Main Concept

Alright, let’s break down the main concept of the DECIMAL datatype in a super simple way!

Imagine you’re dealing with money. You want to be exact because every cent matters. Now, think of the DECIMAL datatype as a special money box. This money box has two parts:

• Total Digits Box: This part is for all the digits your money can have, like dollars and cents combined.

• After-the-Dot Box: This part is for how many cents you want to keep after the dot.

Example: Suppose we have a DECIMAL(5, 2) money box:

We can have a total of 5 digits (dollars and cents combined).

Out of those, 2 can be cents after the dot.

Let’s say we put $123.45 in this money box. It fits perfectly because we have 3 digits for dollars (123) and 2 for cents (.45).

But if you try to put $1234.567, it won’t fit! Why? Because you only have 5 digits in total, and you can only keep 2 digits after the dot. So, you might need a bigger money box, like DECIMAL(7, 2).

In simple terms, the DECIMAL datatype helps you keep your numbers exact, especially when you’re counting every penny. It’s like having a special money box that won’t let you lose anything!

Syntax:

It is declared using the “DECIMAL” Keyword only. Here is how it is declared.

DECIMAL(P, S)

• P: P stands for Precision which means Total number of digits.
• S: S stands for Scale which means the Number of digits to the right of the decimal point.

In SQL Server, when you need numbers to be super precise, like in financial calculations, you use the DECIMAL data type. It’s like a special box for storing exact numbers and no rounding off!

In simpler terms, decimal is SQL Server’s way of saying, “I don’t mess around with numbers.” It’s the go-to choice when you need to count every penny in your financial database or measure the exact ingredients for your best recipe.