MySQL STDDEV_SAMP() function

STDDEV_SAMP() function

MySQL STDDEV_SAMP() function returns the sample standard deviation of an expression ( the square root of VAR_SAMP()). Statistically, sample standard deviation quantifies the amount of variation or dispersion in a dataset for which you have a sample of the whole population.

It returns NULL if no matching rows are found.

This function is useful in -

• It's used when you have a sample of data and want to estimate the variability in the entire population.
• Data Analysis: The primary purpose of the STDDEV_SAMP() function is to accurately calculate the sample standard deviation.
• When comparing different samples or groups, STDDEV_SAMP() is used to assess the significance of differences between the groups.
• Sample standard deviation is used to calculate confidence intervals for population parameters based on sample data.
• STDDEV_SAMP() is used to explore the variation and distribution of data in sample datasets, helping in initial data analysis.
• Sample standard deviation is used in hypothesis testing to test the validity of assumptions and draw conclusions about population characteristics.

Syntax:

STDDEV_SAMP(expr);

Where expr is an expression.

MySQL Version: 8.0

Example: MySQL STDDEV_SAMP() function

The following statement returns the sample standard deviation of 'total_cost' from purchase table.

Sample table: purchase

Code:

SELECT STDDEV_SAMP(total_cost)
FROM purchase;

Output:

mysql> SELECT STDDEV_SAMP(total_cost)
    -> FROM purchase;
+-------------------------+
| STDDEV_SAMP(total_cost) |
+-------------------------+
|              345.494814 | 
+-------------------------+
1 row in set (0.00 sec)

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