SQL JSON Functions: Working with JSON in Modern Databases

Modern databases store and query JSON natively. Here is how I use JSON functions to work with semi-structured data without abandoning SQL. JSON in SQL used to be a compromise. You stored JSON as a text blob and parsed it in the application. Modern databases changed that. PostgreSQL, MySQL, and SQL Server all support JSON as a native type with functions to extract, filter, and transform JSON values inside queries. I use JSON columns for flexible data that does not fit a rigid schema, like configuration, event payloads, and product attributes. Here is how I work with JSON in SQL without losing the power of relational queries. Storing JSON PostgreSQL has two JSON types: json stores text as-is, and jsonb stores a binary representation that supports indexing and is faster to query. I always use jsonb unless I need to preserve key order or whitespace. MySQL has JSON , which is a binary type similar to jsonb. SQL Server has NVARCHAR(MAX) with IS JSON validation. CREATE TABLE events ( id BIGSERIAL PRIMARY KEY, event_type VARCHAR(50), payload JSONB, created_at TIMESTAMP DEFAULT NOW() ); INSERT INTO events (event_type, payload) VALUES ( 'purchase', '{"product_id": 42,…