In MariaDB, RIGHT() is a built-in string function that returns a given number of characters from the rightmost part of a string.

RIGHT() accepts two arguments; the string, and the number of characters to return from the right part of that string.

Syntax

The syntax goes like this:

RIGHT(str,len)

Where str is the string, and len is the number of characters to extract from the right part of the string.

Example

Here’s a basic example:

SELECT RIGHT('Aerospace', 5);

Result:

+-----------------------+
| RIGHT('Aerospace', 5) |
+-----------------------+
| space                 |
+-----------------------+

A Database Example

Here’s an example of getting the right part of the values in a database column:

SELECT 
    ProductName,
    RIGHT(ProductName, 11) AS "Right part"
FROM Products;

Result:

+---------------------------------+-------------+
| ProductName                     | Right part  |
+---------------------------------+-------------+
| Left handed screwdriver         | screwdriver |
| Right handed screwdriver        | screwdriver |
| Long Weight (blue)              | ight (blue) |
| Long Weight (green)             | ght (green) |
| Sledge Hammer                   | edge Hammer |
| Chainsaw                        | Chainsaw    |
| Straw Dog Box                   | raw Dog Box |
| Bottomless Coffee Mugs (4 Pack) | gs (4 Pack) |
+---------------------------------+-------------+

Null Arguments

If any (or all) of the arguments are null, the RIGHT() function returns null:

SELECT 
    RIGHT(null, 3),
    RIGHT('Coffee', null),
    RIGHT(null, null);

Result:

+----------------+-----------------------+-------------------+
| RIGHT(null, 3) | RIGHT('Coffee', null) | RIGHT(null, null) |
+----------------+-----------------------+-------------------+
| NULL           | NULL                  | NULL              |
+----------------+-----------------------+-------------------+

Missing Arguments

Calling RIGHT() without passing any arguments results in an error:

SELECT RIGHT();

Result:

ERROR 1064 (42000): You have an error in your SQL syntax; check the manual that corresponds to your MariaDB server version for the right syntax to use near ')' at line 1