> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://gyansetu-sql.gitbook.io/sql-programming/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://gyansetu-sql.gitbook.io/sql-programming/sql-select/sql-top-limit-or-rownum-clause.md).

# SQL TOP CLAUSE

### The SQL SELECT TOP Clause

The SELECT TOP clause is used to specify the number of records to return.

The SELECT TOP clause is useful on large tables with thousands of records. Returning a large number of records can impact on performance.

>  **Note:** Not all database systems support the SELECT TOP clause. MySQL supports the LIMIT clause to select a limited number of records, while Oracle uses ROWNUM.

 **Syntax:**

```sql
SELECT TOP number|percent column_name(s)
FROM table_name
WHERE condition
```

### SQL TOP PERCENT Example

>  The following SQL statement selects the first 50% of the records from the "Customers" table:

#### Example

```sql
SELECT TOP 50 PERCENT * FROM Customers;
```

### ADD a WHERE CLAUSE

 The following SQL statement selects the first three records from the "Customers" table, where the country is "Germany":

```sql
SELECT TOP 3 * FROM Customers
WHERE Country='Germany';
```