PERCENTILE

Applies to: ✅ Data 360 SQL ✅ Tableau Hyper API

Computes a continuous percentile, interpolating between adjacent input values if needed.

Syntax

percentile_cont(<fraction>) WITHIN GROUP (ORDER BY <sort_expression>)

Arguments

Required

<fraction>: A double precision value between 0 and 1 specifying the percentile to compute.
<sort_expression>: An expression of double precision or interval type.

Returns

Returns the same type as the sort expression. Returns NULL if the fraction is NULL.

Considerations

This is an ordered-set aggregate function.
NULL values in the sorted input are ignored.
Interpolates between adjacent values when the exact percentile falls between two data points.
Use PERCENTILE_DISC for discrete percentiles without interpolation.

Examples

Calculate Median

Find the median (50th percentile).

SELECT percentile_cont(0.5) WITHIN GROUP (ORDER BY salary) AS median_salary
FROM employees;

Calculate Quartiles

Find the 25th and 75th percentiles.

SELECT
    percentile_cont(0.25) WITHIN GROUP (ORDER BY score) AS q1,
    percentile_cont(0.5) WITHIN GROUP (ORDER BY score) AS median,
    percentile_cont(0.75) WITHIN GROUP (ORDER BY score) AS q3
FROM test_results;

Percentile by Group

Calculate percentiles for each group.

SELECT department,
    percentile_cont(0.5) WITHIN GROUP (ORDER BY salary) AS median_salary
FROM employees
GROUP BY department;

PERCENTILE_CONT