CUME_DIST calculates the proportion of rows whose ordering value is less than or equal to the current row's value.
It helps determine how a value compares with the overall distribution of a dataset.
Determine the cumulative distribution of employee salaries.
SELECT
e.EmployeeName,
d.DepartmentName,
e.Salary,
CUME_DIST() OVER (
ORDER BY e.Salary
) AS SalaryDistribution
FROM Employees e
INNER JOIN Departments d
ON e.DepartmentID = d.DepartmentID;Used in salary benchmarking, customer analytics, statistical reporting, and performance analysis.
- CUME_DIST returns a value between 0 and 1.
- It includes rows tied at the current value.
- ORDER BY defines the distribution.
- Useful for percentile-style analysis.
- It differs from PERCENT_RANK in its treatment of cumulative position.
What does CUME_DIST measure?
It measures the proportion of rows with values less than or equal to the current row's ordered value.
Why use CUME_DIST?
It helps understand where a record falls within the cumulative distribution of a dataset.