In a Microsoft Access project, an exact numeric data type that holds values from –10^38 – 1 through 10^38 – 1. Precision specifies the maximum total number of decimal digits that can be stored, both to the left and right of the decimal point. Scale specifies the maximum number of decimal digits that can be stored to the right of the decimal point. The scale value must be less than or equal to the precision. The numeric data type is identical to the decimal data type. Both decimal and numeric data types are provided for ANSI compatibility.