Should You Use LIKE Instead of REGEXP for Unicode Matching in MySQL?

Unicode Matching in MySQL Regular Expressions

MySQL's regular expressions employ a byte-wise approach, rendering them unsuitable for Unicode matching. Most sources report this limitation, raising concerns about its use for Unicode pattern matching.

In such cases, like for Unicode pattern matching, is it recommended to utilize LIKE instead of regexp? For ASCII-enhanced pattern matching, regexp remains a viable option.

Benefits of LIKE for Unicode Matching

LIKE supports Unicode characters, enabling straightforward pattern matching in Unicode text. Additionally, it allows for match searches at the start or end of strings.

WHERE foo LIKE 'bar%'  -- Search for strings starting with "bar"
WHERE foo LIKE '%bar'  -- Search for strings ending with "bar"

Limitations of Regexp with Unicode

Due to its byte-wise implementation, regexp may yield inaccurate results with multi-byte character sets. Moreover, accented characters may not compare as equal, even if a specific collation deems them so.

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