Pattern matching with LIKE

Search text with LIKE and the %, _ wildcards.

Pattern matching with LIKE

LIKE searches for a pattern in text. Two wildcards are used: % matches zero or more characters, _ matches exactly one character.

SELECT name FROM customers
WHERE name LIKE 'A%';

This returns all names starting with A. %a% finds names containing a.

name is selected from customers. WHERE keeps only the rows where name LIKE 'A%' holds.

Pattern matching with LIKE — details

The position of wildcards changes the meaning: 'A%' starts with A, '%a' ends with a, '%a%' contains a. Case sensitivity depends on the database.

Use _ for exactly one character: LIKE '_a%' finds values whose second letter is a.

Exercise Pattern matching with LIKE

Select name from customers whose name contains the letter 'a'.

Show example solution

SELECT name
FROM customers
WHERE name LIKE '%a%'

Test yourself

Starts with A

SELECT name FROM customers
WHERE name LIKE ____;

Show answer

SELECT name FROM customers
WHERE name LIKE 'A%';

Pattern matching with LIKE: match the terms

'A%'

starts with A
'%a'

ends with a
'%a%'

contains a
'A_'

A plus one letter
What does % match?
- A space
- Exactly one character
- Zero or more characters
- A number
Show answer

Zero or more characters — % matches zero or more characters.

Next lesson: Summary - WHERE filtering

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