Aug 14, 2014 · TEXT has a fixed max size of 2¹⁶-1 = 65535 characters. VARCHAR has a variable max size M up to M = 2¹⁶-1. So you cannot choose the size of TEXT but you can for a VARCHAR. The other difference is, that you cannot put an index (except for a fulltext index) on a TEXT column. So if you want to have an index on the column, you have to use VARCHAR.

In today's blog, we'll outline the key differences between the two and layout the factors to consider when deciding which data type to go with. While both data types share a maximum length of 65,535 characters, there are still a few differences: The VAR in VARCHAR means that you can set the max size to anything between 1 and 65,535.

May 12, 2024 · Varchar vs Text in MySQL is an important topic because both are useful data types for storing textual data in a MySQL database. VARCHAR is best suited for storing short to medium-length strings, while TEXT is better suited for storing large amounts of textual data.

Feb 25, 2014 · One difference between VARCHAR and TEXT is that you can declare a DEFAULT clause for a VARCHAR column, but not for a TEXT column. @Andy is correct that InnoDB stores both VARCHAR and TEXT in the same way internally. FULLTEXT indexes are supported on both VARCHAR and TEXT. Prior to 5.6, you must use MyISAM to get that type of index.

Aug 20, 2016 · Summary of *TEXT, CHAR, and VARCHAR: Never use TINYTEXT . Almost never use CHAR -- it is fixed length; each character is the max length of the CHARACTER SET (eg, 4 bytes/character for utf8mb4).

Aug 27, 2024 · Let us investigate the relatively fundamental differences of MySQL TEXT vs VARCHAR in terms of storage space, and size dependencies. Additionally, we shall explore some general best practices for MySQL Text vs Varchar while performing operations using them within MySQL databases.

Basically, there's 4 ways to store strings in database records: MyISM uses something similar to #3 for VARCHAR, and a hybrid approach for TEXT where it stores the beginning of the string in the record, then rest of the string somewhere else. InnoDB is similar for VARCHAR, but stores the complete TEXT field outside of the record.

Learn the difference between CHAR, VARCHAR, and TEXT in MySQL. Understand when to use each text type and how to choose the right one for your database.

Choosing between VARCHAR and TEXT in MySQL depends on your specific use case with the data. For short to medium-length strings where performance and data integrity are priorities, VARCHAR is the better choice. For storing larger blocks of text where length constraints are not a concern, TEXT is more suitable.

Oct 7, 2021 · MySQL VARCHAR vs. TEXT: The Short Answer. If you’re looking for a TL;DR, it’s this: use VARCHAR if your data is of variable length and you know it fits into VARCHAR’s 65,535 character limit. In most circumstances, VARCHAR provides better performance, it’s more flexible, and can be fully indexed.