> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://mariadb.com/docs/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://mariadb.com/docs/server/reference/sql-functions/numeric-functions/abs.md).

# ABS

## Syntax

```bnf
ABS(X)
```

## Description

Returns the absolute (non-negative) value of `X`. If `X` is not a number, it is converted to a numeric type.

## Examples

```sql
SELECT ABS(42);
+---------+
| ABS(42) |
+---------+
|      42 |
+---------+

SELECT ABS(-42);
+----------+
| ABS(-42) |
+----------+
|       42 |
+----------+

SELECT ABS(DATE '1994-01-01');
+------------------------+
| ABS(DATE '1994-01-01') |
+------------------------+
|               19940101 |
+------------------------+
```

## See Also

* [SIGN()](/docs/server/reference/sql-functions/numeric-functions/sign.md)

<sub>*This page is licensed: GPLv2, originally from*</sub> [<sub>*fill\_help\_tables.sql*</sub>](https://github.com/MariaDB/server/blob/main/scripts/fill_help_tables.sql)

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