By default, the FREQ procedure creates frequency tables for every variable in a data set. But this is not always what you want. A variable that has continuous numeric values (such as DateTime) can result in a lengthy and meaningless table. Likewise, a variable that has a unique value for each observation (such as FullName) is unsuitable for PROC FREQ processing. Frequency distributions work best with variables whose values are categorical, and whose values are better summarized by counts rather than by averages.

To specify the variables to be processed by the FREQ procedure, include a TABLES statement.

The order in which the variables appear in the TABLES statement determines the order in which they are listed in the PROC FREQ report.

Consider the SAS data set Finance.Loans. The variables Rate and Months are categorical variables, so they are the best choices for frequency tables.

proc freq data=finance.loans; 
   tables rate months; 
run;

In addition to listing variables separately, you can use a numbered range of variables.

proc freq data=perm.survey; 
   tables item1-item3; 
run;