Hi all,
consider I want to compare one field stored in two tables (the field being a key in both tables), like
SELECT table1.field FROM table1, table2 WHERE table1.field=table2.field
I have the choice (I'm developping the datamodel right now) to define this field as an INT(6) or as an VARCHAR(6).
The question is: if I only store numerical values in this field, what definition (INT or VARCHAR) will be the fastest in the query above? More general: are INT-fields faster of slower in this kind of comparisons?
INT will be faster.
By the way, INT(6) uses 4 bytes. The 6 refers to the display width, and has nothing to do with the storage size.
PS. The reason I'm considering VARCHAR is that it might be possible I need to store characters in the field, in stead of only figures.
In that case, your choice is made for you. You cannot use INT.
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