What is the difference between MySQL and SQL?

Last updated on July 29th, 2022 at 03:45 am

MySQL vs SQL: how different are they? 

There is a lot of buzz around the MySQL database system that was acquired by Oracle. SQL has been around for a bit longer. SQL was developed by IBM in the 1970s and it has since become the standard database software language. Both these systems are used in different ways for different tasks. 

SQL databases are becoming more and more popular. When it comes to report building and data analysis SQL is the most common database language used today. It is so popular that most database management software have an “SQL mode” to allow the user to write and execute SQL statements. SQL was designed to be simple and intuitive. It works with many different database management systems and is a great language for getting the task done quickly. 

Almost every company today has a database for business intelligence. These databases are often run on MySQL or other SQL databases. MySQL and SQL are both open source and free to use

With many software report builders in the market, when it comes to PHP scripting, you will often hear the terms “MySQL” and “SQL” thrown around a lot. While these two terms are very similar, there are many differences between them. 

This blog post will look at the different features that these two provide and how they differ from one another.

What is SQL?

SQL is short for ‘Structured Query Language’.

SQL is a basic relational database language, which means that it is designed to work with databases that organize data in tables. Each table has rows and each row further contains columns. The columns are also called ‘fields’.

For example, a table might have a column called “name”. This would be the field where you would enter data for the name of the contact.

SQL is primarily used in the access, updating, and manipulation of data in a database. Its design allows for the management of data in an (RDBMS) Relational Database Management System, such as MYSQL. Control of data access and creation and modification of Database schemas can be done through SQL.

What is MYSQL?

Also pronounced as “My S-Q-L,”

Developed in the mid-90s, MySQL is a relational database management system (RDBMS) that allows a user to store and retrieve data from the database, it also provides multi-user access to databases. This RDBMS system is used with the combination of PHP and Apache Web Server, on top of a Linux distribution to use the SQL language to query the database.

MySQL was one of the first open-source databases available in the market that uses SQL to perform specific operations on the database. 

Both MySQL and SQL offer two up-to-date and differentiable servers: 

• MySQL server 
• SQL Server for database management, by Microsoft

Today MySQL comes with many alternative variants. However, the differences between the variants are not that big as they use the same basic functionality and syntax. 

What makes MySQL and SQL different?

• SQL is a query language used to operate your database when compared to MySQL, which was one of the first open-source databases available in the market.
• The two terms SQL and SQL Server are different and can be confusing. SQL Server is a database management system by Microsoft while SQL is a query language and not a database system.
• SQL does not have support for any connectors since it is only a language, while MySQL comes with an integrated tool like MySQL workbench that can be used for designing and building easy to use structured databases.
• SQL is used in the accessing, updating, and manipulation of data in a database whereas MySQL is an RDBMS that allows keeping the data that exists in a database organized.
• MySQL is more flexible as SQL Server supports a single storage engine, but MySQL supports multiple storage engines and also plug-in storage engines. 
• SQL is a Structured Query Language and MySQL is an RDBMS used to store, retrieve, modify and administrate complex data in a database.
• SQL is an input query language while MYSQL is a database software using the SQL language.
• When it comes to data security, the SQL server has a higher level of security and encryption than the MySQL server. In SQL server, third-party apps cannot access or manipulate the data directly. While in MySQL database files can be easily manipulated during run time using binaries.

Conclusion: SQL Server and MySQL are the two most popular database management systems. While each is built upon the same basic principles of SQL and are immensely helpful, they aren’t created equal. SQL Server is the world’s most popular database management system for a reason. It’s a fantastic reporting tool that has been refined and perfected over the years. Only you can decide which one works best for your particular needs, but if you do need to make that decision, use this guide to help you.

Also Read: Difference between Inner join and Outer join in SQL