---
title: "What are Sparse Columns in SQL?"  
description: "What are Sparse Columns in SQL?"  
author: "Sumit Kesarwani"  
published: 2014-08-21  
updated: 2020-09-20  
canonical: https://www.mindstick.com/interview/1960/what-are-sparse-columns-in-sql  
category: "mssql server"  
tags: ["mssql server"]  
reading_time: 1 minute  

---

# What are Sparse Columns in SQL?

A sparse column is another tool used to reduce the amount of physical storage used in a database. They are the ordinary columns that have an optimized storage for null values. Sparse columns reduce the space requirements for null values at the cost of more overhead to retrieve nonnull values.

## Answers

### Answer by Sumit Kesarwani

A sparse column is another tool used to reduce the amount of physical storage used in a database. They are the ordinary columns that have an optimized storage for null values. Sparse columns reduce the space requirements for null values at the cost of more overhead to retrieve nonnull values.


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Original Source: https://www.mindstick.com/interview/1960/what-are-sparse-columns-in-sql

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