How to Restrict Results to Top N Rows per Group in MySQL

When dealing with databases, limiting results to the top N rows within specific groups is crucial. We’ll explore three approaches in MySQL to efficiently handle this scenario.

  • Using Subquery with ROW_NUMBER()
  • Using Common Table Expression (CTE)
  • Using DENSE_RANK() for Tie-Breaking

Syntax:

SELECT *

FROM (

SELECT

your_columns,

ROW_NUMBER() OVER (PARTITION BY your_grouping_column ORDER BY your_ordering_column DESC) AS row_num

FROM

your_table

) ranked

WHERE

row_num <= N;

How to Restrict Results to Top N Rows per Group in MySQL

When working with MySQL databases, the need to limit results to the top N rows per group is a common requirement. This is particularly useful in scenarios where you aim to retrieve a specific number of records for each distinct group in your dataset. Achieving this involves leveraging the ROW_NUMBER() window function along with the PARTITION BY clause to effectively partition the data into groups.

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How to Restrict Results to Top N Rows per Group in MySQL

When dealing with databases, limiting results to the top N rows within specific groups is crucial. We’ll explore three approaches in MySQL to efficiently handle this scenario....

Using ROW_NUMBER() and PARTITION BY

The ROW_NUMBER() function, combined with PARTITION BY, allows efficient grouping and filtering based on assigned row numbers....

Using Common Table Expression (CTE)

Utilizing a Common Table Expression enhances readability and provides a clear structure for the query....

Using DENSE_RANK()

Use DENSE_RANK() instead of ROW_NUMBER() for scenarios where tied rows should share the same rank....

Conclusion

So, overall to Restricting results to the top N rows per group in MySQL is a powerful capability that can be achieved by using the ROW_NUMBER() window function along with PARTITION BY. This technique allows you to efficiently filter and retrieve specific records for each distinct group in your data, providing valuable insights into top-performing items or individuals within each category. Whether it’s sales data, employee records, or any other dataset, the flexibility of this approach makes it a valuable tool for data analysis and reporting in MySQL....

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