# ELT

## Syntax

```sql
ELT(N, str1[, str2, str3,...])
```

## Description

Takes a numeric argument and a series of string arguments. Returns the string that corresponds to the given numeric position. For instance, it returns `str1` if `N` is 1, `str2` if `N` is 2, and so on. If the numeric argument is a [FLOAT](https://mariadb.com/docs/server/reference/data-types/numeric-data-types/float), MariaDB rounds it to the nearest [INTEGER](https://mariadb.com/docs/server/reference/data-types/numeric-data-types/integer). If the numeric argument is less than 1, greater than the total number of arguments, or not a number, `ELT()` returns `NULL`. It must have at least two arguments.

It is complementary to the [FIELD()](https://mariadb.com/docs/server/reference/sql-functions/string-functions/field) function.

## Examples

```sql
SELECT ELT(1, 'ej', 'Heja', 'hej', 'foo');
+------------------------------------+
| ELT(1, 'ej', 'Heja', 'hej', 'foo') |
+------------------------------------+
| ej                                 |
+------------------------------------+

SELECT ELT(4, 'ej', 'Heja', 'hej', 'foo');
+------------------------------------+
| ELT(4, 'ej', 'Heja', 'hej', 'foo') |
+------------------------------------+
| foo                                |
+------------------------------------+
```

## See also

* [FIND\_IN\_SET()](https://mariadb.com/docs/server/reference/sql-functions/string-functions/find_in_set) function. Returns the position of a string in a set of strings.
* [FIELD()](https://mariadb.com/docs/server/reference/sql-functions/string-functions/field) function. Returns the index position of a string in a list.

<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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