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least

Description​

Returns the smallest value from a list of one or more parameters.

Generally, the return value has the same data type as the input.

The comparison rules are the same as the greatest function.

Syntax​

LEAST(expr1,...);

Parameters​

expr1: the expression to compare. It supports the following data types:

  • SMALLINT

  • TINYINT

  • INT

  • BIGINT

  • LARGEINT

  • FLOAT

  • DOUBLE

  • DECIMALV2

  • DECIMAL32

  • DECIMAL64

  • DECIMAL128

  • DATETIME

  • VARCHAR

Examples​

Example 1: Return the smallest value for a single input.

select least(3);
+----------+
| least(3) |
+----------+
|        3 |
+----------+
1 row in set (0.00 sec)

Example 2: Return the smallest value from a list of values.

select least(3,4,5,5,6);
+----------------------+
| least(3, 4, 5, 5, 6) |
+----------------------+
|                    3 |
+----------------------+
1 row in set (0.01 sec)

Example 3: One parameter is of the DOUBLE type and a DOUBLE value is returned.

select least(4,4.5,5.5);
+--------------------+
| least(4, 4.5, 5.5) |
+--------------------+
|                4.0 |
+--------------------+

Example 4: The input parameters are a mix of number and string but the string can be converted into a number. The parameters are compared as numbers.

select least(7,'5');
+---------------+
| least(7, '5') |
+---------------+
| 5             |
+---------------+
1 row in set (0.01 sec)

Example 5: The input parameters are a mix of number and string but the string cannot be converted into a number. The parameters are compared as strings. The string '1' is less than 'at'.

select least(1,'at');
+----------------+
| least(1, 'at') |
+----------------+
| 1              |
+----------------+

Example 6: The input parameters are characters.

mysql> select least('A','B','Z');
+----------------------+
| least('A', 'B', 'Z') |
+----------------------+
| A                    |
+----------------------+
1 row in set (0.00 sec)

Keywords​

LEAST, least