MySQL LIMIT Clause
The MySQL LIMIT Clause
The LIMIT clause is used to specify the number of records to return.
The LIMIT clause is useful on large tables with thousands of
records. Returning a large number of records can impact performance.
LIMIT Syntax
SELECT column_name(s)
FROM table_name
WHERE condition
LIMIT number;Demo Database
Below is a selection from the "Customers" table in the Northwind sample database:
| CustomerID | CustomerName | ContactName | Address | City | PostalCode | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Alfreds Futterkiste | Maria Anders | Obere Str. 57 | Berlin | 12209 | Germany |
| 2 | Ana Trujillo Emparedados y helados | Ana Trujillo | Avda. de la Constitución 2222 | México D.F. | 05021 | Mexico |
| 3 | Antonio Moreno Taquería | Antonio Moreno | Mataderos 2312 | México D.F. | 05023 | Mexico |
| 4 |
Around the Horn | Thomas Hardy | 120 Hanover Sq. | London | WA1 1DP | UK |
| 5 | Berglunds snabbköp | Christina Berglund | Berguvsvägen 8 | Luleå | S-958 22 | Sweden |
MySQL LIMIT Examples
The following SQL statement selects the first three records from the "Customers" table:
What if we want to select records 4 - 6 (inclusive)?
MySQL provides a way to handle this: by using OFFSET.
The SQL query below says "return only 3 records, start on record 4 (OFFSET 3)":
ADD a WHERE CLAUSE
The following SQL statement selects the first three records from the "Customers" table, where the country is "Germany":
