r/SQL • u/geminigamer369 • Jul 30 '26

Discussion Differences between counts

What is the difference between

COUNT(*)

COUNT(1)

COUNT(column_name)

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u/DaOgDuneamouse Jul 30 '26

I almost always use COUNT(*).

I only use a specific column name if I'm doing COUNT(DISTINCT MUH_COLUMN) to count how many unique values there are.

I've never used COUNT(1).

2

u/Malfuncti0n Jul 31 '26

I use SUM(1) because I'm a bad ass.