How to Sum Values of a Column in SQL

How to Sum Values of a Column in SQL

Do you need to quickly sum up the values of a column in your database? SQL has a handy way of doing this that can help you get the answer you need.

The Solution

The solution is to use the SUM() function. This function takes a single argument, which is the column you want to sum up. For example, if you wanted to sum up the values in the price column of your database, you would use the following query:

SELECT SUM(price) FROM table_name;

Examples

Let's look at a few examples of how this function can be used. Suppose you have a table called products with the following data:

name      price
----------------
Widget    10
Gadget    20
Widget    15
Thingamabob    25

If you wanted to sum up the prices of all the products in this table, you would use the following query:

SELECT SUM(price) FROM products;

This query would return the result 70, since the total price of all the products in the table is 70.

Additional Info

The SUM() function is supported by most major databases, including MySQL, PostgreSQL, and SQL Server. However, the syntax may vary slightly depending on the database you are using. For more information, check out the documentation for your particular database. 🤓