MySQL QUARTER() Function

The QUARTER() function is used to return the quarter of the year for a given date. The result will be an integer value from 1 to 4, depending on the month of the provided date.


Definition and Usage

  • Purpose: Returns the quarter of the year for a given date.
    • 1: January-March
    • 2: April-June
    • 3: July-September
    • 4: October-December

Syntax

QUARTER(date)

Parameters

  1. date: The date or datetime from which the quarter of the year is to be extracted.

Technical Details

  • Works in: MySQL 4.0 and later.
  • Return Type: Integer (1 to 4).

Examples

Example 1: Extract the Quarter for a Specific Date

SELECT QUARTER("2017-06-15");

Result: 2
Explanation: June 15, 2017, falls in the second quarter of the year (April to June).


Example 2: Extract the Quarter for a Date (Datetime Format)

SELECT QUARTER("2017-01-01 09:34:21");

Result: 1
Explanation: January 1, 2017, falls in the first quarter of the year (January to March).


Example 3: Extract the Quarter for the Current System Date

SELECT QUARTER(CURDATE());

Result: Returns the quarter of the current date.


Use Cases

  • Financial Reporting: To break down data into quarters (e.g., Q1, Q2, Q3, Q4).
  • Quarterly Analysis: For analysis based on the quarterly performance or statistics.
  • Period Segmentation: Useful in applications where events, sales, or reports are divided by quarters.

Key Notes

  • The function returns an integer (1-4) representing the quarter of the year.
  • If the date provided is invalid or in the wrong format, the query will return an error.

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