SQL JOIN Interview Questions
SQL JOIN questions test whether you can combine data across tables while preserving the right grain and relationships. Expect INNER, LEFT, RIGHT, CROSS, and FULL OUTER JOINs, plus multi-table joins and JOIN + aggregation patterns.
Common SQL JOIN interview patterns
- INNER vs LEFT JOIN logic
- Anti-joins (find missing records)
- Self-joins for comparisons within a table
- JOIN + GROUP BY for aggregated results
- Conditional joins with additional predicates
- Multi-key joins across composite keys
- Deduplication using JOINs
SQL JOIN interview questions
Determine Product Buyer Count and Interaction Percentage
Count Customers Buying Both 'Kindle' and 'Alexa'
Illustrate SQL Join Results with Duplicate Keys
Identify Employees with Invalid Department References
Calculate Regional Revenue and Identify Top Customers
Write SQL and Python for transaction analytics
Calculate January-2024 SF Promotion Impact Using SQL Queries
Implement left join on Python lists, no packages
Solve three SQL problems (easy/medium/hard)
Merge CSVs and build revenue pivot with pandas
Compute paid subscriber YoY counts by month
Write one SQL for exam scores aggregation
Compute First Order Proportions by Day and Category
Analyze NYC taxi trips efficiently over last 7 days
Write SQL: sum values ≤ each row’s value
Merge four CSVs locally, robustly and efficiently
Analyze Seller Compliance and Customer Purchase Patterns
Solve window-function SQL without joins
Write SQL to rank advertisers and profitability
Common mistakes with SQL JOINs
- JOIN explosion from many-to-many relationships
- Filtering in WHERE instead of ON for LEFT JOINs
- Incorrect NULL handling on optional joins
- COUNT(*) vs COUNT(column) confusion
- Duplicate rows after joins
How JOIN questions are evaluated in interviews
Correctness beats performance; the right result set matters most.
Explain your join keys, assumptions, and how NULLs are treated.
Reasoning and clarity matter more than memorized syntax.
Related SQL concepts
SQL JOIN Interview FAQs
What is the difference between INNER JOIN and LEFT JOIN in interviews?
INNER JOIN returns only matching rows from both tables, while LEFT JOIN keeps all rows from the left table and fills unmatched right rows with NULLs. Interviewers often test whether you choose the correct join for required vs optional relationships.
When should I use a subquery instead of a JOIN?
Use a subquery when you need to filter or aggregate before joining, or when a correlated condition is clearer. JOINs are better for combining row-level data, while subqueries can simplify multi-step logic.