Learn MySQL for Developing Web Application

Learn to build web applications with PHP and MySQL, Start your own blog, e-commerce site. In this tutorial you will learn queries of MySQL and MySQLi.

SQL Operators


The SQL LIKE Operator

The LIKE operator is used in a WHERE clause to search for a specified pattern in a column.

There are two wildcards used in conjunction with the LIKE operator:

  • % - The percent sign represents zero, one, or multiple characters
  • _ - The underscore represents a single character

The percent sign and the underscore can also be used in combinations!

LIKE Syntax

SELECT column1, column2, ...
FROM table_name
WHERE columnN LIKE pattern;

Tip: You can also combine any number of conditions using AND or OR operators.

Here are some examples showing different LIKE operators with '%' and '_' wildcards:

LIKE Operator Description
WHERE CustomerName LIKE 'a%' Finds any values that starts with "a"
WHERE CustomerName LIKE '%a' Finds any values that ends with "a"
WHERE CustomerName LIKE '%or%' Finds any values that have "or" in any position
WHERE CustomerName LIKE '_r%' Finds any values that have "r" in the second position
WHERE CustomerName LIKE 'a_%_%' Finds any values that starts with "a" and are at least 3 characters in length
WHERE ContactName LIKE 'a%o' Finds any values that starts with "a" and ends with "o"

The SQL IN Operator

The IN operator allows you to specify multiple values in a WHERE clause.

The IN operator is a shorthand for multiple OR conditions.

IN Syntax

SELECT column_name(s)
FROM table_name
WHERE column_name IN (value1, value2, ...);

or:

SELECT column_name(s)
FROM table_name
WHERE column_name IN (SELECT STATEMENT);

The SQL BETWEEN Operator

The BETWEEN operator selects values within a given range. The values can be numbers, text, or dates.

The BETWEEN operator is inclusive: begin and end values are included. 

BETWEEN Syntax

SELECT column_name(s)
FROM table_name
WHERE column_name BETWEEN value1 AND value2;