SELECT FIRST in SQL

Note:
There is no standard SQL SELECT FIRST clause. However, some databases have similar ways to get the "first" row or the top N rows.

How to get the "first" row in different SQL databases:

1. Using LIMIT (MySQL, PostgreSQL, SQLite)

SELECT * FROM table_nameORDER BY some_columnLIMIT 1;

2. Using TOP (SQL Server)

SELECT TOP 1 * FROM table_nameORDER BY some_column;

3. Using FETCH FIRST (Standard SQL, Oracle 12c+)

SELECT * FROM table_nameORDER BY some_columnFETCH FIRST 1 ROW ONLY;

Example: Get first employee by hire date

-- MySQL/PostgreSQLSELECT * FROM employeesORDER BY hire_dateLIMIT 1;

If you want to retrieve the "first" row according to some ordering, use one of these approaches depending on your database.

Want examples for your specific database?