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MySQL Intermediate 8 min read

UPDATE and DELETE

UPDATE and DELETE in MySQL

UPDATE

UPDATE users SET status = 'inactive' WHERE id = 5;

UPDATE products
SET price = price * 0.9, updated_at = NOW()
WHERE category_id = 3;

-- Update with JOIN
UPDATE orders o
JOIN users u ON o.user_id = u.id
SET o.status = 'vip'
WHERE u.tier = 'gold';

DELETE

DELETE FROM sessions WHERE expires_at < NOW();

DELETE FROM orders WHERE user_id = 10 LIMIT 100;

SOFT DELETE Pattern

ALTER TABLE users ADD COLUMN deleted_at TIMESTAMP NULL;

-- Soft delete
UPDATE users SET deleted_at = NOW() WHERE id = 5;

-- Query active
SELECT * FROM users WHERE deleted_at IS NULL;
Pro Tip

Test your WHERE clause with SELECT before running UPDATE or DELETE.