Quick reference for common SQL patterns, CTEs, window functions, and indexing strategies. Triggers on: sql patterns, cte example, window functions, sql join, index strategy, pagination sql.
name: sql-patterns
description: "Quick reference for common SQL patterns, CTEs, window functions, and indexing strategies. Triggers on: sql patterns, cte example, window functions, sql join, index strategy, pagination sql."
allowed-tools: "Read Write"
SQL Patterns
Quick reference for common SQL patterns.
CTE (Common Table Expressions)
WITH active_users AS (
SELECT id, name, email
FROM users
WHERE status = 'active'
)
SELECT * FROM active_users WHERE created_at > '2024-01-01';
Chained CTEs
WITH
active_users AS (
SELECT id, name FROM users WHERE status = 'active'
),
user_orders AS (
SELECT user_id, COUNT(*) as order_count
FROM orders GROUP BY user_id
)
SELECT u.name, COALESCE(o.order_count, 0) as orders
FROM active_users u
LEFT JOIN user_orders o ON u.id = o.user_id;
Window Functions (Quick Reference)
Function
Use
ROW_NUMBER()
Unique sequential numbering
RANK()
Rank with gaps (1, 2, 2, 4)
DENSE_RANK()
Rank without gaps (1, 2, 2, 3)
LAG(col, n)
Previous row value
LEAD(col, n)
Next row value
SUM() OVER
Running total
AVG() OVER
Moving average
SELECT
date,
revenue,
LAG(revenue, 1) OVER (ORDER BY date) as prev_day,
SUM(revenue) OVER (ORDER BY date) as running_total
FROM daily_sales;
JOIN Reference
Type
Returns
INNER JOIN
Only matching rows
LEFT JOIN
All left + matching right
RIGHT JOIN
All right + matching left
FULL JOIN
All rows, NULL where no match
Pagination
-- OFFSET/LIMIT (simple, slow for large offsets)
SELECT * FROM products ORDER BY id LIMIT 20 OFFSET 40;
-- Keyset (fast, scalable)
SELECT * FROM products WHERE id > 42 ORDER BY id LIMIT 20;
Index Quick Reference
Index Type
Best For
B-tree
Range queries, ORDER BY
Hash
Exact equality only
GIN
Arrays, JSONB, full-text
Covering
Avoid table lookup
Anti-Patterns
Mistake
Fix
SELECT *
List columns explicitly
WHERE YEAR(date) = 2024
WHERE date >= '2024-01-01'
NOT IN with NULLs
Use NOT EXISTS
N+1 queries
Use JOIN or batch
Additional Resources
For detailed patterns, load:
./references/window-functions.md - Complete window function patterns
./references/indexing-strategies.md - Index types, covering indexes, optimization