Most efficient MySQL solution for querying against coordinates

Question

I have a database of geolocalized objects:

• id
• latitude
• longitude

I am querying the database to fetch objects that are inside a box:

WHERE longitude >= - 33.83789
  AND longitude <= 33.837891
  AND latitude >= 4.214943
  AND latitude <= 40.979898

There is one index on: latitude, longitude.

Is there a more efficient way of storing/querying the database? Right now, depending of the box coordinates/objects density, query times vary from 0.1s to more than 1s.

I know about MySQL Spacial extension, but it seems a bit of work to use and I have no idea if it will be easier/more efficient.

Additional info: I am also planning of performing simple distance-based queries (fetch objects near a specified location) in the future.

Answer 1

Is there a more efficient way of storing/querying the database?

Absolulely, yes! Spatial extensions are exactly designed to solve this problem.

I know about MySQL Spacial extension, but it seems a bit of work to use and I have no idea if it will be easier/more efficient.

It's not easier (but it's not much harder), and it is more efficient. For large data sets it can be a lot more efficient.