SQL Exercise: Oldest orders first on the highest purchase amount

Last update on March 08 2025 08:18:30 (UTC/GMT +8 hours)

Orders Sorted by Date & Amount Descending

From the following table, write a SQL query to find all the orders. Sort the result-set in descending order by ord_date and purch_amt. Return all fields.

Sample table: orders

ord_no      purch_amt   ord_date    customer_id  salesman_id
----------  ----------  ----------  -----------  -----------
70001       150.5       2012-10-05  3005         5002
70009       270.65      2012-09-10  3001         5005
70002       65.26       2012-10-05  3002         5001
70004       110.5       2012-08-17  3009         5003
70007       948.5       2012-09-10  3005         5002
70005       2400.6      2012-07-27  3007         5001
70008       5760        2012-09-10  3002         5001
70010       1983.43     2012-10-10  3004         5006
70003       2480.4      2012-10-10  3009         5003
70012       250.45      2012-06-27  3008         5002
70011       75.29       2012-08-17  3003         5007
70013       3045.6      2012-04-25  3002         5001

Sample Solution:

-- This query selects all columns from the 'orders' table and orders the result set first by 'ord_date' in ascending order,
-- and then by 'purch_amt' in descending order.
SELECT *
-- Specifies the table from which to retrieve the data (in this case, 'orders').
FROM orders
-- Orders the result set first by 'ord_date' column in ascending order,
-- and then by 'purch_amt' column in descending order.
ORDER BY ord_date, purch_amt DESC;

Output of the Query:

ord_no	purch_amt	ord_date	customer_id	salesman_id
70013	3045.60		2012-04-25	3002		5001
70012	250.45		2012-06-27	3008		5002
70005	2400.60		2012-07-27	3007		5001
70004	110.50		2012-08-17	3009		5003
70011	75.29		2012-08-17	3003		5007
70008	5760.00		2012-09-10	3002		5001
70007	948.50		2012-09-10	3005		5002
70009	270.65		2012-09-10	3001		5005
70001	150.50		2012-10-05	3005		5002
70002	65.26		2012-10-05	3002		5001
70003	2480.40		2012-10-10	3009		5003
70010	1983.43		2012-10-10	3004		5006

Code Explanation:

The said query in SQL retrieves all columns from the 'orders' table and returns the result sorted first by the "ord_date" column in ascending order, and then by the "purch_amt" column in descending order. The "ORDER BY ord_date, purch_amt DESC" clause sorts the rows in the result set first by ord_date values, and then for the same ord_date values, it sorts them by the purch_amt column in descending order.

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For more Practice: Solve these Related Problems:

• Write a SQL query to retrieve all orders sorted by ord_date descending and then by purch_amt descending, excluding orders with a NULL ord_date.
• Write a SQL query to list orders sorted in descending order by both ord_date and purch_amt, including only orders where purch_amt is above the median value.
• Write a SQL query to select all order fields and sort by ord_date and purch_amt descending, with a condition that ord_no is divisible by 3.
• Write a SQL query to output orders sorted by ord_date descending, then by purch_amt descending, and compute the rank of each order within its order date.
• Write a SQL query to display all orders sorted by ord_date and purch_amt in descending order, along with a column calculating the difference between purch_amt and the average purchase amount for that date.

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