SQL LIKE Operator or SQL Wildcard Characters

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

Note: MS Access uses a question mark (?) instead of the underscore (_).

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"

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Demo Database

Below is a selection from the "Customers" table in the Northwind sample database:

CustomerID	CustomerName	ContactName	Address	City	PostalCode	Country
1	Alfreds Futterkiste	Maria Anders	Obere Str. 57	Berlin	12209	Germany
2	Ana Trujillo Emparedados y helados	Ana Trujillo	Avda. de la Constitución 2222	México D.F.	05021	Mexico
3	Antonio Moreno Taquería	Antonio Moreno	Mataderos 2312	México D.F.	05023	Mexico
4	Around the Horn	Thomas Hardy	120 Hanover Sq.	London	WA1 1DP	UK
5	Berglunds snabbköp	Christina Berglund	Berguvsvägen 8	Luleå	S-958 22	Sweden

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SQL LIKE Examples

The following SQL statement selects all customers with a CustomerName starting with "a":

Example

SELECT * FROM Customers
WHERE CustomerName LIKE 'a%';

Try it Yourself »

The following SQL statement selects all customers with a CustomerName ending with "a":

Example

SELECT * FROM Customers
WHERE CustomerName LIKE '%a';

Try it Yourself »

The following SQL statement selects all customers with a CustomerName that have "or" in any position:

Example

SELECT * FROM Customers
WHERE CustomerName LIKE '%or%';

Try it Yourself »

The following SQL statement selects all customers with a CustomerName that have "r" in the second position:

Example

SELECT * FROM Customers
WHERE CustomerName LIKE '_r%';

Try it Yourself »

The following SQL statement selects all customers with a CustomerName that starts with "a" and are at least 3 characters in length:

Example

SELECT * FROM Customers
WHERE CustomerName LIKE 'a_%_%';

Try it Yourself »

The following SQL statement selects all customers with a CustomerName that starts with "a" and ends with "o":

Example

SELECT * FROM Customers
WHERE ContactName LIKE 'a%o';

Try it Yourself »

The following SQL statement selects all customers with a CustomerName that NOT starts with "a":

Example

SELECT * FROM Customers
WHERE CustomerName NOT LIKE 'a%';

Try it Yourself »

A wildcard character is used to substitute any other character(s) in a string.

Wildcard characters are used with 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