VARCHAR function

The VARCHAR function returns a varying-length character string representation of a character string.

Character to varchar syntax

VARCHAR ( characterStringExpression )
characterStringExpression
An expression whose value must be of a character-string data type with a maximum length of 32,672 bytes.

Datetime to varchar syntax

VARCHAR ( datetimeExpression )
datetimeExpression
An expression whose value must be of a date, time, or timestamp data type.

Example

Using the EMPLOYEE table, select the job description (JOB defined as CHAR(8)) for Dolores Quintana as a VARCHAR equivelant: 
SELECT VARCHAR(JOB)
FROM EMPLOYEE
WHERE LASTNAME = 'QUINTANA'
Parent topic: Built-in functions