PHP and Website Costs

When evaluating PHP frameworks for your next web project, it’s important to consider the potential UK website costs associated with your technology choice. This includes:

Hosting Costs

The hosting infrastructure required to run PHP applications can vary greatly depending on the complexity of your project. Basic PHP hosting on shared servers typically starts around £10 per month, while more advanced setups with dedicated servers, cloud hosting, caching, etc. can cost hundreds or thousands monthly.

The framework you choose will impact hosting needs. For example, Laravel has more server requirements than lighter options like CodeIgniter. Always factor hosting into framework comparisons.

Development Costs

The developer experience and learning curve of a framework also affects costs. Frameworks with steeper learning curves like Symfony may require more initial development time versus beginner-friendly options like Laravel.

Long term, highly skilled developers charge more hourly. So consider a framework’s availability of documentation, community support channels, and overall adoption within the PHP community.

Maintenance Costs

Over the lifetime of a web app, maintenance and additional feature development starts to dominate costs more than initial builds.

Frameworks promoting conventions, structure and best practices tend to reduce long term maintenance costs compared to fragmented, patchwork systems.

Introduction

PHP powers over 75% of all websites, thanks to being an open source, server-side scripting language perfectly suited for web development. PHP frameworks build on top of raw PHP, helping developers manage complexity and rapidly build secure, scalable applications.

This post compares five of the top PHP frameworks available today based on key criteria like performance, support, and learning curve. We make recommendations on the best frameworks available for both new and experienced PHP developers.

Overview of PHP Frameworks

Before diving into specific frameworks, let’s clarify what PHP frameworks are and why they can be useful:

What is a PHP Framework?

A PHP framework is an application development platform providing an organized structure as well as a collection of libraries and tools for developers to build web apps faster and easier.

They allow you to focus on writing application logic rather than dealing with foundational elements like request routing, session handling, templating, and databases.

Why Use a Framework?

The main benefits of using a mature, popular framework over raw PHP include:

  • Speeds development with out-of-the-box components
  • Promotes good practices and structure
  • Increases security with built-in protections
  • Improves scalability and performance
  • Large support community for help

Types of Frameworks

PHP frameworks fall into a few broad categories:

  • Full-stack frameworks: Provide tools for the entire application lifecycle. Examples are Laravel, Symfony, CakePHP.
  • Microframeworks: Minimalist approach focused on being simple and lightweight. Examples are Slim and Lumen.
  • CMS frameworks: Build custom websites on top of content management systems like WordPress or Drupal.

#1 Laravel

First released in 2011, Laravel has quickly become the most popular PHP framework, powering over 200,000 sites. The “Ruby on Rails” influence is clear both in Laravel’s syntax and its emphasis on programmer happiness and rapid application development.

Features and Capabilities

Some standout features include:

  • Expressive routing system
  • Powerful templating with Blade
  • Integrated unit testing capabilities
  • Supports job queues and scheduling
  • Robust object-relational mapping (ORM)
  • Follows MVC architectural pattern

Advantages

Some of the main advantages of Laravel include:

  • Excellent documentation makes it easy for beginners
  • Highly scalable and performant
  • Large open source community with plugins and tools
  • Expressive, elegant syntax that is natural to read
  • Highly customizable and extensible

Disadvantages

Potential downsides to consider:

  • Can feel bloated for smaller, simpler projects
  • Complex applications have a steep learning curve
  • Requires more server resources than lighter frameworks

#2 Symfony

First released in 2005, Symfony is the longest running framework on this list. It emphasizes flexibility, robustness and speed – making it well suited for medium to large enterprise applications.

Features and Capabilities

Some key features of Symfony include:

  • Utilizes many independent components
  • Powerful form and model handling
  • Built in API functionality
  • Allows PHP, YAML & XML configurations
  • Follows MVC structure with emphasis on being DRY (Don’t Repeat Yourself)

Advantages

Some advantages of Symfony are:

  • Very stable and reliable
  • Excellent performance for complex apps
  • Strict coding standards enforcement
  • Great for API backend development
  • Highly customizable without much boilerplate code

Disadvantages

Some potential downsides:

  • One of the steeper learning curves
  • More difficult for rapid prototyping
  • Not as beginner friendly as Laravel
  • Release cycle is slower than other frameworks

#3 CodeIgniter

CodeIgniter distinguishes itself by prioritizing a small footprint, barebones approach focused on performance and simplicity. Released in 2006, it continues to have a loyal following.

Features and Capabilities

Some interesting features include:

  • Very lightweight & fast compared to other options
  • Far less configuration required
  • Helper scripts for common tasks
  • Good security practices built-in
  • Great for getting small apps up quickly

Advantages

Some advantages of CodeIgniter:

  • Excellent performance out of the box
  • Very little server overhead required
  • Great choice for shared hosting environments
  • Ideal for rapid application prototyping
  • Thorough user guide documentation

Disadvantages

Some potential disadvantages:

  • Less structure means discipline required to prevent “spaghetti” code
  • Limited built in libraries compared to full-stack frameworks
  • Smaller community than options like Laravel
  • Not ideal for large, complex applications

#4 CakePHP

Released in 2005, CakePHP differentiates itself by strictly following the MVC pattern and incorporating conventions over configurations. This makes CakePHP a great framework for rapid application development.

Features and Capabilities

Some useful built-in features include:

  • Form input validation
  • CSRF and XSS protection
  • Caching
  • Internationalization & localization
  • Code generation console
  • Follows naming conventions for simplicity

Advantages

Benefits of using CakePHP include:

  • Very fast setup and scaffolding
  • Lightweight and simple configuration
  • Clear logical structure promotes good practices
  • Large open source community
  • Robust plugin ecosystem

Disadvantages

Some downsides to consider:

  • Performance slower than other frameworks
  • Less flexibility due to conventions
  • Limited options for advanced customization
  • Not ideal for large enterprise applications

#5 Yii

First launched in 2008, Yii seems influenced by frameworks like CodeIgniter while also incorporating modern features like integrated REST API handling. It’s a good option for performance focused applications.

Features and Capabilities

Some useful features include:

  • Powerful class code generator
  • Integrated REST API functionality
  • Database migration support
  • Powerful query builder
  • Supports MVC, MVP or other patterns

Advantages

Why choose Yii for your next PHP project?

  • Excellent performance benchmarks
  • Stable, reliable long term support
  • Security conscious practices & features
  • Useful documentation & getting started guide
  • Decent sized community & extensions

Disadvantages

Some potential downsides:

  • Not as beginner friendly as Laravel
  • Limited built in templating engine
  • Initial configuration less intuitive
  • Smaller community than other options

Comparison of Frameworks

How do these 5 recommended PHP frameworks compare across some key criteria?

Performance

Laravel and Symfony benchmark high for performance while still providing full suite functionality. Yii and CodeIgniter also benchmark very quick for simpler applications. CakePHP tends to rank slower.

Documentation & Support

Laravel shines the most with thorough, high quality documentation and a wealth of community answers on StackOverflow. Symfony and CakePHP also have great docs while CodeIgniter documentation is pretty good. Yii trails with merely decent documentation.

Learning Curve

Laravel and CakePHP are the most beginner friendly. CodeIgniter simple approach also makes it easy to pickup. Yii has a medium learning curve while Symfony is generally considered the steepest initial climb.

Developer Adoption

Laravel dominates as the most widely used framework with Symfony a respectable second. CakePHP and CodeIgniter have solid adoption. Yii has strong adoption in Asia but less so elsewhere.

Conclusion

So which framework is the “best” for your next PHP project?

Best for Beginners

For developers new to PHP and frameworks, Laravel and CakePHP both provide the most beginner friendly experience.

Best for Advanced Projects

For medium to advanced applications, Laravel and Symfony tend to be the top choices for large enterprises.

Laravel leads as the most popular PHP framework overall while Symfony dominates government, financial institutions, and other highly regulated industries.

Highest Performance

Yii and CodeIgniter tend to benchmark as the fastest PHP frameworks, with Laravel close behind. But with proper caching, even slower frameworks can achieve excellent performance at scale.

The “best” framework ultimately depends on your specific project requirements and team skills. All five recommended here are great options for robust PHP web applications.