> For the complete MongoDB documentation index, see www.mongodb.com/docs/llms.txt

# Query Documents

Use the [`db.collection.find()`](https://www.mongodb.com/docs/manual/reference/method/db.collection.find.md#mongodb-method-db.collection.find) method in the MongoDB Shell to query documents in a collection.

The examples on this page reference the MongoDB [sample dataset](https://www.mongodb.com/docs/atlas/sample-data/). To learn more about setting up deployments and populate a cluster with the sample data, see [Get Started with MongoDB.](https://www.mongodb.com/docs/get-started.md#std-label-unified-get-started)

## Read All Documents in a Collection

To read all documents in the collection, pass an empty document as the query filter parameter to the find method. The query filter parameter determines the select criteria.

**Example:**

To return all documents from the `sample_mflix.movies` collection:

```javascript
use sample_mflix

db.movies.find()
```

This operation is equivalent to the following SQL statement:

```sql
SELECT * FROM movies
```

## Specify Equality Condition

To select documents which match an equality condition, specify the condition as a `<field>:<value>` pair in the [query filter document.](https://www.mongodb.com/docs/manual/document/#query-filter-documents)

**Example:**

To return all movies where the `title` equals `Titanic` from the `sample_mflix.movies` collection:

```javascript
use sample_mflix

db.movies.find( { "title": "Titanic" } )
```

This operation corresponds to the following SQL statement:

```sql
SELECT * FROM movies WHERE title = "Titanic"
```

## Specify Conditions Using Query Operators

Use [query operators](https://www.mongodb.com/docs/manual/reference/mql/query-predicates.md#std-label-query-selectors) in a [query filter document](https://www.mongodb.com/docs/manual/core/document/#document-query-filter) to perform more complex comparisons and evaluations. Query operators in a query filter document have the following form:

```javascript
{ <field1>: { <operator1>: <value1> }, ... }
```

**Example:**

To return all movies from the `sample_mflix.movies` collection which are either rated `PG` or `PG-13`:

```javascript
use sample_mflix

db.movies.find( { rated: { $in: [ "PG", "PG-13" ] } } )
```

This operation corresponds to the following SQL statement:

```sql
SELECT * FROM movies WHERE rated in ("PG", "PG-13")
```

**Note:**

Although you can express this query using the [`$or`](https://www.mongodb.com/docs/manual/reference/operator/query/or.md#mongodb-query-op.-or) operator, use the [`$in`](https://www.mongodb.com/docs/manual/reference/operator/query/in.md#mongodb-query-op.-in) operator rather than the [`$or`](https://www.mongodb.com/docs/manual/reference/operator/query/or.md#mongodb-query-op.-or) operator when performing equality checks on the same field.

## Specify Logical Operators (AND / OR)

A compound query can specify conditions for more than one field in the collection's documents. Implicitly, a logical `AND` conjunction connects the clauses of a compound query so that the query selects the documents in the collection that match all the conditions.

**Example:**

To return movies which were released in Mexico **and** have an IMDB rating of at least 7:

```javascript
use sample_mflix

db.movies.find( { countries: "Mexico", "imdb.rating": { $gte: 7 } } )
```

Use the [`$or`](https://www.mongodb.com/docs/manual/reference/operator/query/or.md#mongodb-query-op.-or) operator to specify a compound query that joins each clause with a logical `OR` conjunction so that the query selects the documents in the collection that match at least one condition.

**Example:**

To return movies from the `sample_mflix.movies` collection which were released in 2010 **and** *either* won at least 5 awards or have a `genre` of `Drama`:

```javascript
use sample_mflix

db.movies.find( {
     year: 2010,
     $or: [ { "awards.wins": { $gte: 5 } }, { genres: "Drama" } ]
} )
```

## Read Behavior

To learn more about the specific behavior of reading documents, see [Behavior.](https://www.mongodb.com/docs/manual/tutorial/query-documents/#behavior)

## Additional Query Tutorials

For additional query examples, see:

- [Query Embedded Documents](https://www.mongodb.com/docs/manual/tutorial/query-embedded-documents/)

- [Query an Array](https://www.mongodb.com/docs/manual/tutorial/query-arrays/)

- [Query an Array of Embedded Documents](https://www.mongodb.com/docs/manual/tutorial/query-array-of-documents/)

- [Project Fields to Return from Query](https://www.mongodb.com/docs/manual/tutorial/project-fields-from-query-results/)

- [Query for Null or Missing Fields](https://www.mongodb.com/docs/manual/tutorial/query-for-null-fields/)