MySQL LIMIT: Syntax, Uses & Examples

In MySQL, the LIMIT clause is used to restrict the number of rows in a query result set. By using the LIMIT clause, you can specify the number of rows to return from the query result, as well as specify the offset of the starting row. This is very helpful when dealing with large datasets and only needing a portion of the results. For example, LIMIT can be used to implement pagination, returning only a certain number of records at a time. The basic syntax for LIMIT is as follows:

SELECT column1, column2, ...
FROM table_name
LIMIT number_of_rows OFFSET offset_value;

In this case, number_of_rows is the number of rows to be returned, and offset_value is the offset of the starting row. If OFFSET is omitted, the default starting row is 0. For example, LIMIT 10 OFFSET 20 means to return 10 rows starting from the 21st row.