MongoDB find() Method (original) (raw)

Last Updated : 5 May, 2026

The find() method retrieves documents from a MongoDB collection, supporting query filters, field projection, and query options to customize results while leveraging available indexes for efficient performance.

• **Query Operators: Supports comparison, logical, and element operators for complex queries.
• **Field Selection: Includes or excludes fields to reduce data transfer.
• **Index Usage: May use existing indexes (such as the default _id index) depending on the query planner.

**Syntax

db.collection_name.find(selection_criteria, projection,options)

• **db.collection_name.find(): Specifies the collection to retrieve documents from (the current database is implied by db).
• **selection_criteria (document): Filters documents by conditions. {} returns all documents.
• **projection (document): Includes or excludes specific fields in the result.
• **options (document): Supports additional parameters like sort, limit, and skip.

Examples of find() Method

Consider a collection called studentofgfg database which contains the following documents:

• **Database: gfg
• **Collections: students
• **Document: Three documents contain the details of the students.

Example 1: Find All Documents in a Collection

Find all student records from the "students" collection.

db.students.find()

**Output:

Example 2: Find Documents with a Specific Condition

Find all the students whose age is exactly 18.

db.students.find({age:18})

**Output:

Example 3: Using Nested Documents in Queries

Find student records from the "students" collection where the student's mathscore is 230and sciencescore is 234.

db.students.find({score:{math: 230, science: 234}})

**Output:

Example 4: Using Projection

Retrieve the names of all students while excluding the score field.

db.students.find({}, {score: 0 })

**Output:

Example 5: Sorting Results

Retrieve all student records sorted by age in ascending order.

db.students.find().sort({ age: 1 })

**Output:

Example 6: Limiting Results

The limit method restricts the number of documents returned to the specified value.

db.students.find().limit(2)

**Output: