The SQL part stands for Structured Query Language. MySQL is touted by the MySQL homepage as "the world's most popular open source database" and is basically an open source development of the SQL language designed to provide fast access to stored data.

A database is an organized collection of information available to be searched or queried in order to provide specific results. MySQL, noted for its speed, reliability and flexibility, can be used with web languages like PHP to generate dynamic web pages which depend heavily on storing, deleting, updating and retrieving data (such as message boards).

MySQL is usually supported in higher-end web hosting packages although some basic packages will include it free of charge.