SQL for Beginners: Learning the Basics with Simple Commands

Structured Query Language (SQL) is one of the most important tools for working with data. If you’re just starting out, don’t worry — SQL is much easier than it looks. By learning a few core commands, you can already ask powerful questions from your data.

Let’s break down the essentials using a simple framework.

1. SELECT – What do you want to see?

The SELECT statement tells SQL which columns you want from a table.

SELECT OrderID, CustomerName

This means: Show me the OrderID and CustomerName columns.

2. FROM – Where is the data coming from?

The FROM clause tells SQL which table to look in.

SELECT OrderID, CustomerName
FROM Orders

Now SQL knows to find those columns inside the Orders table.

3. WHERE – Pick rows conditionally

Use WHERE to filter your results.

SELECT OrderID, CustomerName
FROM Orders
WHERE Country = 'USA'

This means: Show me only orders where the customer is from the USA.

4. GROUP BY – Summarise your data

When you want totals, averages, or counts, you need to group data.

SELECT Country, SUM(Sales) AS TotalSales
FROM Orders
GROUP BY Country

Here, SQL groups the rows by Country and sums the sales in each.

5. HAVING – Filter after grouping

HAVING is like WHERE, but it works with grouped data.

SELECT Country, SUM(Sales) AS TotalSales
FROM Orders
GROUP BY Country
HAVING SUM(Sales) > 1000

This shows only countries with sales greater than 1000.

6. ORDER BY – Sort your results

Finally, use ORDER BY to control the order of rows.

SELECT Country, SUM(Sales) AS TotalSales
FROM Orders
GROUP BY Country
ORDER BY TotalSales DESC

This sorts the results so the countries with the highest sales appear first.

Putting It All Together

SQL commands often follow this order:

S → F → W → G → H → O
SELECT → FROM → WHERE → GROUP BY → HAVING → ORDER BY

👉 To make it stick, just remember this phrase:

“Silly Frogs Wear Green Hats Often.”

• S = SELECT (what you want)
• F = FROM (where it’s stored)
• W = WHERE (filter rows)
• G = GROUP BY (summarise data)
• H = HAVING (filter groups)
• O = ORDER BY (sort results)