MySQL SUBSTRING_INDEX() Function

Return a substring of a string before a specified number of delimiter occurs:

SELECT SUBSTRING_INDEX("www.w3schools.com", ".", 1);

Definition and Usage

The SUBSTRING_INDEX() function returns a substring of a string before a specified number of delimiter occurs.

SUBSTRING_INDEX(string, delimiter, number)

Parameter	Description
string	Required. The original string
delimiter	Required. The delimiter to search for
number	Required. The number of times to search for the delimiter. Can be both a positive or negative number. If it is a positive number, this function returns all to the left of the delimiter. If it is a negative number, this function returns all to the right of the delimiter.

Works in:	From MySQL 4.0

Return a substring of a string before a specified number of delimiter occurs:

SELECT SUBSTRING_INDEX("www.w3schools.com", ".", 2);