Filter High-Value Transactions in Price Ranges in SQL

Question

Given a `transactions` table, write a SQL query to select all transactions with an `amount` between $500 and $5,000 (inclusive), excluding transactions marked with `payment_method = 'COD'`. Sort results by `amount` descending.

Accepted Answer

Optimal Solution:
SELECT txn_id, customer_id, amount, payment_method
FROM transactions
WHERE amount BETWEEN 500 AND 5000
  AND payment_method != 'COD'
ORDER BY amount DESC;

Technical Explanation:
The `BETWEEN 500 AND 5000` clause provides inclusive numerical bounds. The inequality `payment_method != 'COD'` filters out Cash On Delivery entries.

txn_id	customer_id	amount	payment_method	created_at
T1	201	450	UPI	2026-01-01
T2	202	1200.5	CREDIT	2026-01-02
T3	203	5000	COD	2026-01-03
T4	204	3400	NETBANKING	2026-01-04

txn_id	customer_id	amount	payment_method
T4	204	3400	NETBANKING
T2	202	1200.5	CREDIT