SQL OR Operator

The WHERE clause can contain one or more OR operators.

The OR operator is used to filter records based on more than one condition, like if you want to return all customers from Germany but also those from Spain:

Example

Select all customers from Germany or Spain:

SELECT \*  
FROM Customers  
WHERE Country = 'Germany' OR Country = 'Spain';

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Syntax

SELECT _column1_, _column2, ..._ FROM _table_name_ WHERE _condition1_ OR _condition2_ OR _condition3 ..._;

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OR vs AND

The OR operator displays a record if any of the conditions are TRUE.

The AND operator displays a record if all the conditions are TRUE.

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Demo Database

Below is a selection from the Customers table used in the examples:

CustomerID	CustomerName	ContactName	Address	City	PostalCode	Country
1	Alfreds Futterkiste	Maria Anders	Obere Str. 57	Berlin	12209	Germany
2	Ana Trujillo Emparedados y Helados	Ana Trujillo	Avda. de la Constitución 2222	México D.F.	05021	Mexico
3	Antonio Moreno Taquería	Antonio Moreno	Mataderos 2312	México D.F.	05023	Mexico
4	Around the Horn	Thomas Hardy	120 Hanover Sq.	London	WA1 1DP	UK
5	Berglunds snabbköp	Christina Berglund	Berguvsvägen 8	Luleå	S-958 22	Sweden

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At Least One Condition Must Be True

The following SQL statement selects all fields from Customers where either City is "Berlin", CustomerName starts with the letter "G" or Country is "Norway":

Example

SELECT \* FROM Customers  
WHERE City = 'Berlin' OR CustomerName LIKE 'G%' OR Country = 'Norway';

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Combining AND and OR

You can combine the AND and OR operators.

The following SQL statement selects all customers from Spain that starts with a "G" or an "R".

Make sure you use parenthesis to get the correct result.

Example

Select all Spanish customers that starts with either "G" or "R":

SELECT \* FROM Customers  
WHERE Country = 'Spain' AND (CustomerName LIKE 'G%' OR CustomerName LIKE 'R%');

Without parenthesis, the select statement will return all customers from Spain that starts with a "G", plus all customers that starts with an "R", regardless of the country value:

Example

Select all customers that either:
are from Spain and starts with either "G", or
starts with the letter "R":

SELECT \* FROM Customers  
WHERE Country = 'Spain' AND CustomerName LIKE 'G%' OR CustomerName LIKE 'R%';

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