𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄𝗲𝗿:
You have 2 minutes to solve this SQL query.
Find the month with the highest total sales.

Assume the table structure: sales(sale_id, sale_date, amount)

𝗠𝗲: Challenge accepted! 💪
SELECT
EXTRACT(YEAR FROM sale_date) AS year,
EXTRACT(MONTH FROM sale_date) AS month,
SUM(amount) AS total_sales
FROM sales
GROUP BY
EXTRACT(YEAR FROM sale_date),
EXTRACT(MONTH FROM sale_date)
ORDER BY total_sales DESC
LIMIT 1;

💡 Explanation:
This query groups sales by year and month, calculates the total sales for each month, and returns the month with the highest sales.

Key parts:
• EXTRACT YEAR FROM sale_date gets the year.
• EXTRACT MONTH FROM sale_date gets the month.
• SUM amount calculates total monthly sales.
• ORDER BY total_sales DESC sorts from highest to lowest.
• LIMIT 1 returns the top-performing month.

This question tests your understanding of:
Date Functions, Aggregate Functions SUM, GROUP BY, ORDER BY

🎯 Expected Output Example
Year: 2026, Month: 5, Total Sales: 245,000

🚀 Alternative Handles Ties
SELECT
year,
month,
total_sales
FROM (
SELECT
EXTRACT(YEAR FROM sale_date) AS year,
EXTRACT(MONTH FROM sale_date) AS month,
SUM(amount) AS total_sales,
DENSE_RANK() OVER (
ORDER BY SUM(amount) DESC
) AS rnk
FROM sales
GROUP BY
EXTRACT(YEAR FROM sale_date),
EXTRACT(MONTH FROM sale_date)
) ranked
WHERE rnk = 1;

This version returns all months tied for the highest total sales.

🚀 Date-based aggregation questions are among the most common in SQL interviews. Practice grouping data by Day, Week, Month, Quarter, Year. You'll encounter these patterns frequently in analytics and reporting roles.

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