ClickHouse/docs/en/sql-reference/aggregate-functions/reference/varsamp.md
2024-03-14 15:04:19 +01:00

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---
title: "varSamp"
slug: /en/sql-reference/aggregate-functions/reference/varsamp
sidebar_position: 33
---
This page contains information on the `varSamp` and `varSampStable` ClickHouse functions.
## varSamp
Calculate the sample variance of a data set.
**Syntax**
```sql
varSamp(expr)
```
**Parameters**
- `expr`: An expression representing the data set for which you want to calculate the sample variance. [Expression](../../syntax#syntax-expressions)
**Returned value**
Returns a Float64 value representing the sample variance of the input data set.
**Implementation details**
The `varSamp()` function calculates the sample variance using the following formula:
```plaintext
∑(x - mean(x))^2 / (n - 1)
```
Where:
- `x` is each individual data point in the data set.
- `mean(x)` is the arithmetic mean of the data set.
- `n` is the number of data points in the data set.
The function assumes that the input data set represents a sample from a larger population. If you want to calculate the variance of the entire population (when you have the complete data set), you should use the [`varPop()` function](./varpop#varpop) instead.
This function uses a numerically unstable algorithm. If you need numerical stability in calculations, use the slower but more stable [`varSampStable` function](#varSampStable).
**Example**
Query:
```sql
CREATE TABLE example_table
(
id UInt64,
value Float64
)
ENGINE = MergeTree
ORDER BY id;
INSERT INTO example_table VALUES (1, 10.5), (2, 12.3), (3, 9.8), (4, 11.2), (5, 10.7);
SELECT varSamp(value) FROM example_table;
```
Response:
```response
0.8650000000000091
```
## varSampStable
Calculate the sample variance of a data set using a numerically stable algorithm.
**Syntax**
```sql
varSampStable(expr)
```
**Parameters**
- `expr`: An expression representing the data set for which you want to calculate the sample variance. [Expression](../../syntax#syntax-expressions)
**Returned value**
The `varSampStable()` function returns a Float64 value representing the sample variance of the input data set.
**Implementation details**
The `varSampStable()` function calculates the sample variance using the same formula as the [`varSamp()`](#varSamp function):
```plaintext
∑(x - mean(x))^2 / (n - 1)
```
Where:
- `x` is each individual data point in the data set.
- `mean(x)` is the arithmetic mean of the data set.
- `n` is the number of data points in the data set.
The difference between `varSampStable()` and `varSamp()` is that `varSampStable()` is designed to provide a more deterministic and stable result when dealing with floating-point arithmetic. It uses an algorithm that minimizes the accumulation of rounding errors, which can be particularly important when dealing with large data sets or data with a wide range of values.
Like `varSamp()`, the `varSampStable()` function assumes that the input data set represents a sample from a larger population. If you want to calculate the variance of the entire population (when you have the complete data set), you should use the [`varPopStable()` function](./varpop#varpopstable) instead.
**Example**
Query:
```sql
CREATE TABLE example_table
(
id UInt64,
value Float64
)
ENGINE = MergeTree
ORDER BY id;
INSERT INTO example_table VALUES (1, 10.5), (2, 12.3), (3, 9.8), (4, 11.2), (5, 10.7);
SELECT varSampStable(value) FROM example_table;
```
Response:
```response
0.865
```
This query calculates the sample variance of the `value` column in the `example_table` using the `varSampStable()` function. The result shows that the sample variance of the values `[10.5, 12.3, 9.8, 11.2, 10.7]` is approximately 0.865, which may differ slightly from the result of `varSamp()` due to the more precise handling of floating-point arithmetic.