When copying data based on specific criteria, is it better to use a WHERE clause or a LIKE statement in PHP?

When copying data based on specific criteria in PHP, it is generally better to use a WHERE clause in your SQL query rather than a LIKE statement. WHERE clauses are more precise and efficient for filtering data based on specific criteria, while LIKE statements are typically used for pattern matching in text fields. Using a WHERE clause ensures that only the exact data that meets the specified conditions is copied. 

// Example of using a WHERE clause to copy data based on specific criteria
$source_table = "source_table";
$destination_table = "destination_table";
$condition = "column_name = 'specific_criteria'";

$sql = "INSERT INTO $destination_table SELECT * FROM $source_table WHERE $condition";
mysqli_query($conn, $sql);

Keywords

PHP WHERE clause LIKE statement data copying specific criteria

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