What is the Difference Between Char and Varchar?
🆚 Go to Comparative Table 🆚The main difference between CHAR and VARCHAR data types in SQL lies in the length of the strings they store. CHAR is a data type used to store character strings of fixed length, while VARCHAR is a data type used to store character strings of variable length. Here are the key differences between CHAR and VARCHAR:
- Length: CHAR is fixed in length, while VARCHAR supports variable-length columns of data.
- Storage: CHAR uses a fixed amount of storage, regardless of the actual length of the string. If the length of the string is less than the set or fixed-length, it is padded with extra spaces. In contrast, VARCHAR only uses the space needed to store the actual text.
- Performance: CHAR tends to have better performance compared to VARCHAR because it has a fixed size and requires less I/O to retrieve and store the column value. On the other hand, VARCHAR has variable length, which requires storing the length of the data along with the data, making it slower than CHAR.
- Usage: Use CHAR when you expect the data values in a column to be the same length, and use VARCHAR when you expect the data values in a column to be of variable length.
In summary, CHAR is more suitable for storing strings of fixed length, while VARCHAR is better for storing strings of variable length. CHAR provides better performance but consumes more storage space, whereas VARCHAR uses only the space needed to store the actual text and is slower in performance compared to CHAR.
Comparative Table: Char vs Varchar
The main difference between CHAR and VARCHAR lies in their storage structure and length. Here is a table comparing the differences between CHAR and VARCHAR data types:
| Feature | CHAR | VARCHAR |
|---|---|---|
| Data Type | Fixed-length character data type | Variable-length character data type |
| Storage | Uses a fixed amount of storage, regardless of the actual length of the data | Storage size is equal to the actual length of the entered string |
| Performance | Slightly more speed-efficient than VARCHAR | Less performant than CHAR, as length needs to be calculated and used by the database engine when reading and storing |
| Length | Used when the data values in a column have the same length | Suitable for storing strings with variable lengths |
| Trailing Spaces | Pads with extra blank spaces if the length of the string is less than the set or fixed-length | Does not add trailing spaces when the length of the string is less than the set or fixed-length |
In summary, use CHAR when you expect the data values in a column to be of the same length, and the strings would have fixed-length. Use VARCHAR when you expect the data values in a column to have variable lengths, and the strings would not have fixed-length. VARCHAR is more flexible, but CHAR is slightly more speed-efficient and requires less initial space.
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