SELECT
Beginner
Select All Employees
Write a query to select all columns from the employees table. Return columns: id, first_name, last_name, email, department_id, salary, hire_date, manager_id.
10 XPSolve challenge
Interactive SQL practice
Beginner SQL Challenges
Work through 98 beginner SQL exercises in a structured sequence. Each challenge includes a clear problem, schema context and an interactive query editor.
98 SQL challenges
Open Practice ArenaSELECT
Beginner
Select Employee Names
Write a query to retrieve only the first_name and last_name of all employees. Return columns: first_name, last_name.
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WHERE
Beginner
Filter High Earners
Find employees with a salary greater than 80,000 and show id, first_name, last_name, and salary. Return columns: id, first_name, last_name, salary.
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WHERE
Beginner
Engineering Department Employees
Find all employees in department_id = 1 (Engineering), showing their name and salary. Return columns: first_name, last_name, salary.
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ORDER BY
Beginner
Sort Employees by Salary
List all employees ordered by salary from highest to lowest. Return columns: first_name, last_name, salary. Order results by: salary DESC.
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GROUP BY
Beginner
Count Employees Per Department
Count the number of employees in each department. Return columns: department_id, employee_count. Order results by: department_id.
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Aggregations
Beginner
Average Salary by Department
Calculate the average salary for each department. Return columns: department_id, avg_salary. Order results by: department_id.
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WHERE
Beginner
Find Employees Without Managers
Find all employees who do not have a manager (manager_id is NULL). Return columns: id, first_name, last_name.
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Aggregations
Beginner
Completed Orders Count
Count how many orders have the status 'completed'. Return columns: completed_count.
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ORDER BY
Beginner
Most Expensive Products
List the top 3 most expensive products with their names and prices. Return columns: name, price. Order results by: price DESC.
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WHERE
Beginner
Employees in a Salary Range
List employee names and salaries between 70,000 and 90,000, ordered by salary. Return columns: first_name, last_name, salary. Order results by: salary.
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ORDER BY
Beginner
Alphabetical Employee Directory
Show employee last names, first names, and emails alphabetically by last name. Return columns: last_name, first_name, email. Order results by: last_name, first_name.
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WHERE
Beginner
Products with Limited Stock
Find products with fewer than 200 units in stock, cheapest first. Return columns: name, category, price, stock. Order results by: price.
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GROUP BY
Beginner
Customers per Country
Count customers in each country, sorted by the country name. Return columns: country, customer_count. Order results by: country.
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Aggregations
Beginner
Total Department Budget
Calculate the combined budget of all departments. Return columns: total_budget.
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WHERE
Beginner
Pending Order List
List pending orders with their date and total amount. Return columns: id, order_date, total_amount. Order results by: order_date.
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String Functions
Beginner
Uppercase Product Catalog
Show every product name in uppercase alongside its category. Return columns: product_name, category. Order results by: id.
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Date Functions
Beginner
Customers Joined Since 2021
List customers who joined on or after January 1, 2021. Return columns: name, country, joined_date. Order results by: joined_date.
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WHERE
Beginner
Employees Earning Above 60000
List employee names and salaries above 60000, ordered by salary descending. Return columns: first_name, last_name, salary. Order results by: salary DESC, id.
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WHERE
Beginner
Employees Earning Above 65000
List employee names and salaries above 65000, ordered by salary descending. Return columns: first_name, last_name, salary. Order results by: salary DESC, id.
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WHERE
Beginner
PRO
Employees Earning Above 70000
List employee names and salaries above 70000, ordered by salary descending. Return columns: first_name, last_name, salary. Order results by: salary DESC, id.
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WHERE
Beginner
PRO
Employees Earning Above 75000
List employee names and salaries above 75000, ordered by salary descending. Return columns: first_name, last_name, salary. Order results by: salary DESC, id.
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WHERE
Beginner
PRO
Employees Earning Above 80000
List employee names and salaries above 80000, ordered by salary descending. Return columns: first_name, last_name, salary. Order results by: salary DESC, id.
10 XPSolve challenge
WHERE
Beginner
PRO
Employees Earning Above 85000
List employee names and salaries above 85000, ordered by salary descending. Return columns: first_name, last_name, salary. Order results by: salary DESC, id.
10 XPSolve challenge
WHERE
Beginner
PRO
Employees Earning Above 90000
List employee names and salaries above 90000, ordered by salary descending. Return columns: first_name, last_name, salary. Order results by: salary DESC, id.
10 XPSolve challenge
WHERE
Beginner
PRO
Employees Earning Above 100000
List employee names and salaries above 100000, ordered by salary descending. Return columns: first_name, last_name, salary. Order results by: salary DESC, id.
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WHERE
Beginner
Employees Earning Below 60000
Return employee names and salaries below 60000, lowest salary first. Return columns: first_name, last_name, salary. Order results by: salary, id.
10 XPSolve challenge
WHERE
Beginner
Employees Earning Below 65000
Return employee names and salaries below 65000, lowest salary first. Return columns: first_name, last_name, salary. Order results by: salary, id.
10 XPSolve challenge
WHERE
Beginner
PRO
Employees Earning Below 70000
Return employee names and salaries below 70000, lowest salary first. Return columns: first_name, last_name, salary. Order results by: salary, id.
10 XPSolve challenge
WHERE
Beginner
PRO
Employees Earning Below 75000
Return employee names and salaries below 75000, lowest salary first. Return columns: first_name, last_name, salary. Order results by: salary, id.
10 XPSolve challenge
WHERE
Beginner
PRO
Employees Earning Below 80000
Return employee names and salaries below 80000, lowest salary first. Return columns: first_name, last_name, salary. Order results by: salary, id.
10 XPSolve challenge
WHERE
Beginner
PRO
Employees Earning Below 85000
Return employee names and salaries below 85000, lowest salary first. Return columns: first_name, last_name, salary. Order results by: salary, id.
10 XPSolve challenge
WHERE
Beginner
PRO
Employees Earning Below 90000
Return employee names and salaries below 90000, lowest salary first. Return columns: first_name, last_name, salary. Order results by: salary, id.
10 XPSolve challenge
WHERE
Beginner
PRO
Employees Earning Below 100000
Return employee names and salaries below 100000, lowest salary first. Return columns: first_name, last_name, salary. Order results by: salary, id.
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WHERE
Beginner
Employees in Salary Band 55000–65000
Find employees whose salary is between 55000 and 65000, inclusive. Return columns: first_name, last_name, salary. Order results by: salary, id.
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WHERE
Beginner
Employees in Salary Band 60000–70000
Find employees whose salary is between 60000 and 70000, inclusive. Return columns: first_name, last_name, salary. Order results by: salary, id.
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WHERE
Beginner
PRO
Employees in Salary Band 65000–75000
Find employees whose salary is between 65000 and 75000, inclusive. Return columns: first_name, last_name, salary. Order results by: salary, id.
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WHERE
Beginner
PRO
Employees in Salary Band 70000–85000
Find employees whose salary is between 70000 and 85000, inclusive. Return columns: first_name, last_name, salary. Order results by: salary, id.
10 XPSolve challenge
WHERE
Beginner
PRO
Employees in Salary Band 75000–90000
Find employees whose salary is between 75000 and 90000, inclusive. Return columns: first_name, last_name, salary. Order results by: salary, id.
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WHERE
Beginner
PRO
Employees in Salary Band 80000–95000
Find employees whose salary is between 80000 and 95000, inclusive. Return columns: first_name, last_name, salary. Order results by: salary, id.
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WHERE
Beginner
PRO
Employees in Salary Band 85000–105000
Find employees whose salary is between 85000 and 105000, inclusive. Return columns: first_name, last_name, salary. Order results by: salary, id.
10 XPSolve challenge
WHERE
Beginner
PRO
Employees in Salary Band 90000–110000
Find employees whose salary is between 90000 and 110000, inclusive. Return columns: first_name, last_name, salary. Order results by: salary, id.
10 XPSolve challenge
Date Functions
Beginner
Employees Hired After 2018-01-01
List employees hired on or after 2018-01-01, earliest first. Return columns: first_name, last_name, hire_date. Order results by: hire_date, id.
10 XPSolve challenge
Date Functions
Beginner
Employees Hired After 2019-01-01
List employees hired on or after 2019-01-01, earliest first. Return columns: first_name, last_name, hire_date. Order results by: hire_date, id.
10 XPSolve challenge
Date Functions
Beginner
PRO
Employees Hired After 2020-01-01
List employees hired on or after 2020-01-01, earliest first. Return columns: first_name, last_name, hire_date. Order results by: hire_date, id.
10 XPSolve challenge
Date Functions
Beginner
PRO
Employees Hired After 2020-07-01
List employees hired on or after 2020-07-01, earliest first. Return columns: first_name, last_name, hire_date. Order results by: hire_date, id.
10 XPSolve challenge
Date Functions
Beginner
PRO
Employees Hired After 2021-01-01
List employees hired on or after 2021-01-01, earliest first. Return columns: first_name, last_name, hire_date. Order results by: hire_date, id.
10 XPSolve challenge
Date Functions
Beginner
PRO
Employees Hired After 2021-07-01
List employees hired on or after 2021-07-01, earliest first. Return columns: first_name, last_name, hire_date. Order results by: hire_date, id.
10 XPSolve challenge
Date Functions
Beginner
PRO
Employees Hired After 2022-01-01
List employees hired on or after 2022-01-01, earliest first. Return columns: first_name, last_name, hire_date. Order results by: hire_date, id.
10 XPSolve challenge
Date Functions
Beginner
PRO
Employees Hired After 2022-02-01
List employees hired on or after 2022-02-01, earliest first. Return columns: first_name, last_name, hire_date. Order results by: hire_date, id.
10 XPSolve challenge
Date Functions
Beginner
Employees Hired Before 2018-01-01
List employees hired before 2018-01-01, newest qualifying hire first. Return columns: first_name, last_name, hire_date. Order results by: hire_date DESC, id.
10 XPSolve challenge
Date Functions
Beginner
Employees Hired Before 2019-01-01
List employees hired before 2019-01-01, newest qualifying hire first. Return columns: first_name, last_name, hire_date. Order results by: hire_date DESC, id.
10 XPSolve challenge
Date Functions
Beginner
PRO
Employees Hired Before 2020-01-01
List employees hired before 2020-01-01, newest qualifying hire first. Return columns: first_name, last_name, hire_date. Order results by: hire_date DESC, id.
10 XPSolve challenge
Date Functions
Beginner
PRO
Employees Hired Before 2020-07-01
List employees hired before 2020-07-01, newest qualifying hire first. Return columns: first_name, last_name, hire_date. Order results by: hire_date DESC, id.
10 XPSolve challenge
Date Functions
Beginner
PRO
Employees Hired Before 2021-01-01
List employees hired before 2021-01-01, newest qualifying hire first. Return columns: first_name, last_name, hire_date. Order results by: hire_date DESC, id.
10 XPSolve challenge
Date Functions
Beginner
PRO
Employees Hired Before 2021-07-01
List employees hired before 2021-07-01, newest qualifying hire first. Return columns: first_name, last_name, hire_date. Order results by: hire_date DESC, id.
10 XPSolve challenge
Date Functions
Beginner
PRO
Employees Hired Before 2022-01-01
List employees hired before 2022-01-01, newest qualifying hire first. Return columns: first_name, last_name, hire_date. Order results by: hire_date DESC, id.
10 XPSolve challenge
Date Functions
Beginner
PRO
Employees Hired Before 2022-02-01
List employees hired before 2022-02-01, newest qualifying hire first. Return columns: first_name, last_name, hire_date. Order results by: hire_date DESC, id.
10 XPSolve challenge
WHERE
Beginner
Orders Above 250
List orders whose total is greater than 250. Return columns: id, customer_id, total_amount, status. Order results by: total_amount DESC, id.
10 XPSolve challenge
WHERE
Beginner
Orders Above 500
List orders whose total is greater than 500. Return columns: id, customer_id, total_amount, status. Order results by: total_amount DESC, id.
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What to expect from beginner SQL exercises
Beginner SQL challenges build reliable foundations with SELECT, filtering, sorting, NULL handling and simple aggregation.
- Read table schemas and choose the requested columns
- Translate plain-language conditions into WHERE clauses
- Check ordering, NULL values and exact output shape