count

Count rows matching the query. Issues SELECT COUNT(*) — no rows are hydrated, so it's cheap.

Signature

FedacoBuilder<T>.count(column?: string): Promise<number>

Parameters

Name	Default	Description
column	'*'	Pass a column name to count non-null values of that column.

Real-World Use Cases

1. Total rows

const total = await User.createQuery().count();

2. Filtered count

const verified = await User.createQuery()
  .where('email_verified', true)
  .count();

3. Count non-null values

// Users with a profile picture set
const withAvatar = await User.createQuery().count('avatar_url');

This is COUNT(avatar_url), which counts non-null values — different from COUNT(*).

4. Combined with whereHas

const writers = await User.createQuery()
  .whereHas('posts')
  .count();

5. Distinct counts

const distinctEmails = await User.createQuery()
  .distinct('email')
  .count('email');

6. Compare against a threshold

For "are there any?" prefer exists — it returns a boolean and stops at the first match:

if (await User.createQuery().where('email', email).exists()) {
  throw new Error('email already taken');
}

exists() is cheaper than count() > 0 for "is there at least one" checks.

Related Aggregates

The same builder exposes a few more aggregates that mirror SQL:

await Order.createQuery().sum('total');     // SUM
await Order.createQuery().avg('total');     // AVG
await Order.createQuery().min('total');     // MIN
await Order.createQuery().max('total');     // MAX

Each compiles to one SELECT <agg>(col) query and returns a number.

Common Pitfalls

• count() ignores select, with, and orderBy. They're stripped before compiling — only where / groupBy / having survive.
• COUNT(column) vs COUNT(*) — they differ on null. Use * for total rows; pass a column for non-null counts.
• For pagination, use getCountForPagination — it preserves the right SQL shape (handles GROUP BY rows correctly).

See Also

• exists / doesntExist — boolean existence checks.
• max / min / sum / avg — other aggregates.
• getCountForPagination — used by paginate.