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MySQL MID() Function

❮ MySQL Functions

Example

Extract a substring from a string (start at position 5, extract 3 characters):

SELECT MID("SQL Tutorial", 5, 3) AS ExtractString;
Try it Yourself »

Definition and Usage

The MID() function extracts a substring from a string (starting at any position).

Note: The MID() and SUBSTR() functions equals the SUBSTRING() function.

Syntax

MID(string, start, length)

Parameter Values

Parameter Description
string Required. The string to extract from
start Required. The start position. Can be both a positive or negative number. If it is a positive number, this function extracts from the beginning of the string. If it is a negative number, this function extracts from the end of the string
length Required. The number of characters to extract

Technical Details

Works in: From MySQL 4.0

More Examples

Example

Extract a substring from the text in a column (start at position 2, extract 5 characters):

SELECT MID(CustomerName, 2, 5) AS ExtractString
FROM Customers;
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Example

Extract a substring from a string (start from the end, at position -5, extract 5 characters):

SELECT MID("SQL Tutorial", -5, 5) AS ExtractString;
Try it Yourself »

❮ MySQL Functions