Laravel: whereBetween vs whereValueBetween vs whereBetweenColumns

• Understanding the Difference Between whereBetween, whereBetweenColumns, and whereValueBetween in Laravel
• 1. whereBetween
  • Example
  • SQL Translation
• 2. whereBetweenColumns
  • Example
  • SQL Translation
• 3. whereValueBetween
  • Example
  • SQL Translation
• Quick Comparison
• Conclusion

Understanding the Difference Between whereBetween, whereBetweenColumns, and whereValueBetween in Laravel

When working with Laravel's query builder, you'll often need to filter data based on ranges. Laravel provides three different methods to handle this: whereBetween, whereBetweenColumns, and whereValueBetween. While they sound similar, they serve different purposes and generate different SQL queries.

In this post, we'll break down the differences, show examples, and look at what each method translates to in raw SQL.

1. whereBetween

The whereBetween method checks if a column's value falls between two fixed values.

Example

$users = DB::table('users')
    ->whereBetween('votes', [1, 100])
    ->get();

SQL Translation

select * from `users` where `votes` between 1 and 100;

✅ Use this when you want to filter a column against two constant values.

2. whereBetweenColumns

The whereBetweenColumns method checks if a column's value falls between the values of two other columns in the same row.

Example

$patients = DB::table('patients')
    ->whereBetweenColumns('weight', ['minimum_allowed_weight', 'maximum_allowed_weight'])
    ->get();

SQL Translation

select * from `patients`
where `weight` between `minimum_allowed_weight` and `maximum_allowed_weight`;

✅ Use this when you want to compare a column to two other column values in the same row.

3. whereValueBetween

The whereValueBetween method checks if a given value falls between the values of two columns in the same row.

Example

$products = DB::table('products')
    ->whereValueBetween(100, ['min_price', 'max_price'])
    ->get();

SQL Translation

select * from `products`
where 100 between `min_price` and `max_price`;

✅ Use this when you want to check if a fixed value fits between two column values.

Quick Comparison

Conclusion

• Use whereBetween when comparing a column to fixed values.
• Use whereBetweenColumns when comparing a column to two other columns.
• Use whereValueBetween when comparing a fixed value against two column values.

Each method is suited for specific scenarios, and knowing the difference will help you write more precise and efficient queries in Laravel.