive row
• Mixing up OFFSET and LIMIT order
• Assuming OFFSET starts at 1 instead of 0

4. Identify the error in this query intended to get 5 rows starting from the 3rd row:
SELECT * FROM products LIMIT OFFSET 3, 5;

medium

A. Syntax error: LIMIT should come before OFFSET without comma.

B. OFFSET cannot be used with LIMIT in this way.

C. No error; query is correct.

D. LIMIT and OFFSET are reversed in order.

Solution

1. Step 1: Check correct syntax for LIMIT and OFFSET

   Correct syntax is either LIMIT count OFFSET offset or LIMIT offset, count without the word OFFSET in the second form.

2. Step 2: Identify error in given query

   The query uses both LIMIT and OFFSET keywords together incorrectly with a comma, causing syntax error.

3. Final Answer:

   Syntax error: LIMIT should come before OFFSET without comma. -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   LIMIT offset,count or LIMIT count OFFSET offset [OK]

Hint: Use either LIMIT offset,count or LIMIT count OFFSET offset [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Mixing LIMIT and OFFSET keywords with commas
• Using OFFSET before LIMIT
• Adding OFFSET keyword with comma syntax

5. You want to display page 4 of a product list, showing 15 products per page, ordered by created_at descending. Which query correctly uses LIMIT and OFFSET?

hard

A. SELECT * FROM products ORDER BY created_at DESC LIMIT 45 OFFSET 15;

B. SELECT * FROM products ORDER BY created_at DESC LIMIT 60 OFFSET 15;

C. SELECT * FROM products ORDER BY created_at DESC LIMIT 15, 45;

D. SELECT * FROM products ORDER BY created_at DESC LIMIT 15 OFFSET 45;

Solution

1. Step 1: Calculate OFFSET for page 4 with 15 items per page

   Page 1 shows rows 0-14, page 2 rows 15-29, page 3 rows 30-44, so page 4 starts at offset 45.

2. Step 2: Write query with LIMIT and OFFSET

   LIMIT 15 means 15 rows per page, OFFSET 45 skips first 45 rows. SELECT * FROM products ORDER BY created_at DESC LIMIT 15 OFFSET 45; matches this.

3. Final Answer:

   SELECT * FROM products ORDER BY created_at DESC LIMIT 15 OFFSET 45; -> Option D

4. Quick Check:

   OFFSET = (page-1)*page_size = 45 [OK]

Hint: OFFSET = (page-1) * page_size, LIMIT = page_size [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Swapping LIMIT and OFFSET values
• Calculating OFFSET incorrectly
• Using LIMIT as total rows instead of per page