📉 Oracle MIN() Function Guide
This tutorial covers how to use the Oracle MIN() function to find the smallest value in a column. You’ll also see examples with GROUP BY, HAVING, and subqueries.
📌 What is Oracle MIN()?
The MIN() function returns the minimum value from a set of values in a column. It works on numeric, date, and string data types and ignores NULL values.
🧮 Syntax
MIN(expression)
Where expression is usually a column name.
📋 Example 1: MIN on Numeric Column
Find the lowest salary in the employees table:
SELECT MIN(salary) AS lowest_salary FROM employees;
📋 Example 2: MIN with GROUP BY
Find the lowest salary in each department:
SELECT department_id, MIN(salary) AS lowest_salary FROM employees GROUP BY department_id;
📋 Example 3: MIN with HAVING
Return departments where the minimum salary is below 5,000:
SELECT department_id, MIN(salary) AS lowest_salary FROM employees GROUP BY department_id HAVING MIN(salary) < 5000;
📋 Example 4: MIN in Subquery
Find employee(s) with the lowest salary:
SELECT first_name, last_name, salary FROM employees WHERE salary = ( SELECT MIN(salary) FROM employees );
📋 Example 5: MIN on Date Column
Find the earliest hire date:
SELECT MIN(hire_date) AS earliest_hire FROM employees;
📋 Example 6: MIN on Strings
Find the employee with the first last name alphabetically (A → Z):
SELECT MIN(last_name) AS first_alphabetically FROM employees;
✅ Summary
MIN()returns the smallest value from a set.- Works with numbers, dates, and strings.
- Ignores
NULLvalues. - Supports use with
GROUP BYandHAVING. - Useful in subqueries to filter rows by minimum values.
Oracle's MIN() function is a straightforward way to find minimum values in your data.