Reasons Why PHP Is Still a Developer’s Choice For Web Development
In today’s fast-paced digital era, as more and more individuals join the online community, it becomes increasingly vital for websites to be lightning-fast in their responsiveness. This urgency is further compounded by the growing population of mobile users who frequently encounter sluggish network connections. To put it simply, websites need to step up their game and deliver swift performance.
Do you know, slow performance and slow website speed are one of the significant reasons that businesses face high bounce rates? And if your website is one of them and you are losing business then you must switch to a different programming language with reliable and stable frameworks and plugins to help your website grow and scale with time.
To your amazement, PHP can do it for you effortlessly. Today, more than 75 percent of websites are backed up by the potential of PHP.
Also, the advancement and new releases of PHP have considerably improved the website’s speed and helped developers with a wide range of features for developing fully-fledged Web Development with PHP.
If you are a web developer and business owner who wants to get hold of PHP, its benefits, and frameworks, and how it has helped businesses with its amazing capabilities, then you are on the right track.
Let’s explore more.
Introduction to PHP Web Development and its Versions
PHP is essentially a scripting language called Hyper-Text Preprocessor, commonly utilized on the server side for creating a diverse range of web solutions. But the below aspects make PHP different from others.
- Scripting Language: Interpreted at runtime, no compilation needed. Can be server-side or client-side.
- Server-Side: PHP interpreted on a web server, outputs plain HTML to the browser.
- Open-Source: Freely available for download and use.
- Object-Oriented: PHP5 introduced Object-Oriented Programming (OOP) for complex, reusable web apps.
- Fast: PHP uses memory efficiently, up to 382% faster than Python and 195% faster than Ruby.
- Simple: Easy-to-understand syntax for building from scratch or using existing frameworks.
- Well Supported: Supports leading databases and servers, portable across platforms. Compatible with frameworks and libraries.
PHP is a flexible language with eight data types for variables. It doesn’t enforce strict rules for variable declaration, allowing dynamic typing. Variables begin with a dollar sign ($) and can have any name starting with a letter. PHP supports both strong and weak typing for conversion.
Over time, PHP got better with many improved versions for a better development experience for developers to build interactive websites to amplify user experience. If you are starting to build a website, better use the latest version to leverage its capability to the fullest.
The below table depicts how the PHP version got better with key features.
PHP Version And Its Key Features
Readonly classes, new functions, and classes, constants in traits, type system improvements, new random extensions, new built-in parameter attribute
PHP 8.1 (PHP current version)
Enumerations, read-only properties, noreturn type, new in initializers, final class constants, fibers (asynchronous PHP)
PHP 8.0
Major performance improvements, just-in-time compilation, nullsafe operator, match expression, constructor property promotion, union types, mixed type, static return type
PHP 7.4
Custom object serialization, null coalescing assignment operator, reflection for references, foreign function interface
PHP 7.3
Reference assignment for destructured arrays, flexible heredoc, and nowdoc syntax
PHP 7.2
Object type hint, abstract function overriding
PHP 7.1
Void return type, class constant visibility
PHP 7.0
Major performance improvements, null coalescing operator, return types
PHP 5.6
Variadic functions, argument unpacking
Advantages of Web Development With PHP
PHP, just like other marvelous open-source technologies, brings various opportunities to any business venturing into the realm of web solutions. Not only does it offer a remarkable cost-benefit proposition, but its widespread popularity also ensures an abundance of skilled programmers who possess extensive expertise in PHP development.
Let’s take a look at its benefits.
- Highly scalable
PHP is the ideal choice for large-scale projects, providing excellent support for handling complex tasks efficiently. Prominent platforms like Facebook, WordPress, and Yahoo were built using PHP.
- Free and open source
While open-source programming languages have become commonplace for developers in the 21st century, they offer a distinctive benefit to companies aiming to expand their PHP development workflow.
PHP is freely available without any costs for downloading or licensing. This accessible distribution has fostered a thriving international community that is extensive and actively engaged. The consequence of a mature open-source software community spanning almost thirty years is the consistent improvement of functionality and a growing wealth of resources and tools. Developers are no longer required to start from scratch because numerous practical, ready-to-use PHP-based solutions are being regularly introduced each year.
- Strong community support
The PHP community is renowned for its robust and active support. If you encounter challenges during development, you can rely on the expertise of software developers from around the globe who are readily available to assist you.
- Simple learning curve
PHP stands out as one of the easier programming languages to learn. Its syntax is relatively rigid but forgiving, making it accessible to beginners. Furthermore, a wealth of libraries and resources are accessible to optimize your code for speed and efficiency.
- Exceptional speed
PHP excels in terms of speed, outperforming languages like Python. Recent versions (7 and above) have witnessed further improvements, providing lightning-fast performance. Benchmarks have indicated that a PHP web page loads in approximately 17.81 seconds, emphasizing its impressive speed. But with the recent development in PHP 8 and above versions, speed can outrank Python’s capabilities in terms of speed.
- Variety of Database Options
PHP offers compatibility with various databases, including MySQL, mSQL, PostgreSQL, SQLite, and MS SQL, providing developers with the freedom to choose the most suitable option for their application. It also supports non-relational databases like MongoDB, ElasticSearch, and Redis.
PHP enables websites to load faster compared to other web development technologies. It boasts a significant speed advantage over Python, making it an ideal choice for efficient website performance. This faster loading time contributes to improved SEO rankings, customer satisfaction, and increased user retention rates.
- Higher Customer Retention Rates
With PHP’s rapid data processing capabilities, page load time is reduced, which is crucial for retaining users. Studies show that visitors tend to leave a website if it takes more than three seconds to load. PHP-based applications load pages quickly, leading to higher customer retention rates and a more intuitive user experience.
- Rich Codebase
PHP offers a vast and robust codebase encompassing popular web development stacks and platforms. It’s simplicity and user-friendly nature makes it accessible even to individuals without extensive technological knowledge. This extensive codebase empowers developers to leverage existing resources and frameworks effectively, streamlining the development process and enabling efficient coding practices.
Limitations of PHP Web Development
Despite PHP’s usefulness in web development, it possesses drawbacks that hinder its dominance in the field and could harm future software and business implementation. Let’s explore these disadvantages impartially.
- Possible Decline in Popularity
PHP may lose popularity among developers, especially beginners, due to its code-like syntax compared to more beginner-friendly languages like Python. Novice developers tend to prefer learning Python as their first language, resulting in fewer developers adding PHP to their skillset. As a consequence, the number of PHP specialists may decline, potentially leading to increased costs for products built on this language.
- Incompatibility with Advanced Technologies
If your project requires advanced technologies such as machine learning, artificial intelligence, or big data, PHP may not be the most suitable choice. While PHP has some libraries available for these purposes, it falls short in comparison to languages like Python when it comes to developing web applications with advanced functionalities. Therefore, if your web application requires machine learning or may need it in the future, PHP might not be the optimal option.
- Security Concerns
PHP’s open-source nature and the accessibility of its source code have raised concerns about the security of PHP-based products. The ability for anyone to view the code, including potential bugs, creates a risk that malicious programmers can exploit. However, it’s important to note that this drawback is not exclusive to PHP and is a common concern with open-source technologies.
- Limited Debugging Tools
PHP has been criticized for its limited debugging tools, which can make error handling more challenging compared to other scripting languages. Developers often face difficulties in effectively tracking and searching for errors in PHP, leading to frustration and time-consuming bug fixes.
- The inflexibility of PHP’s Core Behavior
One drawback of PHP is its inability to modify or change the core behavior of the language’s framework. This lack of flexibility can limit the creativity of web developers and make it challenging to achieve new outcomes when building web applications.
However, PHP comes with some limitations but these cannot stop developers to use PHP as a significant programming language for developing amazing websites.
So, PHP is not going anyway soon.
- Used by top companies, like WordPress, Facebook, Wikipedia, etc.
- Ever evolving with new features and frameworks to make PHP lead the trends.
- Strong community support.
Despite its declining popularity, it is still better than other programming languages. Let’s see how.
How is PHP different from other languages?
PHP vs. JavaScript
JavaScript is the top programming language, popular and as old as PHP. It’s mainly for clients, unlike PHP, but Node.js and frameworks let developers use JavaScript for servers. Both languages have large communities and are flexible, but only JavaScript supports full-stack development. PHP is simpler to learn and maintain, reducing costs.
PHP vs Python
Python is a highly popular language praised for its simplicity and flexibility. It’s widely used for data science and AI but lags behind PHP for web development. Python has a growing community, many frameworks, and libraries. However, it lacks PHP’s level of database connectivity and support.
PHP vs. Ruby
Ruby, an open-source language existing since the 90s, powers the widely-used web development framework ‘Ruby on Rails.’ It boasts an elegant syntax, and seamless performance, but is perceived as harder to learn than PHP with less community backing.
Today, PHP has been used more than these languages in different industries. Let’s see what applications can be made using PHP.
Applications of Custom PHP Development
PHP is a versatile programming language with numerous practical applications. Some of the common use cases of PHP include.
Web Pages and Web-Based Applications
- Web pages and applications require customization, interactivity, online transactions, and database integration.
- PHP’s three-tier architecture offers a reliable solution for achieving these features.
- Over 82% of websites use PHP for server-side programming.
- More than 244 million websites are built using PHP.
- PHP is widely used in web-based enterprise applications and Facebook applications.
E-Commerce Applications
- PHP, along with frameworks like CodeIgniter and CakePHP, enables the quick and easy creation of e-commerce applications.
- Leading e-commerce platforms such as OpenCart, Magento, and PrestaShop are built on PHP.
- PHP empowers businesses of all sizes to sell products online effectively.
GUI-Based Applications
- PHP can be used to create applications with desktop Graphical User Interfaces (GUI).
- Tools like PHP-GTK-2, DevelStudio, and ZZEE PHP GUI enable scripting in PHP and create executable applications.
Flash Creation
- PHP, with the help of open-source libraries like Ming, enables the creation of .swf format movies with Flash features.
- PHP allows easy integration of Flash essentials like login forms and email forms into dynamic web pages.
Image Processing and Graphic Design
- PHP is not limited to managing text content but can also operate on images.
- PHP integrates with various image processing libraries for rotation, cropping, resizing, and thumbnail generation.
- This feature is essential for building durable websites and web applications.
Data Representation
- PHP, using tools like Image and Graph, can create graphs, charts, and other graphical representations.
- This feature finds applications in client-side desktop applications, e-commerce websites, and other data presentation scenarios.
Web Content Management Systems (CMS)
- PHP supports various databases and interacts with other services using protocols like IMAP, LDAP, POP3, and more.
- Popular CMS platforms like WordPress, Joomla, Drupal, and Moodle are created using PHP.
- PHP powers user-facing parts of Facebook and other CMS solutions.
Talking about CMS (content management system), today, the most popular CMS is using PHP for its efficient working. I will highlight some of the PHP-based CMS systems.
Popular CMS (Content Management System) using PHP
Discover the power of a content management system (CMS), a remarkable online software application that empowers users to effortlessly create and handle digital content, even without specialized expertise. Imagine being able to craft and control your website without the need for HTML knowledge. That’s precisely what a CMS allows you to do. But it doesn’t stop there. Some CMS platforms focus on asset management, enabling the seamless organization of online photo albums or effortless document sharing.
In the dynamic landscape of CMS technology, PHP has emerged as the go-to framework for most CMS platforms. Prominent names like WordPress, Drupal, Magento, Joomla, and many others utilize PHP to its full potential, presenting developers with an array of cost-effective options for building captivating websites and robust eCommerce platforms. Below is the percentage of websites using PHP.
Among these PHP CMS powerhouses, WordPress shines brightest. With a staggering 76.4% market share and a staggering 75 million active websites under its belt, WordPress has become synonymous with CMS excellence. Its adaptability knows no bounds, accommodating websites of varying complexity, ranging from standard blogs to expansive eCommerce empires.
WordPress
Today, many top giants of the market are using WordPress for creating an amazing and highly interactive websites along with curating engaging content with various widgets. Below are some companies that are using WordPress without any doubt.
For next-gen WordPress development, you can connect with a development services company.
Magento
Magento, a PHP-based open-source e-commerce platform, incorporates PHP frameworks like Laminas and Symfony. Notable websites using Magento are listed below.
Joomla
Did you know that Joomla, the incredible Content Management System (CMS), has taken the web world by storm? With an impressive market share of over 6.1% and counting, Joomla has become a true powerhouse, fueling a vast number of websites worldwide.
This beloved CMS is hailed for its unparalleled blend of comfort and flexibility, making it the go-to choice for individuals and businesses alike. So, whether you’re seeking a seamless user experience or the freedom to customize and adapt your website to your heart’s content, Joomla has got you covered. Join the Joomla community and unlock a world of endless possibilities for your online presence!
All these development is only possible and made easier with a wide range of PHP frameworks offering several features to create a real-time and highly responsive web application. So what are these frameworks, and which one is highly recommended?
Popular PHP Frameworks
PHP frameworks are platforms for creating web applications, offering libraries that reduce the need for developers to write code from scratch. They provide a solid base for PHP web development, streamlining the process and minimizing uncertainties in getting started.
There are several benefits of using PHP frameworks.
- Faster development
- Improved performance
- Less code required
- Wide range of libraries
- Ensure security
We have listed some of the commonly used PHP frameworks with their benefits.
Laravel
Since 2011, Laravel has emerged as the leading PHP framework, offering speed and security for complex applications.
Reasons to use laravel-
- Laravel Homestead: Easy to start, pre-packaged Vagrant box for a virtual development environment.
- Features of Laravel: Simplifies complex app configuration, and supports authentication, encryption, routing, MVC architecture, and more.
- Laravel Artisan Console: Automates tasks, and generates boilerplate code for faster development.
- Laravel: Expressive, fast, secure, flexible, and adaptable to web development trends.
Symfony
It is ideal for scalable web apps, offering flexible modular components with abundant features.
Reasons to use Symfony-
- Easy installation and configuration on various platforms
- Ideal for developing enterprise-level applications
- Reusable PHP components
- Independent database engine
- Stable and reliable
- Adheres to web best practices and design patterns
- Highly flexible and supports integration with vendor libraries
Zend
Zend, a versatile and open-source framework, utilizes object-oriented principles and offers extensibility through inheritance and interfaces. It is ideal for developing robust enterprise web apps and adhering to PHP best practices. However, Zend is being replaced by Laminas, and migrating to Laminas is strongly advised due to the discontinuation of Zend updates.
Reasons to use Zend-
- Structured and reusable code in Zend
- Ideal for complex enterprise-level applications
- Key features: MVC components, cloud API, encryption, session management
- Integration with third-party libraries and templates
- Selective use of components
- Excellent performance, security, and extensibility
- Detailed documentation and a large developer community
Popular PHP IDEs
Writing efficient code quickly is a vital skill for software developers to stay competitive and maintain productivity. IDEs are essential tools for programmers to efficiently write, execute, and run code. PHP editors, for instance, provide helpful features like syntax highlighting, auto-complete, and auto-fill suggestions, aiding developers during coding. Similar to how writers rely on text editors such as Microsoft Word, programmers utilize IDEs to simplify their work.
Not only is the wide range of editors but there is something else that makes PHP apart from other languages, and that is the LAMP stack.
PHP and the LAMP Stack
LAMP is an acronym that represents a powerful combination of software components for building high-performance web applications. It comprises Linux, Apache, MySQL, and PHP, each playing a crucial role in the overall stack.
- Linux serves as the operating system, offering a free and open-source solution that has been in existence since the mid-1990s. It enjoys widespread usage across various industries due to its flexibility and extensive configuration options.
- Apache acts as the web server, handling requests and delivering web assets through HTTP, making the application accessible via a simple web URL. Maintained by an open community, Apache is a mature and feature-rich server that powers a significant portion of websites on the internet.
- MySQL serves as the database, providing an open-source relational database management system to store application data. It employs the SQL language, enabling easy querying of structured business domains. MySQL is capable of handling large and complex websites effectively.
- PHP functions as the programming language, working in conjunction with Apache to create dynamic web pages. While HTML alone cannot perform dynamic processes like database retrieval, PHP allows you to insert code within specific sections of a page to enable dynamic functionality. PHP is designed for efficiency, offering a seamless development experience without the need for compilation. Alternatively, Perl or Python can be used instead of PHP.
The LAMP architecture follows a layered structure, with Linux forming the foundation. On top of Linux, there are Apache and MySQL, followed by PHP. Although PHP is typically associated with the presentation layer, it is integrated within Apache.
Examples of top websites leveraging PHP
PHP empowers developers to craft dynamic and engaging web pages, applications, and eCommerce platforms. It excels in various web-related tasks, such as generating dynamic content, handling email communication, collecting user input through web forms, and managing cookies. With PHP’s ability to store, manipulate, and retrieve data from databases, it serves as a solid foundation for creating a wide range of web applications. These include content management systems (CMS), custom online databases, eCommerce websites, gaming applications, and vibrant community portals.
By harnessing the power of PHP, businesses can deliver a robust digital experience that strengthens their brand-customer relationship and enhances their competitive advantage. PHP unlocks unparalleled development opportunities, enabling the creation of compelling online experiences that captivate users and drive business growth.
Now, let’s explore some real-world examples that showcase PHP’s capabilities in action.
Facebook, a widely-known social media web application boasting over 1.49 billion active users, was primarily developed using PHP, making it notorious in the industry.
Since its establishment in 2004, Facebook has leveraged PHP’s ability to swiftly generate dynamic content.
During its inception, the core Facebook application code was entirely written in PHP by both Zuckerberg and Moskowitz. This decision had a ripple effect, leading numerous present-day tech companies to also adopt PHP.
In 2010, Facebook introduced HipHop for PHP (HPHPc), a transpiler that converts PHP code into C++ code and then compiles it into an executable binary. However, in 2013, HipHop for PHP was phased out and replaced by the HipHop Virtual Machine (HHVM).
Wikipedia
Wikipedia, with its captivating content and vast pool of knowledge, stands tall as one of the internet’s most frequented hubs for public information. Powering this digital giant is PHP, a dynamic programming language, working in tandem with MySQL/MariaDB, a robust database backend. Together, they form the backbone of Wikipedia, ensuring a seamless and immersive experience for millions of curious minds who delve into its virtual pages.
Tumblr
The Tumblr community, known as the birthplace of memes, has created more than 325 million blogs and attracts 555 million visitors every month.
In 2016, Tumblr switched to PHP7, resulting in significant performance improvements and the ability to incorporate new language features such as scalar type hints and return type declarations.
Slack
Back in 2009, Slack emerged as the ultimate go-to app for team communications. With a valuation of approximately 4 billion dollars and a whopping 3 million active daily users, it quickly became the go-to platform for seamless collaboration.
To ensure their workflow efficiency reaches its peak and web requests are lightning fast, Slack strategically employs PHP in their backend. By harnessing the power of this dynamic programming language, they not only accelerate their operations but also minimize any potential program defects that might hinder their users’ experience.
Slack’s remarkable rise as the preferred team communications app, coupled with its clever utilization of PHP in its backend, truly exemplifies its commitment to enhancing productivity and delivering a flawless user experience.
Mailchimp
A prominent player in the email marketing industry utilizes scalable PHP databases in their backend, which is unsurprising. Since 2014, MailChimp has been utilizing PHP to efficiently dispatch over 400 million emails for their impressive user base of 7 million registered users.
WordPress
The fact that the biggest content management system utilizes PHP to communicate with databases and retrieve data is not surprising. PHP is employed to obtain important elements from the database and present them as static HTML. Consequently, numerous users who lack extensive coding knowledge can easily create or utilize templates and drag-and-drop website UI components.
Top PHP Trends to Embrace in 2023
Discover the enduring allure of PHP development services in the dynamic year of 2023, where its popularity remains steadfast even in the face of countless cutting-edge technrace yourself as we unveil the captivating reasons why PHP continues to thrive, igniting motivation within you to harness its power in your projects.
- PHP and Cloud-Based Web App Development
Cloud infrastructures are increasingly adopted by businesses to address data storage concerns. A study reveals the strong compatibility between cloud services and PHP. In Q3 2019, cloud infrastructure services reached a value of $27.5 billion, growing by 37% from the previous quarter. PHP, preferred for its affordability and ability to create scalable and secure online applications, is used in 78.9% of websites and apps.
- PHP Frameworks for IoT Integration
PHP, a popular technology among IoT developers, enables innovative ways to interact with the digital world. Industries like real estate leverage IoT to enhance their products. PHP, combined with IoT devices and web development tools, powers smart homes, allowing remote control of appliances. Symfony and Laravel, PHP frameworks tailored for IoT implementation, are ideal choices.
- PHP-Powered Smart Chatbots
Chatbots have gained popularity as efficient customer service tools. PHP developers now implement intelligent chatbots that provide human-like conversations, enhancing client communication even after business hours.
- PHP for Website Security
To combat the growing threat of cyberattacks, businesses must protect their websites. PHP development tools offer robust cybersecurity measures. PHP frameworks like Phalcon and CodeIgniter provide caching, security, and encryption features, enabling businesses to build secure websites and web applications.
- Voice Search Optimization with PHP
Voice search optimization is a prevailing trend in PHP web development. With the rise of digital voice assistants, integrating speech functionality into websites has become crucial. PHP frameworks like CakePHP, CodeIgniter, and Laravel empower developers to create feature-rich web applications with user-friendly interfaces.
Develop a next-gen PHP app with OnGraph
PHP is a friendly programming language that numerous developers are proficient in, enabling them to assist you promptly. There exist exceptional PHP frameworks such as Symfony, Laravel, Aura, and CodeIgniter, as well as CMS platforms like Drupal and WordPress, which can greatly enhance your PHP web application development. However, the negative perception of PHP often stems from the prevalence of poor-quality code. It is important not to judge PHP based on the actions of its least skilled practitioners.
To meet the demands and expectations of your customers for a fast, user-friendly, and feature-rich experience, you require a reliable PHP development partner. With over 20 years of experience in PHP Web Development Services, Net Solutions is well-equipped to meet your needs. Our highly skilled team, proficient in core PHP and CMS, has successfully designed and delivered customized websites, eCommerce stores, apps, and portals that enable businesses to grow rapidly and remain future-proof.
Whether you require a new PHP application or need assistance with maintaining an existing platform and performing security updates, OnGraph can provide the best PHP development services.
