Pyspark array contains substring example. Retuns True if right is found inside left.

Pyspark array contains substring example regexp_substr(str, regexp) [source] # Returns the first substring that matches the Java regex regexp within the string str. Syntax: substring (str,pos,len) df. Since, the elements of array are of type struct, use getField () to read the string type field, and then use contains () to check if the string contains the search term. Feb 7, 2022 · I'm going to do a query with pyspark to filter row who contains at least one word in array. Jul 18, 2021 · In this article, we are going to see how to check for a substring in PySpark dataframe. It is commonly used for pattern matching and extracting specific information from unstructured or semi-structured data. Dec 3, 2022 · Filter Pyspark Dataframe column based on whether it contains or does not contain substring Asked 2 years, 4 months ago Modified 2 years, 4 months ago Viewed 624 times Learn PySpark Array Functions such as array (), array_contains (), sort_array (), array_size (). regexp_extract () This function extracts a specific group from a string in a PySpark DataFrame based on a specified regex pattern. filter(df. functions. column. Aug 19, 2025 · PySpark SQL contains () function is used to match a column value contains in a literal string (matches on part of the string), this is mostly used to filter rows on DataFrame. contains() remains the recommended and most readable approach in PySpark. Apr 22, 2024 · With functions like substring, concat, and length, you can extract substrings, concatenate strings, and determine string lengths, among other operations. instr # pyspark. With regexp_extract, you can easily extract portions Dec 9, 2023 · Learn the syntax of the substring function of the SQL language in Databricks SQL and Databricks Runtime. rlike The contains function checks if a string contains a literal substring, simpler than regex but less flexible: df_contains_email = df. Aug 21, 2025 · In this article, I will explain how to use the array_contains() function with different examples, including single values, multiple values, NULL checks, filtering, and joins. This is a great option for SQL-savvy users or integrating with SQL-based workflows. Examples Example 1. Parameters startPos Column or int start position length Column or int length of the substring Returns Column Column representing whether each element of Column is substr of origin Column. We can get the substring of the column using substring () and substr () function. You‘ll learn: What exactly substring () does How to use it with different PySpark DataFrame methods When to reach for substring () vs other string methods Real-world examples and use cases Underlying distributed processing that makes substring () powerful Nov 11, 2021 · pyspark dataframe check if string contains substring Asked 4 years ago Modified 4 years ago Viewed 6k times Syntax cheat sheet A quick reference guide to the most commonly used patterns and functions in PySpark SQL: Common Patterns Logging Output Importing Functions & Types Filtering Joins Column Operations Casting & Coalescing Null Values & Duplicates String Operations String Filters String Functions Number Operations Date & Timestamp Operations Array Operations Aggregation Operations Advanced Partition Transformation Functions ¶Aggregate Functions ¶ PySpark provides a simple but powerful method to filter DataFrame rows based on whether a column contains a particular substring or value. Returns NULL if either input expression is NULL. if a list of letters were present in the last two characters of the column). Creating Dataframe for Let’s compare it with non-regex string functions like contains, substring, and replace to understand when regex is the best choice. Oct 1, 2019 · Suppose that we have a pyspark dataframe that one of its columns (column_a) contains some string values, and also there is a list of strings (list_a). Nov 18, 2025 · pyspark. Column ¶ Substring starts at pos and is of length len when str is String type or returns the slice of byte array that starts at pos in byte and is of length len when str is Binary type. e. Return Value A new PySpark Sep 25, 2025 · pyspark. This constraint dictates that the search pattern must pyspark. 2. Returns a boolean Column based on a string match. array_contains() but this only allows to check for one value rather than a list of values. For example, "learning pyspark" is a substring of "I am learning pyspark from GeeksForGeeks". Apr 17, 2025 · We’ll cover the basics of using array_contains (), advanced filtering with multiple array conditions, handling nested arrays, SQL-based approaches, and optimizing performance. If the regular expression is not found, the result is null. The starting position (1-based index). Parameters 1. In I'm aware of the function pyspark. Examples Example 1: Basic usage of array function with column names. substring # pyspark. Example: from pyspark. regexp(str, regexp) [source] # Returns true if str matches the Java regex regexp, or false otherwise. contains("bar")) like (SQL like with SQL simple regular expression whith _ matching an arbitrary character and % matching an arbitrary sequence): I am brand new to pyspark and want to translate my existing pandas / python code to PySpark. String manipulation in PySpark DataFrames is a vital skill for transforming text data, with functions like concat, substring, upper, lower, trim, regexp_replace, and regexp_extract offering versatile tools for cleaning and extracting information. comment. Everything in here is fully functional PySpark code you can run or adapt to your programs. withColumn('address', regexp_replace('address', 'lane', 'ln')) Quick explanation: The function withColumn is called to add (or replace, if the name exists) a column to the data frame. Substring and Extraction substring(col, pos, length): Extracts a substring from a column. The value is True if right is found inside left. substr(str, pos, len=None) [source] # Returns the substring of str that starts at pos and is of length len, or the slice of byte array that starts at pos and is of length len. You can use this function to filter the DataFrame rows by single or multiple conditions, to derive a new column. startsWith () filters rows where a specified substring serves as the pyspark. By default, the standard contains function available within the PySpark SQL API is inherently case-sensitive. instr(str, substr) [source] # Locate the position of the first occurrence of substr column in the given string. One useful feature of PySpark is the ability to filter for values that do not contain a specific substring or pattern. Apr 17, 2025 · PySpark provides several methods for case-insensitive string matching, primarily using filter () with functions like lower (), contains (), or like (). regexp_substr # pyspark. regexp # pyspark. . Returns Column A new Column of array type, where each value is an array containing the corresponding values from the input columns. This document is a resource for using Contour's rich expression language and can be used as a reference for types, operations and functions. Example 3: Attempt to use array_contains function with a null array. filter($"foo". Use contains function The syntax of this function is defined as: contains (left, right) - This function returns a boolean. Quick reference for essential PySpark functions with examples. Example 1: Basic usage of array_contains function. Introduction to regexp_extract function The regexp_extract function is a powerful string manipulation function in PySpark that allows you to extract substrings from a string based on a specified regular expression pattern. contains(left, right) [source] # Returns a boolean. In the context of big data engineering using PySpark, developers frequently rely on filtering operations to isolate relevant subsets of data. Mar 10, 2023 · LIKE function can be used to check whether a string contains a specific substring. Oct 27, 2023 · This tutorial explains how to extract a substring from a column in PySpark, including several examples. Most of the commonly used SQL functions are either part of the PySpark Column class or built-in pyspark. contains # Column. Dataframe: Aug 8, 2017 · I would be happy to use pyspark. substring to take "all except the final 2 characters", or to use something like pyspark. contains # pyspark. Apr 9, 2024 · Below is a complete example of Spark SQL function array_contains () usage on DataFrame. Filtering values from an ArrayType column and filtering DataFrame rows are completely different operations of course. Dec 23, 2024 · In PySpark, we can achieve this using the substring function of PySpark. If the length is not specified, the function extracts from the starting index to the end of the string. This function is based on regular expressions, which are a sequence of characters that define a search PySpark Cheat Sheet - learn PySpark and develop apps faster View on GitHub PySpark Cheat Sheet This cheat sheet will help you learn PySpark and write PySpark apps faster. functions import substring, regexp_extract Oct 12, 2023 · This tutorial explains how to use a case-insensitive "contains" in PySpark, including an example. functions API, besides these PySpark also supports many other SQL functions, so in order to use these, you have to use Mar 27, 2024 · In Spark, you can use the length function in combination with the substring function to extract a substring of a certain length from a string column. This function is particularly useful when dealing with complex data structures and nested arrays. like, but I can't figure out how to make either of these work properly inside the join. The length of the substring to extract. Example 2: Usage of array_contains function with a column. Both left or right must be Filtering PySpark Arrays and DataFrame Array Columns This post explains how to filter values from a PySpark array column. ArrayType (ArrayType extends DataType class) is used to define an array data type column on DataFrame that holds the same type of elements, In this article, I will explain how to create a DataFrame ArrayType column using pyspark. Following sample example searches term "hello": pyspark. pattern | string or Regex The regular expression pattern used for substring extraction. string_column, pattern, index) Let‘s break down the parameters: Aug 12, 2023 · To remove rows that contain specific substrings in PySpark DataFrame columns, apply the filter method using the contains (~), rlike (~) or like (~) method. Nov 16, 2025 · For general-purpose, simple substring exclusion, the combination of ~ and . Using integers for the input arguments. Mar 27, 2024 · PySpark add_months() function takes the first argument as a column and the second argument is a literal value. It takes three parameters: the column containing the string, the starting index of the substring (1-based), and optionally, the length of the substring. The syntax is as follows: Sample Code SELECT * FROM table_name WHERE column_name LIKE '%substring%' INSTR function can be used to find the position of a substring within a string. Whether you're searching for names containing a certain pattern, identifying records with specific keywords, or refining datasets for analysis, this operation enables targeted data Learn how to use PySpark string functions like contains, startswith, endswith, like, rlike, and locate with real-world examples. If the substring is not found, the function returns 0. If the regex did not match, or the specified group did not match, an empty string is returned. values = [ (&quot Apr 1, 2024 · Learn how to use different Spark SQL string functions to manipulate string data with explanations and code examples. Aug 12, 2023 · PySpark Column's contains (~) method returns a Column object of booleans where True corresponds to column values that contain the specified substring. Let’s explore how to master string manipulation in Spark DataFrames to create clean, consistent, and analyzable datasets. For example to take the left table and produce the right table: Apr 18, 2024 · Learn the syntax of the contains function of the SQL language in Databricks SQL and Databricks Runtime. These methods allow you to normalize string case and match substrings efficiently. Substring is a continuous sequence of characters within a larger string size. In this tutorial, you will learn how to split Dataframe single column into multiple columns using withColumn() and select() and also will explain how to use regular expression (regex) on split function. Retuns True if right is found inside left. regexp_extract(str, pattern, idx) [source] # Extract a specific group matched by the Java regex regexp, from the specified string column. Mar 16, 2017 · I want to take a json file and map it so that one of the columns is a substring of another. Feb 18, 2021 · Need to update a PySpark dataframe if the column contains the certain substring for example: df looks like id address 1 spring-field_garden 2 spring-field_lane 3 new_berry pl Parameters cols Column or str Column names or Column objects that have the same data type. Apr 17, 2025 · This comprehensive guide explores the syntax and steps for replacing specific values in a DataFrame column, with targeted examples covering single value replacement, multiple value replacements, nested data, and SQL-based approaches. PySpark rlike () PySpark rlike() function is used to apply regular expressions to string columns for advanced pattern matching. substr # pyspark. substr(col, pos, length): Alias for substring. Sep 5, 2020 · Hi I have a pyspark dataframe with an array col shown below. We focus on common operations for manipulating, transforming, and converting arrays in DataFr Dec 19, 2022 · 1 Use filter () to get array elements matching given criteria. substring(str, pos, len) [source] # Substring starts at pos and is of length len when str is String type or returns the slice of byte array that starts at pos in byte and is of length len when str is Binary type. regexp_extract # pyspark. Apr 6, 2025 · Learn the syntax of the array\\_contains function of the SQL language in Databricks SQL and Databricks Runtime. The general syntax is as follows: Oct 12, 2023 · This tutorial explains how to filter rows in a PySpark DataFrame that do not contain a specific string, including an example. contains() function works in conjunction with the filter() operation and provides an effective way to select rows based on substring presence within a string column. contains("email")) Dec 30, 2019 · It will also show how one of them can be leveraged to provide the best features of the other two. substr (start, length) Parameter: str - It can be string or name of the column from which pyspark. Introduction to array_contains function The array_contains function in PySpark is a powerful tool that allows you to check if a specified value exists within an array column. Both left or right must be of STRING or BINARY type. Syntax and supported functions For an orientation to the Expression board, see the guide on using the expression board. The function regexp_replace will generate a new column by replacing all substrings that match the pattern. For example, the dataframe is: Dec 17, 2020 · I hope it wasn't asked before, at least I couldn't find. ArrayType class and applying some SQL functions on the array columns with examples. With array_contains, you can easily determine whether a specific element is present in an array column, providing a We can also interpret this as: the function will walk ahead on the string, from the start position, until it gets a substring that is 10 characters long. Edit: This is for Spark 2. Nov 21, 2025 · To convert a string column (StringType) to an array column (ArrayType) in PySpark, you can use the split() function from the pyspark. str | string or Column The column whose substrings will be extracted. replace(src, search, replace=None) [source] # Replaces all occurrences of search with replace. It returns the matched substring, or an empty string if there is no match. reduce the number of rows in a DataFrame). Let's extract the first 3 characters from the framework column: pyspark. Sep 9, 2021 · In this article, we are going to see how to get the substring from the PySpark Dataframe column and how to create the new column and put the substring in that newly created column. In the example below, we are extracting the substring that starts at the second character (index 2) and ends at the sixth character (index 6) in the string. Summary of Best Practices for PySpark Filtering Efficient and accurate filtering is central to data preparation in DataFrame manipulation. These snippets are licensed under the CC0 1. substring(str: ColumnOrName, pos: int, len: int) → pyspark. Here is the syntax: regexp_extract(df. Introduction to regexp_extract_all function The regexp_extract_all function in PySpark is a powerful tool for extracting multiple occurrences of a pattern from a string column. Example 4: Usage of array_contains with an array column containing null values. Aug 19, 2025 · In this PySpark article, you will learn how to apply a filter on DataFrame columns of string, arrays, and struct types by using single and multiple conditions and also using isin() with PySpark (Python Spark) examples. pyspark. Using contains vs. functions module. col_name. 3. Learn data transformations, string manipulation, and more in the cheat sheet. Nov 10, 2021 · This solution also worked for me when I needed to check if a list of strings were present in just a substring of the column (i. Below is the working example for when it contains. Jun 6, 2025 · The like() function in PySpark is used to filter rows based on pattern matching using wildcard characters, similar to SQL’s LIKE operator. Nov 5, 2025 · In Spark & PySpark, contains () function is used to match a column value contains in a literal string (matches on part of the string), this is mostly used to filter rows on DataFrame. functions provides a function split() to split DataFrame string Column into multiple columns. An accompanying workbook can be found on Databricks community edition. 0 Universal License. types. Oct 12, 2023 · This tutorial explains how to filter for rows in a PySpark DataFrame that contain one of multiple values, including an example. Column. Jul 30, 2009 · array array_agg array_append array_compact array_contains array_distinct array_except array_insert array_intersect array_join array_max array_min array_position array_prepend array_remove array_repeat array_size array_sort array_union arrays_overlap arrays_zip ascii asin asinh assert_true atan atan2 atanh avg base64 between bigint bin binary pyspark. This can be achieved by using the “not like” or “not rlike” functions, which allow users to specify a pattern to be excluded from the filtered Aug 12, 2023 · PySpark SQL Functions' regexp_extract(~) method extracts a substring using regular expression. Nov 3, 2023 · This comprehensive guide will walk through array_contains () usage for filtering, performance tuning, limitations, scalability, and even dive into the internals behind array matching in Spark SQL. Detailed tutorial with real-time examples. Oct 7, 2021 · For checking if a single string is contained in rows of one column. String functions can be applied to string columns or literals to perform various operations such as concatenation, substring extraction, padding, case conversions, and pattern matching with regular expressions. if you try to use Column type for the second argument you get “TypeError: Column is not iterable”. Jul 21, 2025 · Comparison with contains (): Unlike contains(), which only supports simple substring searches, rlike() enables complex regex-based queries. May 28, 2024 · The PySpark substring() function extracts a portion of a string column in a DataFrame. functions module provides string functions to work with strings for manipulation and data processing. Apr 17, 2025 · PySpark’s SQL module supports ARRAY_CONTAINS, allowing you to filter array columns using SQL syntax. Nov 3, 2023 · In this comprehensive guide, I‘ll show you how to use PySpark‘s substring () to effortlessly extract substrings from large datasets. contains(other) [source] # Contains the other element. Returns null if either of the arguments are null. Let us look at different ways in which we can find a substring from one or more columns of a PySpark dataframe. Jul 10, 2025 · PySpark expr() is a SQL function to execute SQL-like expressions and to use an existing DataFrame column value as an expression argument to Pyspark built-in functions. idx | int The group from which to extract values. regexp_extract(col, pattern, groupIdx): Extracts a match from a string using a regex pattern. It also explains how to filter DataFrames with array columns (i. I want to iterate through each element and fetch only string prior to hyphen and create another column. replace # pyspark. It can also be used to filter data. functions import regexp_replace newDf = df. Oct 13, 2025 · PySpark pyspark. I want to subset my dataframe so that only rows that contain specific key words I'm looking for in 'original_problem' field is returned. Consult the examples below for clarification. Jul 9, 2022 · Spark SQL functions contains and instr can be used to check if a string contains a string. Nov 16, 2025 · When processing massive datasets, efficient and accurate string manipulation is paramount. When used these functions with filter (), it filters DataFrame rows based on a column’s initial and final characters. These enable efficient string manipulation in Spark SQL queries, facilitating tasks such as data cleansing, transformation, and analysis. In this comprehensive guide, we‘ll cover all aspects of using the contains() function in PySpark for your substring search needs. Apr 17, 2025 · Diving Straight into Filtering Rows by Substring in a PySpark DataFrame Filtering rows in a PySpark DataFrame where a column contains a specific substring is a key technique for data engineers using Apache Spark. The syntax is as follows: Nov 4, 2023 · Overview of pyspark. It is particularly useful when you need to extract multiple matches from a string and store them in an array. For Python users, related PySpark operations are discussed at PySpark DataFrame String Manipulation and other blogs. Nov 11, 2025 · In this comprehensive guide, we’ll demystify substring filtering in PySpark, explore the most common methods to achieve it, and dive deep into solving the "Column object not callable" error. Apr 27, 2025 · This document covers techniques for working with array columns and other collection data types in PySpark. from pyspark. This is especially useful when you want to match strings using wildcards such as % (any sequence of characters) and _ (a single character). Learn how to use PySpark string functions such as contains (), startswith (), substr (), and endswith () to filter and transform string columns in DataFrames. (for example, "abc" is contained in "abcdef"), the following code is useful: Aug 19, 2025 · PySpark startswith() and endswith() are string functions that are used to check if a string or column begins with a specified string and if a string or column ends with a specified string, respectively. sql. The substring function takes three arguments: The column name from which you want to extract the substring. Otherwise, returns False. I'm trying to exclude rows where Key column does not contain 'sd' value. Oct 12, 2023 · This tutorial explains how to filter a PySpark DataFrame for rows that contain a specific string, including an example. 4 Apr 4, 2024 · PySpark is a powerful tool for data analysis and manipulation that allows users to filter for specific values in a dataset. df. contains The contains function allows you to match strings or substrings within a databricks column as part of a filter. Nov 2, 2023 · This tutorial explains how to select only columns that contain a specific string in a PySpark DataFrame, including an example. vukcp wmjkgy vxnqk ddmcae kpgrwz jvfzhb pbnfh abuy wbsbkt eigx jlibqvj kczo jkg albn pnzx