Features
ORDER BY DESC sorts query results from highest to lowest, letting analysts surface top-ranked rows quickly.
ORDER BY ... DESC sorts numeric, date, or text columns in reverse order so the highest, latest, or alphabetically last values appear first.
ORDER BY DESC tells the database engine to arrange returned rows in descending order for the specified column. Numbers go from largest to smallest, dates from newest to oldest, and strings from Z to A. Adding DESC after each column name overrides the default ascending sort.
List each column with DESC in the ORDER BY clause: ORDER BY status DESC, created_at DESC. The engine sorts by the first column, then breaks ties with the second, ensuring deterministic ranking when values repeat.
Yes. Specify direction per column: ORDER BY is_active DESC, signup_date ASC. Active rows appear first, but within each active state results go from oldest to newest signup.
ANSI SQL treats NULL as unknown and places them last in DESC sorts for most engines. Use ORDER BY column DESC NULLS FIRST to override when the platform supports NULLS FIRST | LAST syntax (e.g., Postgres, Oracle).
Sorting needs memory and may trigger disk spills on large result sets. An index that matches the ORDER BY sequence (including DESC) prevents full-table sorts. Add a composite index or use LIMIT to reduce workload.
Index columns used for frequent DESC sorts, qualify each column with its table alias, avoid SELECT *, and combine ORDER BY with LIMIT for paginated APIs.
The query SELECT order_id, total FROM sales.orders ORDER BY total DESC LIMIT 10 returns the highest-value orders, perfect for a leaderboard or executive dashboard.
Galaxy’s AI copilot autocompletes ORDER BY clauses, suggests DESC when you type "top" or "latest," and highlights which indexes support the sort. One-click query sharing lets teams endorse the correct DESC ordering without pasting SQL into Slack.
<p>Descending sorts surface top performers, recent events, and critical anomalies instantly. They power leaderboards, financial roll-ups, and monitoring dashboards where the biggest values matter first.</p><p>Efficient DESC queries reduce manual data wrangling, enabling real-time alerts and faster decision-making for engineering and analytics teams.</p>
Yes. Alphabetical order reverses, so "Zebra" appears before "Apple." Collation settings may influence exact results.
Add DESC after the date column: ORDER BY event_date DESC. Indexing event_date accelerates the sort.
The DESC keyword is not case-sensitive. Column value ordering follows database collation case rules.
Galaxy’s AI copilot autocompletes ORDER BY clauses, flags missing indexes, and shows sample output so you verify DESC ordering instantly.
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