Distinct or Group by which is faster

[Ra Nala]

Hi Sir,Madam,

We are trying to retrieve 500000 records and in one of the scenario i need to retrieve only 3 columns instead of all columns.

My data consists duplicates so when i retrieve data for 3 columns i am getting all 500000 records.

To avoid the issue i can use simply DISTINCT or GROUP BY clause but confused about the best approach. I googled but no one was given clarity.

which is better, kindly help me which is better approach?


select DISTINCT id,name,age from employee

OR

select id,name,age from employee group by id

thanks,
Ra na la