SQL LTRIM() Function

Last Updated : 31 Aug, 2026

The LTRIM() function in SQL is an inbuilt string function used to remove leading spaces from the left side of a string. It can also be used to remove specific characters from the beginning of the string.

  • The LTRIM function is used to clean data in databases.
  • It removes unnecessary leading characters or spaces from text values.
  • Data administrators use it to streamline data cleaning tasks efficiently in one go.

Syntax

LTRIM(Input_String, [Trim_Characters])
  • Input_String: String from which you want to remove leading spaces.
  • Trim_Characters: [optional] specified characters you want to remove.

Note: If we don't specify any characters to remove, the LTRIM function removes the white spaces for data cleaning and manipulation in SQL.

Query:

SELECT LTRIM('     GeeksforGeeks.') AS trimmed_string;

Output:

sql_output

Examples

Now let us see some examples of LTRIM function in different use cases to understand it's working better:

Example 1: Remove Specific Characters Using LTRIM Function

In this example, we will remove specific characters using LTRIM function.

Query:

SELECT LTRIM('----GeeksforGeeks', '-') AS trimmed_string;

Output:

13
  • Removes the - characters from the left side of the string.
  • Returns the cleaned result as trimmed_string.

Example 2: Remove a Substring from a String Using LTRIM Function

In this example, we will remove a substring from a string using the LTRIM function.

Query:

SELECT LTRIM('GeeksforGeeks', 'Geeks') AS trimmed_string;

Output:

12
  • Removes the specified characters ‘Geeks’ from the left side of the string.
  • Returns the remaining string as trimmed_string.

Example 3: Use LTRIM on a Table Column

Let us create a table where the names of the users are stored with whitespaces.

Query:

CREATE TABLE users (
    name VARCHAR(45) 
);
INSERT INTO users (name) VALUES
    ('   Alice'), ('   Bob'), ('   Charlie'), ('   David'), ('   Eve');

Output:

10

Now to remove whitespace from this column, we can use the SQL query:

SELECT  LTRIM(name) AS trimmed_names
FROM users;

Output:

11
  • Removes leading (left-side) spaces from the name column.
  • Displays the cleaned values as trimmed_names.
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