Using RANK in SQL

So, you wanna know how to use RANK in SQL, huh? No worries, I got your back!

First off, RANK is a function that helps you assign a unique rank number to rows based on some column values. It’s super useful when you wanna see who’s the best at something, like scores in a game or sales numbers.

Here’s a simple example:

        SELECT player_name, score,
               RANK() OVER (ORDER BY score DESC) AS rank
        FROM game_scores;
    

In this example:

• player_name is the name of the player.
• score is their score in the game.
• RANK() OVER (ORDER BY score DESC) assigns a rank based on their score, with the highest score getting rank 1.

Now, if two players have the same score, they get the same rank, but the next player in line gets a rank that skips a number. For example:

        player_name | score | rank
        -------------|-------|-----
        Alice       | 100   | 1
        Bob         | 100   | 1
        Charlie     | 90    | 3
    

See how Alice and Bob are tied for first, but Charlie is in third because they skipped rank 2? Pretty cool, right?

Just Remember:

• Use RANK when you want to assign ranks based on some criteria.
• It’s great for sorting results in a fun way.
• Don’t forget to ORDER BY, or else it won’t know how to rank!

That’s basically it! Play around with it, and you’ll get the hang of it in no time. Happy coding!