What is MySQL INTERVAL() function?

MySQL INTERVAL() function returns the index value of the argument which is greater than the first argument.

Syntax

INTERVAL(N,N1,N2,N3,…)

Here, this function will compare 1st argument i.e. N with the other arguments i.e. N1, N2, N3 and so on. All the arguments are treated as integers. It returns the output as follows −

• If N<N1 then it returns 0
• If N<N2 then it returns 1
• If N<N3 then it returns 2 and so on…

The indexing is started with 2nd number i.e. from N1 and the first position is 0.

Example

mysql> Select INTERVAL(50,20,32,38,40,50,55);
+--------------------------------+
| INTERVAL(50,20,32,38,40,50,55) |
+--------------------------------+
|                              5 |
+--------------------------------+
1 row in set (0.00 sec)

The above result set has 5 as its output because the index value of 55, which is the only greater number than 50, is 5.