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:
Example
SELECT * FROM Customers LIMIT 3;
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)”:
Example
SELECT * FROM Customers LIMIT 3 OFFSET 3;
ADD a WHERE CLAUSE
The following SQL statement selects the first three records from the “Customers” table, where the country is “Germany”:
Example
SELECT * FROM Customers
WHERE Country='Germany'
LIMIT 3;
ADD an ORDER BY CLAUSE
The following SQL statement sorts the customers by country before returning the first three records from the selection:
Example
SELECT * FROM Customers
ORDER BY Country
LIMIT 3;