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ABS

The ABS function is used to calculate the absolute value of a number. It takes a single numeric argument and returns the absolute value of that number. The argument can be an integer, decimal, or float value.

Syntax​

ABS(value)
  • value: A numeric expression for which the absolute value is to be calculated.

Examples​

Let's consider a table named SingleItem with the following schema:

CREATE TABLE SingleItem (id INTEGER, int8 INT8, dec DECIMAL);

Insert a row into the SingleItem table:

INSERT INTO SingleItem VALUES (0, -1, -2);

Example 1: Using ABS with integer values​

SELECT ABS(1) AS ABS1, 
       ABS(-1) AS ABS2, 
       ABS(+1) AS ABS3 
FROM SingleItem;

Result:

 ABS1 | ABS2 | ABS3 
------+------+------
    1 |    1 |    1

Example 2: Using ABS with float values​

SELECT ABS(1.0) AS ABS1, 
       ABS(-1.0) AS ABS2, 
       ABS(+1.0) AS ABS3 
FROM SingleItem;

Result:

 ABS1 | ABS2 | ABS3 
------+------+------
  1.0 |  1.0 |  1.0

Example 3: Using ABS with table columns​

SELECT ABS(id) AS ABS1, 
       ABS(int8) AS ABS2, 
       ABS(dec) AS ABS3 
FROM SingleItem;

Result:

 ABS1 | ABS2 | ABS3 
------+------+------
    0 |    1 |    2

Example 4: Using ABS with NULL values​

SELECT ABS(NULL) AS ABS FROM SingleItem;

Result:

  ABS  
-------
 (null)

Errors​

The ABS function requires a numeric value as its argument. Using non-numeric values or more than one argument will result in an error.

Example 5: Using ABS with non-numeric values​

SELECT ABS('string') AS ABS FROM SingleItem;

Error: Function requires a numeric value.

Example 6: Using ABS with multiple arguments​

SELECT ABS('string', 'string2') AS ABS FROM SingleItem;

Error: Function expects 1 argument, but 2 were provided.