SQL REPLACE Function: Syntax & Usage

The REPLACE function in SQL is used to replace a specified substring within a string. It replaces one or more specified substrings in the source string with a new string and returns the resulting replaced string.

The syntax of the REPLACE function is:

REPLACE(string, find_string, replace_with)

In this case, string is the original string to be replaced, find_string is the substring to be replaced, and replace_with is the new string after replacement.

For example, use the REPLACE function to replace “apple” with “orange” in the string.

SELECT REPLACE('I have an apple', 'apple', 'orange');

The output is “I have an orange.”

The REPLACE function can be used in a query to replace strings, such as updating a value in a column of a table, or returning the replaced result in a SELECT statement.