How to Update Multiple Records in SQL Based on a Condition

Last update on September 20 2025 13:31:06 (UTC/GMT +8 hours)

Update Multiple Records

Write a SQL query to update multiple records in a table based on a specific condition.

Solution:

-- Increase the salary of all employees aged over 30 by 10%.
UPDATE Employees -- Specify the table to update.
SET Salary = Salary * 1.10 -- Increase the salary by 10%.
WHERE Age > 30; -- Apply the update to employees older than 30.

Explanation:

1. Purpose of the Query :

The goal is to increase the Salary of all employees in the Employees table who are older than 30 by 10%.
This demonstrates how to use the UPDATE statement to modify multiple records simultaneously based on a condition.

2. Key Components :

UPDATE Employees : Specifies the table where the update will occur.
SET Salary = Salary * 1.10 : Uses an arithmetic expression to calculate the new salary by increasing it by 10%.
WHERE Age > 30 : Filters the rows to apply the update only to employees whose age is greater than 30.

3. Why use UPDATE with a Condition? :

Updating multiple records based on a condition is useful when you need to apply changes to a subset of rows that meet specific criteria.
For example, if a company decides to give a 10% raise to all employees over the age of 30, this query ensures that only those employees receive the adjustment.

4. Real-World Application :

For example, in a company database, you might use this query to implement a policy where employees over the age of 30 receive a 10% salary increase as part of a retention or recognition program.

Additional Notes:

Updating multiple records in one query is more efficient than updating them individually.
Scenarios where updating multiple records is appropriate, such as:

Implementing company-wide policies (e.g., raises, bonuses).
Correcting errors in a subset of data (e.g., updating outdated information).

Important Considerations :

Ensure that the WHERE clause accurately filters the intended rows to avoid unintended updates.
Test the query on a small dataset or in a development environment before applying it to production data.

For more Practice: Solve these Related Problems:

Write a SQL query to update multiple records in the 'orders' table by setting a column's value using a correlated subquery that aggregates related data.
Write a SQL query to update multiple records using a CASE expression to assign different new values based on various conditions.
Write a SQL query to update multiple records in one table by joining it with another table and using values from the joined table.
Write a SQL query to update multiple records in the 'invoices' table where a numeric column is updated based on an aggregate function computed over groups.
Write a SQL query to update multiple records in the 'deliveries' table by modifying a date column using date arithmetic to add a specified number of days.

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