TIMEDIFF(expr1,expr2)

TIMEDIFF() returns expr1 − expr2 expressed as a time value. expr1 and expr2 are strings which are converted to TIME or DATETIME expressions; these must be of the same type following conversion. Returns NULL if expr1 or expr2 is NULL.

Syntax

MYSQL Copy

SELECT TIMEDIFF('2000-01-01 00:00:00',
                '2000-01-01 00:00:00.000001');
'-00:00:00.000001'
SELECT TIMEDIFF('2008-12-31 23:59:59.000001',
                '2008-12-30 01:01:01.000002');
'46:58:57.999999'

Examples

Example

The result returned by TIMEDIFF() is limited to the range allowed for TIME values. Alternatively, you can use either of the functions TIMESTAMPDIFF() and UNIX_TIMESTAMP(), both of which return integers.

MYSQL Copy

SELECT TIMEDIFF('2000-01-01 00:00:00',
                '2000-01-01 00:00:00.000001');
'-00:00:00.000001'
SELECT TIMEDIFF('2008-12-31 23:59:59.000001',
                '2008-12-30 01:01:01.000002');
'46:58:57.999999'