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The SHA SQL Function in MySQL and MariaDB - SHA-1 160-bit checksum

SHA	Syntax:	SHA(String)
	Return value:	CHAR
	Synonyms:	SHA1
	Function type:	Encryption & Compression

Function Description

The SHA() function calculates a SHA-1 160-bit checksum for the "String" as described in RFC 3174 (Secure Hash Algorithm).

The value is returned as a string of 40 hexadecimal digits.

Numeric values as an argument are interpreted as a character string.

If the value of the "String" argument is NULL, the SHA() function returns NULL.

As of MariaDB version 5.5, the return value is a string in the character set and collation of the current connection.

Before MariaDB version 5.5, the function returns a binary string.

SQL Examples for the SHA function


select sha('Test');
select sha(123456);

select sha('');
select sha(null);

sha('Test')
varchar(40) BINARY
640ab2bae07bedc4c163f679a746f7ab7fb5d1fa

sha(123456)
varchar(40) BINARY
7c4a8d09ca3762af61e59520943dc26494f8941b

sha('')
varchar(40) BINARY
da39a3ee5e6b4b0d3255bfef95601890afd80709

sha(null)
varchar(40) BINARY
NULL

The examples were created with the MyWAY SQL manager: Download

How to use the SHA() function in MySQL and MariaDB databases

Both MySQL and MariaDB provide the SHA() function, which calculates the SHA-1 hash of a given string to obtain a hash value for a specific string of characters, for example for storing hashed passwords, verifying data integrity or for digital signatures.

The SHA-1 is considered a weak hashing algorithm and is no longer recommended for secure hashing purposes. For example, SHA2() function can be used to compute the SHA-256 or SHA-512 hash of a string.

Further MySQL und MariaDB SQL Encryption & Compression

AES_DECRYPT	AES_DECRYPT(String, Key)
	More about AES_DECRYPT Function

AES_ENCRYPT	AES_ENCRYPT(String, Key)
	More about AES_ENCRYPT Function

COMPRESS	COMPRESS(String)
	More about COMPRESS Function

DECODE	DECODE(Binary string, Password)
	More about DECODE Function

DES_DECRYPT	DES_DECRYPT(Binary string [, Key])
	More about DES_DECRYPT Function

DES_ENCRYPT	DES_ENCRYPT(String [, Key])
	More about DES_ENCRYPT Function

ENCODE	ENCODE(String, Password)
	More about ENCODE Function

ENCRYPT	ENCRYPT(String [, Salt])
	More about ENCRYPT Function

FROM_BASE64	FROM_BASE64(String)
	More about FROM_BASE64 Function

MD5	MD5(String)
	More about MD5 Function

OLD_PASSWORD	OLD_PASSWORD(String)
	More about OLD_PASSWORD Function

PASSWORD	PASSWORD(String)
	More about PASSWORD Function

RANDOM_BYTES	RANDOM_BYTES(Length)
	More about RANDOM_BYTES Function

SHA1	SHA1(String)
	More about SHA1 Function

SHA2	SHA2(String, Length)
	More about SHA2 Function

TO_BASE64	TO_BASE64(String)
	More about TO_BASE64 Function

UNCOMPRESS	UNCOMPRESS(Binary string)
	More about UNCOMPRESS Function

Numeric functions	String functions	Regular Expressions	Date and Time functions
Comparison functions	Encryption & Compression	Conversion functions	NULL functions
Aggregate functions	Window functions	JSON functions	Geometric functions
Sequence functions	Information functions	Dynamic Columns	Miscellaneous functions

More information about the SHA SQL function: mysql.com and mariadb.com

Updated: 2025-11-04

2020-2025 Heino Cunze-Fischer