PHP : MySQL DELETE Statement

The DELETE statement removes records from a table. You choose which rows to remove with the WHERE clause.

---

Syntax

DELETE FROM table_name WHERE condition;

---

Delete a record using PHP

<?php
require_once('db-connection.php');

// Delete the user with id 3
$sql = "DELETE FROM users WHERE id = 3";

if (mysqli_query($conn, $sql)) {
    echo "Record deleted. Rows deleted: " . mysqli_affected_rows($conn);
} else {
    echo "Error deleting record: " . mysqli_error($conn);
}

mysqli_close($conn);
?>

Output:

mysqli_affected_rows() shows how many rows were removed. If no row matches the condition, the query still works, but the number is 0.

---

Delete with a prepared statement

The id usually comes from a link or a button, for example delete.php?id=3. Never put it directly in the query. Use a prepared statement.

<?php
require_once('db-connection.php');

$id = (int) ($_GET["id"] ?? 0);

$stmt = $conn->prepare("DELETE FROM users WHERE id = ?");
$stmt->bind_param("i", $id);
$stmt->execute();

echo "Rows deleted: " . $stmt->affected_rows;

$stmt->close();
$conn->close();
?>

Output:

A delete action should be a POST request with a CSRF token, not a simple link, because a link can be opened by anyone or by a bot. See CSRF.

---

DELETE, TRUNCATE and DROP

Command	What it does
DELETE FROM users WHERE …	Removes the selected rows. The table stays
TRUNCATE TABLE users	Removes all rows quickly and resets the AUTO_INCREMENT counter
DROP TABLE users	Removes the whole table, with its structure

In many websites the data is not really deleted. A column like is_deleted is set to 1 instead, so the record can be restored later. This is called a soft delete.

---

Summary

• DELETE removes records, WHERE selects which ones.
• Never run DELETE without WHERE.
• Use prepared statements when the id comes from the user.
• Go back to the PHP MySQL Tutorial index.

• Previous Page
• Next Page

---

Exercises & Assignments
No Content Found.

Interview Questions & Answers
No Content Found.