Microsoft Access functions in SQL

Most functions can be used in both VBA and in a query by adding the function (and it's parameters) to the 'field' line in the query design view.

For example using the Format() and DateDiff() functions:

Select Query

If one or more table columns are used as function parameters, then the function will return a different value for each row of the result set. So the query above will return different results for every row in the table that has a different Purchase_Date.

When a function is used that has no parameters such as Now() then it will return the same value for every row returned by the query.

You can prefix the expression with a meaningful name or allow Access to assign a name automatically Expr1: , Expr2: ...

“Measuring programming progress by lines of code is like measuring aircraft building progress by weight” ~ Bill Gates

Related:

Format - Format a Number/Date/Time.
Now - Return the current date and time.
Sum (SQL) - Add up the values in a query result set.