TRIM() string function in MySQL — with examples.

In this post, I’ll cover examples of the MySQL TRIM() function. TRIM() removes specific characters – or spaces – from a given string, at either: the beginning, ending, or potentially in both locations depending on several factors. With an optional keyword argument that controls which character(s) – if any – are removed, TRIM() can be tricky so let’s gain understanding with several easy-to-digest examples…

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OS, Software, and DB used:

• OpenSuse Leap 15.1
• MySQL 8.0.20

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TRIM() accepts zero or one of the below keywords along with character(s) to remove, and a target string in which to remove them:

• LEADING
• TRAILING
• BOTH

The given keyword name is relatively self-explanatory and specifies a location within the target string in which characters are removed. Should none of the 3 available location-specific keyword arguments be specified — which is perfectly valid as they are optional — TRIM() works as if the…