A wildcard character is used to substitute one or more characters in a string.
Wildcard characters are used with the LIKE operator. The LIKE operator is used in a WHERE clause to search for a specified pattern in a column.
Wildcard Characters in MySQL
| Symbol | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|
| % | Represents zero or more characters | bl% finds bl, black, blue, and blob |
| _ | Represents a single character | h_t finds hot, hat, and hit |
The wildcards can also be used in combinations!
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" |
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