str_to_date

Converts a string into a DATETIME value according to the specified format. If the conversion fails, NULL is returned.

The format must be consistent with that described in date_format .

This function is inverse to date_format .

Syntax ​

DATETIME STR_TO_DATE(VARCHAR str, VARCHAR format)

Parameters ​

str : the time expression you want to convert. It must be of the VARCHAR type.

format : the format used to return the value. For the supported format, see date_format .

Return value ​

Returns a value of the DATETIME type. If format specifies a date, a DATE value is returned.

NULL is returned if str or format is NULL.

Examples ​

Example 1: Convert the input into a DATETIME value.

MySQL > select str_to_date('2014-12-21 12:34:56', '%Y-%m-%d %H:%i:%s');
+---------------------------------------------------------+
| str_to_date('2014-12-21 12:34:56', '%Y-%m-%d %H:%i:%s') |
+---------------------------------------------------------+
| 2014-12-21 12:34:56                                     |
+---------------------------------------------------------+