Option Compare Statement

Used at module level to declare the default comparison method to use when string data is compared.

Syntax

Option Compare {Binary | Text | Database}

Remarks

If used, the Option Compare statement must appear in a module before any procedures.

The Option Compare statement specifies the string comparison method (Binary, Text, or Database) for a module. If a module doesn't include an Option Compare statement, the default text comparison method is Binary.

Option Compare Binary results in string comparisons based on a sort order derived from the internal binary representations of the characters. In Microsoft Windows, sort order is determined by the code page. A typical binary sort order is shown in the following example:

A < B < E < Z < a < b < e < z < À < Ê < Ø < à < ê < ø

Option Compare Text results in string comparisons based on a case-insensitive text sort order determined by your system's locale. When the same characters are sorted using Option Compare Text, the following text sort order is produced:

(A=a) < ( À=à) < (B=b) < (E=e) < (Ê=ê) < (Z=z) < (Ø=ø) 

Option Compare Database can only be used within Microsoft Access. This results in string comparisons based on the sort order determined by the locale ID of the database where the string comparisons occur.