COUNT

• COUNT function returns the number of input rows that match a specific condition of a query
• can apply COUNT on a specific column or just pass COUNT(*)
• must have parenthesis because this is a function
• COUNT is much more useful when combined with other commands such as DISTINCT
• COUNT is returning the number of rows, so whether its the whole table or a column the rows should be the same

Examples:

SELECT COUNT(DISTINCT (name)) FROM table;

SELECT COUNT(*) FROM payment;

you can put in a column name example below

SELECT COUNT(amount) FROM payment;

• if this helps you remember what you are doing or why you wrote it in this format – either way should give you the same result.