Oracle® Database SQL Reference 10g Release 2 (10.2) Part Number B14200-01 |
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Syntax
Purpose
NVL
lets you replace null (returned as a blank) with a string in the results of a query. If expr1
is null, then NVL
returns expr2
. If expr1
is not null, then NVL
returns expr1
.
The arguments expr1
and expr2
can have any datatype. If their datatypes are different, then Oracle Database implicitly converts one to the other. If they are cannot be converted implicitly, the database returns an error. The implicit conversion is implemented as follows:
If expr1
is character data, then Oracle Database converts expr2
to the datatype of expr1
before comparing them and returns VARCHAR2
in the character set of expr1
.
If expr1
is numeric, then Oracle determines which argument has the highest numeric precedence, implicitly converts the other argument to that datatype, and returns that datatype.
See Also: Table 2-10, "Implicit Type Conversion Matrix" for more information on implicit conversion and "Numeric Precedence" for information on numeric precedence |
Examples
The following example returns a list of employee names and commissions, substituting "Not Applicable" if the employee receives no commission:
SELECT last_name, NVL(TO_CHAR(commission_pct), 'Not Applicable') "COMMISSION" FROM employees WHERE last_name LIKE 'B%' ORDER BY last_name; LAST_NAME COMMISSION ------------------------- ---------------------------------------- Baer Not Applicable Baida Not Applicable Banda .1 Bates .15 Bell Not Applicable Bernstein .25 Bissot Not Applicable Bloom .2 Bull Not Applicable