How to delete from multiple tables in MySQL?

A full toolkit for multi-table deletion

Using joins and table aliases

For multiple tables with interconnected relationships, aliases provide clarity. Here's a syntax that retains your database's zen garden calm, even in the face of complex deletes:

DELETE t1, t2 // Keep calm and alias on!
FROM table1 AS t1
INNER JOIN table2 AS t2 ON t1.id = t2.fk_id
INNER JOIN table3 AS t3 ON t1.id = t3.fk_id
WHERE t1.condition = 'value'; // SQL is basically yoga for your data. Inhale condition, exhale DELETE.
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Deploying USING to simplify joins

Okay, this is genius. We can make our joins simpler and more readable with the USING clause!

DELETE FROM table1, table2 // Who knew we could do so much with so little?
USING table1
INNER JOIN table2 USING (common_column)
WHERE table1.column = 'criteria'; // SQL kung fu in action. Minimal effort, maximum impact.
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Getting smart with foreign key constraints

Foreign key constraints aid in automatic data cleanup. Put them to work with ON DELETE CASCADE for ninja-level efficiency:

ALTER TABLE child_table
ADD CONSTRAINT fk_name
FOREIGN KEY (parent_id)
REFERENCES parent_table (id)
ON DELETE CASCADE; // A cascade a day keeps orphaned records away.
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With such arrangement, whole families of dependent records disappear in one swift action—like a database version of “Avengers: Infinity War”.

Traps, workarounds, and pro-tips

Dealing with special cases and syntax quirks

For those eclectic identifying names and keywords, use backticks (`) to ensure SQL doesn't lose its cool:

DELETE `order`, product
FROM `order`
JOIN product ON `order`.id = product.order_id
WHERE `order`.date < '2023-01-01'; // `'Escape'` from Alcatraz using backticks!
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Maintaining referential integrity

When dealing with complex foreign key relationships without ON DELETE CASCADE, you can use EXISTS, NOT EXISTS, IN, or NOT IN within subqueries to make your DELETE operation SQLly responsible:

DELETE FROM table1
WHERE id IN (SELECT fk_id FROM table2 WHERE condition = 'value'); // SQL: The last stand. Ensuring relational integrity one DELETE at a time.
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Touching base with version compatibility and error handling

Always cross-check your DELETE commands ‒ particularly with MySQL updates ‒ to make sure you’re speaking the right dialect of SQL. Also, error messages are like fortune cookies: they're there to guide you towards the path of resolution.