Top PHP Frameworks For Web Developers to Consider in 2023

PHP is a server-side scripting language that is open source and used to create dynamic web pages and web applications. PHP frameworks are also extremely popular — as of October 20, 2022, more than 75% of all websites still use PHP. This trend doesn’t seem to be slowing down. It can handle some of the biggest websites on the Internet and is both easy to use and completely free to download.

The web application frameworks that enable PHP have seen significant changes since they first appeared more than 20 years ago. There are currently a variety of solutions available, like Laravel and CodeIgniter. To make writing PHP easier, a diverse ecosystem of PHP frameworks is available.

What makes someone utilize a PHP framework? How do you pick the best option for you? The top 11 PHP frameworks and the information you need to select the finest PHP framework for your requirements are provided in this blog.

Let’s get started. 

What is a PHP Framework?

Frameworks are a way to extend the structure of a software application. Software developers can streamline the process of developing a new program by integrating the basic functionality into the application before even starting to code. PHP frameworks are obviously no different. PHP programming languages serve as the foundation for PHP frameworks. 

A PHP framework will result in less code being written and fewer misunderstandings about how to begin your project. As well as reducing the risk of coding applications from scratch, using a PHP framework is a good option.

PHP is an established back-end language for web development. The majority of PHP frameworks are developed to help programmers create web applications. 

Why Use a PHP Framework?  

You should first understand why you want to use PHP. PHP is an all-purpose scripting language that works particularly well for web development environments.

PHP is a recursive abbreviation for Hypertext Processor. It’s possible that you’ve already observed that the word “Hypertext” appears in the phrase “Hypertext Markup language” (often known as simply HTML).

HTML is the core technology of the web that web developers use to organize and structure content on web pages. HTML is used primarily for text. 

The latest version of HTML can now structure multimedia content, including photos and videos, thanks to the demise of Adobe Flash Player. PHP’s unique features have earned it its name. PHP can be integrated directly into HTML. PHP code is executed on the server, as opposed to other web scripting languages like JavaScript. This generates HTML, which is sent to clients.

PHP also leads to greater responsiveness of web applications and sites that use the language. If you’re already using PHP for your web development, then it makes sense to use PHP frameworks in order to accelerate development. However, if you are new, then you must take help from a web development company. 

What Should You Look For In A PHP Framework?

When choosing a PHP framework, you need to consider the following factors. But you should hire PHP developers to use PHP effectively for your app development. For that, let’s take a look at the below factors. 

• Simplicity: Assess the complexity of your project. Simple PHP frameworks are often the best solution for smaller, simpler projects. Yes, complex and bloated PHP frameworks are powerful and robust, but they should only be used if the complexity is needed or if there will be a need to expand your project scope in the future.

• Technical requirements: Depending on the project, you may require a framework to support certain PHP extensions or databases. Check the PHP version that the framework targets, and ensure it is compatible with all the external tools you need to run your project.

• Features: Similar to technical requirements, most projects require certain functional features (think caching, authentication, security). Check out what each framework has to offer and see if it fits your requirements.

• Support and Community: An excellent framework will be backed by its creators and have a large and knowledgeable community to which you can turn. A good framework will have great documentation and a large community that is knowledgeable and willing to help newbie developers with their common mistakes. Check out the channels (forums, chat groups, etc.). How active and populated they are.

Top 11 PHP Frameworks for Web Developers in 2023

We have chosen the top 11 PHP frameworks available for web developers. They are all unique and have different requirements, so make sure you choose the best one for your project. These frameworks are all open-source. You can therefore try out any framework that catches your attention before choosing the best one:  

Laravel

Key Features

• Laravel functionality packages
• Built-in features
• Laravel Homestead environment
• The programming community is very active.

Laravel is an extensive PHP framework that’s known for its elegant syntax. It is a powerful tool for creating complex apps. The functions of this tool include authentication for users, session management, and caching.

Additionally, there are packages that add to the framework. Framework-independent packages operate with all PHP frameworks, whereas Laravel-specific packages only work with Laravel. The Laravel Debugbar is a widely used package. It adds a toolbar that can be useful when debugging an application.

Packalyst, a directory of over 15,000 Laravel packages that are ready to use for your project, is another option. You can create a request if you cannot find the package that suits your needs.

Laravel’s Homestead is a great feature. This is a Vagrant pre-packaged box that offers a local development environment for web applications with a virtual computer. So you must hire web developers to create PHP applications without installing PHP or a web server on their local computer.

Laravel is a great choice for beginners, thanks to its active community forum and extensive tutorials. Beginners will have no problem learning PHP and using Laravel.

CodeIgniter

Key Features

• Lightweight frame
• Excellent documentation
• MVC architecture support
• Security features built-in

CodeIgniter is a compact PHP Framework that is less than 1 MB overall. It provides faster 

loading times and has a minimal impact on your website and applications.

CodeIgniter offers both MVC and non-MVC design patterns. MVC architecture can be used by larger development teams to speed up the process, but smaller or independent developers are able to code without it. 

The framework has top-notch security tools. These cover context-sensitive escape, content security controls, and defenses against scripting and cross-site request forgery. CodeIgniter is a lightweight PHP-based web application that performs well with modest PHP hosting. The excellent documentation makes it easy to learn CodeIgniter.

Symfony

As the creator of Symfony, we strongly encourage you to upgrade to #Symfony 5 or 6 soon 🚀

In November 2023, Symfony 4 will be decommissioned.

Our Version Upgrade solution provides you with all the guidelines you need for a safe upgrade to Symfony 6 👉 https://t.co/bOb8Kycnje

— SensioLabs (@sensiolabs) May 23, 2023

Key Features

• Sets of individual components
• Built-in debugging
• Twig template engine
• Excellent documentation

Symfony, a PHP framework with a modular component structure, is highly flexible. Choose from more than 50 reusable PHP components for your project. You can choose which modules you need instead of using the entire library if you just need a little assistance.

Symfony also uses Twig, which is a template engine that’s fast and has a simple syntax. 

The built-in debugging feature will ensure that your project runs as intended. Symfony’s steep learning curve is one of its downsides. Symfony offers a variety of learning resources, including guides and documentation that cover over 20 topics.

Laminas Project

Key Features

• MVC architecture
• Integration with External Libraries
• Only the parts you need can be used

The Zend PHP Framework is continued by Laminas. Because it is component-based, Laminas Projects is frequently referred to as a “glue framework.”

Three sections make up The Laminas Project: 

• Laminas Components, MVC: PHP’s primary framework, which includes functions for dependency injection, input validation, and parsing. 
• Mezzo: PHP middleware application built on PSR-7 and PSR-15 that handles HTTP requests.
•   API Tools: These tools allow for the implementation of authentication, authorization, and validation features.  

Laminas’s PHP framework is an MVC-based, object-oriented framework. It allows you to load just the components that you need as libraries. The components and MVC framework also follow enterprise development standards, which makes them ideal for complex web apps.

This approach, combined with the object-oriented framework, allows for a great deal of reuse. It’s also easy to integrate external libraries into the platform to extend its functionality.

Beginners may be intimidated by the complexity of the platform. The transition from Laravel Project to Laminas Project can be a difficult one. We recommend Laminas Project to experienced developers who prefer object-oriented software.

Phalcon

Key Features:

• Based on the C programming language.
• Low resource overhead and high performance
• Add only the modules and libraries you need

Phalcon is an all-in-one PHP framework whose source code was written in C. The framework does not require C knowledge as it makes use of PHP classes and namespaces.

Phalcon is a fast PHP framework. It is lightweight and has an MVC-based architecture. Users can add only the modules and libraries that they require after installation. It helps to keep the web-development process clean.

It’s important to note that Phalcon, while a great option, isn’t very popular. The documentation for Phalcon is not as extensive as that of more popular PHP Frameworks such as Laravel, so you may need to use additional resources in order to learn it.

CakePHP

🚨#CakePHP 4.4.14 RELEASED🚨

Some improvements include:
• Fixed support for postgres schemas other than public in Fixture schema generation.
• Fix usage of ROOT in deprecationWarning(). This was causing failures in standalone package usage.
+ more

♨️ https://t.co/qcPOTr4mqW

— CakePHP (@cakephp) May 23, 2023

Key Features

• CakePHP’s code conventions
• The components of a broad range
• Multiple Support Channels

The original PHP MVC framework, CakePHP, is still regarded as one of the greatest frameworks out there. The platform follows a convention-over-configuration approach. This means that there are a set of coding rules that all users must follow. It can take some time to learn these conventions, but they create a uniform coding environment that allows for better collaboration.

CakePHP is a comprehensive set of libraries with a wide range of useful components. If you’re looking for hard-to-find functionality, CakePHP is a good option. If you need assistance, there are many support sites available. To get assistance from the CakePHP community, you can use the support forum, Slack or StackOverflow. CakeDC offers paid support.

Yii

Key Features

• Customizable Setup
• Support for various extensions
• Gii code generator
• Security measures built-in

Yii is a PHP Framework with a tonne of features. Thanks to its thorough documentation and helpful starting guide, it’s also one of the simplest frameworks to install. This framework performs similarly to Phalcon.  

Yii is a powerful framework that offers many features. It also supports a variety of extensions for web application development. It supports, for example, the Gii code generation for the model, CRUD operations, and module creation. 

Additionally, Yii offers built-in security features, including SQL Injection Prevention and user-based authentication management. Yii’s only disadvantage is that it does not have the best beginner-friendly framework in this list. The documentation and community of users will assist you in the learning process. 

FuelPHP

Key Features

• HMVC receives full support
• Security measures that are robust
• A unique command-line utility
• The URL Routing System
• Built-in caching system

FuelPHP, compared to the other frameworks in this list, is relatively young. It uses best practices in order to create a powerful and unique tool.

FuelPHP goes one step further than MVC by supporting Hierarchical Model View Controller. It allows you to test different parts of web applications while still being effective. 

FuelPHP is serious about security and includes seven features right out of the box. These include input filtering and the QueryBuilder to prevent SQL injection attacks.

When security is a top priority, FuelPHP may be a wise choice. Despite being relatively new on the market, FuelPHP boasts excellent documentation and a supportive community. 

Slim

Key Features

• HTTP Router with Fast Speed and Power
• Middleware Application
• Client-side HTTP caching

Slim is different from other PHP frameworks that we have covered. It’s a micro-framework for PHP, perfect for building simple web applications. It has some amazing features despite being minimalist. 

The processing of HTTP requests is Slim’s main priority. Callbacks for certain HTTP request methods are converted to URIs via its robust HTTP Router. It supports a wide range of URL types, such as pattern- and parameter-based URLs. Another fantastic tool that PHP programmers may use to run code both before and after the Slim core application is middleware. 

Middleware is a layer that adds to the app’s core. It modifies the HTTP requests and responses. It also protects against cross-site request spoofing and authentication of all requests before the application is executed. 

The Slim framework is excellent for creating HTTP requests or RESTful APIs. It has excellent documentation and is simple to learn. A network of individuals is also available to answer any queries you may have.   

PHPixie

Key Features

• HMVC architecture
• Independent components 100% tested at the unit level
• Code bundles to share and reuse your code

PHPixie is an HMVC framework based on PHP that focuses primarily on the development of web applications for read-only sites. PHPixie has a bundle-based system that allows you to reuse code and share it among the community.

The framework is constructed from standalone elements like auth HTTP ORM and validate. These are all unit-tested and only require minimal dependencies. It’s also possible to use these components without the framework.

PHPixie does have some disadvantages compared to other frameworks in our list. PHPixie is less flexible because it has fewer modules and does not support components that are independent of the dependencies.

PHPixie, however, is an excellent choice if you have a project that requires only a few components. It’s also easy to start and uses fewer resources.

Fat-Free Framework

Key Features

• Lightweight codebase
• Lightweight apps, thanks to the modular framework
• Great Optional Plugins
• Multiple database compatibility

F3, or Fat-Free Framework, is a simple PHP framework. The framework’s codebase only weighs 65 KB and is modular. This allows you to use only the code that is needed.

To get started, you only need a web server and a copy of the Fat-Free Framework. The framework does not require complex configurations such as Composer, Curl, or a complicated directory structure.

Fat-Free, despite being simple and lightweight, is a PHP framework that can be extended thanks to optional plugins. These include a unit-testing toolkit, a template engine with a clean look, an image processing program, database-managed session protection, and a database-managed session.

How to Choose the Best PHP Frameworks for Your Business? 

There are some things that you shouldn’t miss when choosing the PHP framework for web development or for your business. Do you know what they are? We will help you to discover more about the PHP frameworks so that you can make an informed choice when choosing one for your business.

• Popularity

It is important to realize that popularity does not equal quality. You must hire dedicated developers who use the same framework and ensure its stability and vibrant community. Here are some great suggestions to assist you in selecting the ideal framework for your project. When comparing PHP frameworks, keep in mind the popularity factor.

• Features   

It can be difficult to choose the right framework for a project, depending on what you want to achieve. A framework with more features is useful for a wider range of projects. If your project has particular requirements, check the features of the framework and see if they meet your needs. Do you love frameworks? Would you like to learn more about Node.JS vs. PHP if so? This is a detailed comparison to help you with your backend development.

• Maintainability

Frameworks that are more recent will be better equipped to handle the challenges and requirements of modern web standards. You can still use older frameworks, but they will not be as secure and reliable. You must take into account a few factors while choosing a framework for your business.

Conclusion

PHP isn’t a requirement for your web development backend, but it’s worth considering, especially given its popularity. Once you’ve decided to use PHP for your back-end web development, what PHP framework is best suited to support it?

Every PHP framework provides the versatility and efficiency of both languages. Specificity and research are, therefore, essential factors in making this decision. However, if you are a business that wants to develop an app using PHP for your business, then you should hire a PHP development company or hire PHP developers. 

FAQ

1. Is PHP in Demand in 2023?

This is a programming language that is quite common. Apple and Microsoft also support PHP in their IDEs (Integrated Development Environments). Beginners will have a bright future in PHP development by 2023.

2. What Are the Different Frameworks Available in PHP? 

The most popular PHP Frameworks are Laravel Framework, Symfony Framework, and CodeIgniter Framework. Each framework is unique and has its own characteristics.

3. What is the Most Accessible PHP Framework?

Zend Framework is a good choice for beginners because it is easy to use and has excellent documentation. Symfony and Laravel provide the most functionality.