How to Add Ranking Positions to Rows with DENSE_RANK in SQL

To add ranking positions to rows in your database, use the DENSE_RANK function. This function takes two arguments: the column you want to rank, and the order in which you want to rank it. For example, if you wanted to rank the name column of your database in alphabetical order, you would use the following query:

SELECT name, DENSE_RANK() OVER (ORDER BY name) AS rank FROM table_name;

Examples

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

If you wanted to rank the names in alphabetical order, you would use the following query:

SELECT name, DENSE_RANK() OVER (ORDER BY name) AS rank FROM users;

This query would return the following result:

As you can see, the DENSE_RANK function has assigned each name a rank based on its alphabetical order. Note that since there are two Johns, they have both been assigned the same rank.

Additional Info

The DENSE_RANK 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. 🤓