SQL Server STUFF() Function

Delete 3 characters from a string, starting in position 1, and then insert "HTML" in position 1:

SELECT STUFF('SQL Tutorial', 1, 3, 'HTML');

Definition and Usage

The STUFF() function deletes a part of a string and then inserts another part into the string, starting at a specified position.

Tip: Also look at the REPLACE() function.

STUFF( string, start, length, new_string)

Parameter	Description
string	Required. The string to be modified
start	Required. The position in string to start to delete some characters
length	Required. The number of characters to delete from string
new_string	Required. The new string to insert into string at the start position

Works in:	SQL Server (starting with 2008), Azure SQL Database, Azure SQL Data Warehouse, Parallel Data Warehouse

Delete 1 character from a string, starting in position 13, and then insert " is fun!" in position 13:

SELECT STUFF('SQL Tutorial!', 13, 1, ' is fun!');