MIN and MAX functions in MySQL - Cheat Sheet & Quick Revision

Recall & Review

beginner

What does the MIN() function do in SQL?

The MIN() function returns the smallest value from a column or expression in a set of rows.

beginner

What does the MAX() function do in SQL?

The MAX() function returns the largest value from a column or expression in a set of rows.

intermediate

How do MIN() and MAX() functions handle NULL values?

MIN() and MAX() ignore NULL values when calculating the smallest or largest value.

beginner

Write a SQL query to find the minimum and maximum price from a products table.

SELECT MIN(price) AS LowestPrice, MAX(price) AS HighestPrice FROM products;

intermediate

Can MIN() and MAX() be used with GROUP BY? What does it do?

Yes, they can be used with GROUP BY to find the smallest or largest value within each group of rows.

What will the query SELECT MIN(age) FROM users; return?

A The total number of users

B The oldest age in the users table

C The average age in the users table

D The youngest age in the users table

MIN(age) returns the smallest age value, which is the youngest user.

If a column contains NULL values, how do MIN() and MAX() treat them?

A They ignore NULL values

B They count NULL as zero

C They return NULL if any NULL exists

D They treat NULL as the smallest value

MIN() and MAX() ignore NULL values when calculating results.

Which SQL clause is used with MIN() and MAX() to get results per category?

A ORDER BY

B GROUP BY

C WHERE

D HAVING

GROUP BY groups rows so MIN() and MAX() can find values per group.

What does this query return? SELECT MAX(salary) FROM employees;

A The highest salary

B The lowest salary

C The average salary

D The number of employees

MAX(salary) returns the highest salary value.

Can MIN() and MAX() be used on text columns?

A No, only numbers

B Only MAX() works on text

C Yes, they return alphabetically smallest and largest values

D Only MIN() works on text

MIN() and MAX() work on text columns returning alphabetically smallest and largest values.

Explain how MIN() and MAX() functions work in SQL and give an example query.

Think about finding lowest and highest values in a list.

Describe how you would find the highest and lowest prices for each product category using MIN() and MAX().

Grouping helps find min and max per group.