top 2 salary in sql code example

Example 1: sql select second max

Both options you find max as a subset and then exclude from main select
sql> SELECT MAX( col ) FROM table
 	WHERE col < ( SELECT MAX( col ) FROM table);
sql> SELECT MAX(col) FROM table 
WHERE col NOT IN (SELECT MAX(col) FROM table);

Example 2: top 3 salary in sql

SELECT salary, first_name, last_name FROM employees
ORDER BY salary DESC LIMIT 3;

Example 3: sql highest salary by location

/*  Highest salary by Department/Location   */
SELECT e.ename, e.sal, e.deptno, d.loc
FROM emp e
JOIN dept d
ON e.deptno = d.deptno
WHERE e.sal in
( 	
  	select max(sal) 
  	from emp 
  	group by deptno
)