LINQ Include vs Join. Are they equivalent?

Question

I have used join in linq to join 2 tables. What is the difference between a join and Include. From what I see, they both behave the same.

    Include vs. Joi         


        

Answer 1

In a sense, yes. Include is implemented as a join. Depending on the nullability of the included link it is an inner or left join.

You can always build an include yourself by using a join, like this:

db.Users.Select(u => new { u, u.City })

This is an "include" for the user's city. It manifests itself as a SQL join.