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Explain row_number, rank, and dense_rank with examples.

SQLmedium0.3 min readPremium
Frequency
Low
Asked at 1 company
Category
487
questions in SQL
Difficulty Split
130E|271M|86H
in this category
Total Bank
1,863
across 7 categories
Asked at these companies
Fractal
Key Concepts Tested
partition
Expert AnswerPremium
58 wordsInterview-ready
**Architectural Logic**: Differ in tie handling—affects ranking semantics. **row_number**: Unique sequential (1,2,3,4); arbitrary tie-break. **rank**: Sequential with gaps for ties (1,2,2,4). **dense_rank**: Sequential without gaps (1,2,2,3). **Example**: Scores 100,90,90,80. row_number: 1,2,3,4. rank: 1,2,2,4. dense_rank: 1,2,2,3. **Use**: row_number for pagination/dedup; rank/dense_rank for leaderboards. **Best Practice**: Always ORDER BY in OVER; PARTITION BY for groups....
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