STATS_DATE (Transact-SQL)
Applies to:
SQL Server
Azure SQL Database
Azure SQL Managed Instance
Azure Synapse Analytics
Analytics Platform System (PDW)
SQL analytics endpoint in Microsoft Fabric
Warehouse in Microsoft Fabric
Returns the date of the most recent update for statistics on a table or indexed view.
For more information about updating statistics, see Statistics.
Transact-SQL syntax conventions
Syntax
STATS_DATE ( object_id , stats_id )
Note
To view Transact-SQL syntax for SQL Server 2014 (12.x) and earlier versions, see Previous versions documentation.
Arguments
object_id
ID of the table or indexed view with the statistics.
stats_id
ID of the statistics object.
Return Types
Returns datetime on success. Returns NULL if a statistics blob was not created.
Remarks
System functions can be used in the select list, in the WHERE clause, and anywhere an expression can be used.
Statistics update date is stored in the statistics blob object together with the histogram and density vector, not in the metadata. When no data is read to generate statistics data, the statistics blob is not created, and the date is not available. This is the case for filtered statistics for which the predicate does not return any rows, or for new empty tables.
If statistics correspond to an index, the stats_id value in the sys.stats catalog view is the same as the index_id value in the sys.indexes catalog view.
Permissions
Requires membership in the db_owner fixed database role or permission to view the metadata for the table or indexed view.
Examples
A. Return the dates of the most recent statistics for a table
The following example returns the date of the most recent update for each statistics object on the Person.Address
table.
USE AdventureWorks2022;
GO
SELECT name AS stats_name,
STATS_DATE(object_id, stats_id) AS statistics_update_date
FROM sys.stats
WHERE object_id = OBJECT_ID('Person.Address');
GO
If statistics correspond to an index, the stats_id value in the sys.stats catalog view is the same as the index_id value in the sys.indexes catalog view, and the following query returns the same results as the preceding query. If statistics do not correspond to an index, they are in the sys.stats results but not in the sys.indexes results.
USE AdventureWorks2022;
GO
SELECT name AS index_name,
STATS_DATE(object_id, index_id) AS statistics_update_date
FROM sys.indexes
WHERE object_id = OBJECT_ID('Person.Address');
GO
Examples: Azure Synapse Analytics and Analytics Platform System (PDW)
B. Learn when a named statistics was last updated
The following example creates statistics on the LastName column of the DimCustomer table. It then runs a query to show the date of the statistics. Then it udpates the statistics and runs the query again to show the updated date.
--First, create a statistics object
USE AdventureWorksPDW2012;
GO
CREATE STATISTICS Customer_LastName_Stats
ON AdventureWorksPDW2012.dbo.DimCustomer (LastName)
WITH SAMPLE 50 PERCENT;
GO
--Return the date when Customer_LastName_Stats was last updated
USE AdventureWorksPDW2012;
GO
SELECT stats_id, name AS stats_name,
STATS_DATE(object_id, stats_id) AS statistics_date
FROM sys.stats s
WHERE s.object_id = OBJECT_ID('dbo.DimCustomer')
AND s.name = 'Customer_LastName_Stats';
GO
--Update Customer_LastName_Stats so it will have a different timestamp in the next query
GO
UPDATE STATISTICS dbo.dimCustomer (Customer_LastName_Stats);
--Return the date when Customer_LastName_Stats was last updated.
SELECT stats_id, name AS stats_name,
STATS_DATE(object_id, stats_id) AS statistics_date
FROM sys.stats s
WHERE s.object_id = OBJECT_ID('dbo.DimCustomer')
AND s.name = 'Customer_LastName_Stats';
GO
C. View the date of the last update for all statistics on a table
This example returns the date for when each statistics object on the DimCustomer table was last updated.
--Return the dates all statistics on the table were last updated.
SELECT stats_id, name AS stats_name,
STATS_DATE(object_id, stats_id) AS statistics_date
FROM sys.stats s
WHERE s.object_id = OBJECT_ID('dbo.DimCustomer');
GO
If statistics correspond to an index, the stats_id value in the sys.stats catalog view is the same as the index_id value in the sys.indexes catalog view, and the following query returns the same results as the preceding query. If statistics do not correspond to an index, they are in the sys.stats results but not in the sys.indexes results.
USE AdventureWorksPDW2012;
GO
SELECT name AS index_name,
STATS_DATE(object_id, index_id) AS statistics_update_date
FROM sys.indexes
WHERE object_id = OBJECT_ID('dbo.DimCustomer');
GO
See Also
System Functions (Transact-SQL)
UPDATE STATISTICS (Transact-SQL)
sp_autostats (Transact-SQL)
Statistics
sys.dm_db_stats_properties (Transact-SQL)
sys.stats
Statistics in Microsoft Fabric