Monthly Transactions I — LeetCode #1193 (Medium)
Tags: Database
Related patterns: Hash Map, Array
Brute Force approach
Time complexity: O(n²). Space complexity: O(1).
In the brute force approach, we can iterate through the transactions for each month and country, counting the total transactions and their amounts. This is straightforward but inefficient as it requires multiple passes through the data.
The complexity is O(n²) because we are iterating through the transactions for each unique month and country, leading to a nested loop structure.
- Step 1: Create a list of unique months and countries from the Transactions table.
- Step 2: For each unique month and country, iterate through the Transactions table to count the total transactions and their amounts.
- Step 3: Additionally, count the approved transactions and their amounts during the same iteration.
1. For transaction (121, US, approved, 1000, 2018-12-18): month = '2018-12', country = 'US', trans_count = 1, approved_count = 1, trans_total_amount = 1000, approved_total_amount = 1000.
2. For transaction (122, US, declined, 2000, 2018-12-19): month = '2018-12', country = 'US', trans_count = 2, approved_count = 1, trans_total_amount = 3000, approved_total_amount = 1000.
3. For transaction (123, US, approved, 2000, 2019-01-01): month = '2019-01', country = 'US', trans_count = 1, approved_count = 1, trans_total_amount = 2000, approved_total_amount = 2000.
4. For transaction (124, DE, approved, 2000, 2019-01-07): month = '2019-01', country = 'DE', trans_count = 1, approved_count = 1, trans_total_amount = 2000, approved_total_amount = 2000.
Optimal Solution approach
Time complexity: O(n). Space complexity: O(n).
The optimal solution uses SQL's aggregation functions and grouping capabilities to efficiently compute the required values in a single scan of the Transactions table. This avoids the need for nested loops and reduces the overall complexity.
The complexity is O(n) because we only scan the Transactions table once to compute the aggregates, which is efficient.
- Step 1: Use the DATE_FORMAT function to extract the month from trans_date.
- Step 2: Group the results by the formatted month and country.
- Step 3: Use COUNT and SUM functions to calculate the total transactions, approved transactions, and their respective amounts.
1. For transaction (121, US, approved, 1000, 2018-12-18): month = '2018-12', country = 'US', trans_count = 1, approved_count = 1, trans_total_amount = 1000, approved_total_amount = 1000.
2. For transaction (122, US, declined, 2000, 2018-12-19): month = '2018-12', country = 'US', trans_count = 2, approved_count = 1, trans_total_amount = 3000, approved_total_amount = 1000.
3. For transaction (123, US, approved, 2000, 2019-01-01): month = '2019-01', country = 'US', trans_count = 1, approved_count = 1, trans_total_amount = 2000, approved_total_amount = 2000.
4. For transaction (124, DE, approved, 2000, 2019-01-07): month = '2019-01', country = 'DE', trans_count = 1, approved_count = 1, trans_total_amount = 2000, approved_total_amount = 2000.
Key Insights
- Understanding how to use SQL aggregation functions can significantly reduce the complexity of queries.
- Grouping data effectively allows for efficient computation of totals and counts.
Common Mistakes
- Not using the correct aggregation functions, leading to incorrect results.
- Failing to group by all necessary columns, which can result in incorrect data aggregation.
Interview Tips
- Always clarify the requirements and expected output format before writing your query.
- Practice writing SQL queries that involve aggregation and grouping to build confidence.
- Be prepared to explain your thought process and the reasoning behind your SQL choices.