Why is it important to specify the table name before the column name in the WHERE clause of a PHP query?

Specifying the table name before the column name in the WHERE clause of a PHP query is important because it helps to avoid ambiguity when dealing with multiple tables that have columns with the same name. This ensures that the query knows exactly which table's column to reference when filtering the results. Failing to specify the table name can lead to errors or unexpected results in the query output. 

// Incorrect way of writing a query without specifying the table name before the column name
$query = "SELECT id, name FROM users WHERE id = 1";

// Correct way of writing a query with the table name specified before the column name
$query = "SELECT id, name FROM users WHERE users.id = 1";

Keywords

PHP SQL WHERE clause table name column name

Related Questions