PROC PRINT in SAS - What Does the PRINT Procedure Do

🔍 What is PROC PRINT in SAS?

PROC PRINT is a SAS procedure that prints the observations in a SAS dataset to the output window. It provides a tabular view of your data and is commonly used for checking data during the data cleaning and analysis phase.

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🧱 Basic Syntax of PROC PRINT

PROC PRINT DATA=dataset-name;
RUN;

Explanation:

• PROC PRINT tells SAS to initiate the print procedure.
• DATA=dataset-name specifies the dataset to print.
• RUN; executes the procedure.

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📝 Example: Basic PROC PRINT

DATA employees;
  INPUT ID Name $ Department $ Salary;
  DATALINES;
1 John HR 50000
2 Alice IT 70000
3 Bob Finance 60000
;
RUN;

PROC PRINT DATA=employees;
RUN;

This code will output all rows and columns of the employees dataset.

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🎯 Using PROC PRINT with SELECTED VARIABLES

You can use the VAR statement to print only specific columns from your dataset.

PROC PRINT DATA=employees;
  VAR Name Department;
RUN;

This will display only the Name and Department columns.

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🔢 Adding Row Numbers with ID Statement

The ID statement lets you replace the default observation number with a variable value.

PROC PRINT DATA=employees;
  ID ID;
  VAR Name Department Salary;
RUN;

Now, instead of row numbers (1, 2, 3), SAS will display the values from the ID column.

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🧾 Using Labels in Output

To display more meaningful column headers, you can use labels.

DATA employees;
  SET employees;
  LABEL Salary = 'Annual Salary';
RUN;

PROC PRINT DATA=employees LABEL;
  VAR Name Salary;
RUN;

Now the column header will display as Annual Salary.

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🎯 Filtering Rows with WHERE Statement

The WHERE clause lets you filter records before printing.

PROC PRINT DATA=employees;
  WHERE Department = 'IT';
RUN;

This will display only the rows where the department is IT.

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📌 More Useful Options

• OBS=number: Limits number of observations printed.
• NOOBS: Suppresses the default row number column.
• LABEL: Displays labels instead of variable names.
• TITLE: Adds a title to the output.

PROC PRINT DATA=employees (OBS=2) NOOBS LABEL;
  TITLE "Employee Report";
RUN;

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💡 Best Practices for PROC PRINT

• Use VAR and ID to improve readability.
• Always apply WHERE clauses for large datasets.
• Use LABEL for user-friendly column headings in reports.

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➕Here are some More Examples for Proc print -

1. First Proc print to get the output for sasuser.admit dataset in output window

Code -

proc print data=sasuser.admit;

run;

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