MySQL Data Types
MySQL data types define the type of data that can be stored in each column of a MySQL database table. These data types specify the format, range, and constraints of the data that can be stored, allowing for efficient storage, retrieval, and manipulation of information. MySQL supports various data types, including numeric types (such as INTEGER, FLOAT, and DECIMAL), string types (such as CHAR, VARCHAR, and TEXT), date and time types (such as DATE, TIME, and TIMESTAMP), and more specialized types for storing binary data, spatial data, and JSON documents. Understanding and selecting the appropriate data types for database columns is essential for designing efficient and effective database schemas, ensuring data integrity, optimizing storage space, and facilitating query performance in MySQL databases.
The data type of a column defines what value the column can hold: integer, character, money, date and time, binary, and so on.
| Data type | Description |
|---|---|
| CHAR(size) | A FIXED length string (can contain letters, numbers, and special characters). The size parameter specifies the column length in characters – can be from 0 to 255. Default is 1 |
| VARCHAR(size) | A VARIABLE length string (can contain letters, numbers, and special characters). The size parameter specifies the maximum column length in characters – can be from 0 to 65535 |
| BINARY(size) | Equal to CHAR(), but stores binary byte strings. The size parameter specifies the column length in bytes. Default is 1 |
| VARBINARY(size) | Equal to VARCHAR(), but stores binary byte strings. The size parameter specifies the maximum column length in bytes. |
| TINYBLOB | For BLOBs (Binary Large OBjects). Max length: 255 bytes |
| TINYTEXT | Holds a string with a maximum length of 255 characters |
| TEXT(size) | Holds a string with a maximum length of 65,535 bytes |
MySQL Data Types
