Is the PHP Programming Language Still Good in 2022?

Is PHP Still Good for Web Development?

PHP was first used in 1994! So, it’s been almost 28 years since its first use, but it is still relevant. Shocking, isn’t it?

Many programming languages came after the launch of PHP, but could not prove as effective as PHP. Generally, a new programming language comes with new features and makes coding easy, but PHP is old, then why do many popular websites use it?

You also must have several questions in mind regarding PHP programming language, if you are planning to make a website. PHP is a scripting language and stands for Hypertext Preprocessor. Moreover, originally the letters stood for Personal Home Page (PHP).

PHP is compared with other scripting languages like Perl, Ruby, and Microsoft ASP. However, as per the PHP development company, PHP doesn’t have wide applications, but it doesn’t mean PHP is dead. Even, it is used by many big companies.

Popular Global Websites Using PHP

PHP can be merged into HTML with ease and supports several operating systems like Linux, Mac OS, Microsoft, Windows, and XRISC OS. Consequently, 244+ websites use PHP. You can read about some of the crucial websites in the space below.

1. Facebook:

Facebook (Meta) needs no introduction. It is the most popular social media platform with 3.59 billion users (Statista). It was created using the PHP programming language. The language is helpful to create dynamic content for the website. The core coding of Facebook was written by Markzukerberg himself in PHP.

2. Wikipedia:

It is a public information site that offers you content on various matters and subjects. Wikipedia also uses PHP along with Mysql and MariaDB for its back-end development. It also improved the performance using HHVM like Facebook.

3. Tumblr:

Tumblr has around 80 million blogs and is the 10th most popular site in the world. It transitioned to PHP7 in 2016, as a result, performance-enhanced, new language features are included with scalar type hints and written type declarations.

4. WordPress:

It is the largest Content Management System. WordPress uses PHP to interact with databases and fetch key components from them. Millions of people, businesses, and enterprises use WordPress for impressive templates and to create websites, blogs, and content management systems.

5. MailChimp:

It is a platform for email marketing. MailChimp is popular because of its ease of use and improved email development. You can use it with various devices easily because it offers a seamless and exciting user experience. PHP is useful to create newsletters and business letters in it.

6. Flickr:

Flickr also uses the PHP programming language. It is a popular website for photo sharing. Likewise, you can use it to send text messages to friends and colleagues, and even organize the photos into multiple categories. This website offers privacy options also.

7. Baidu:

Baidu is a search engine in China developed using PHP. You can find videos, images, texts, and any information using the toolbar. It allows online advertising as well and PHP has been helpful in the same. This search engine is giving tough competition to Google.

There are many other websites besides the above ones. So, if you are feeling reluctant to hire a PHP development company, these examples can work as motivation for you.

But, you can’t ignore the fact that there are several websites that don’t use PHP and are still popular. Many people ask the below questions before they choose PHP. Have a look.

1. Is PHP dead?
2. Is PHP good for my website?
3. Is PHP relevant in 2022?

And so on.

Therefore, it is important to know the Pros and Cons of PHP as a programming language for website development.

Pros And Cons of PHP Programming Language

Many top web development services include PHP website building. It means businesses still have an interest in PHP. Let’s look at the advantages of PHP.

Pros of PHP Programming Language:

• Many expert developers of PHP
• The impressive loading speed of websites
• Various options for database connectivity
• Inexpensive website hosting
• PHP is open source
• PHP Websites can run any OS
• Has a shallow learning curve
• Has powerful library support

Cons of PHP Programming Language

• The declining popularity of PHP
• Not that secured due to open-source
• Not the best choice for data-rich apps
• Access use of PHP framework is not good
• Lack of specialized libraries
• Easier programming languages than PHP
• Poor quality of handling errors

Tools or frameworks play a crucial role in the effective development of websites and applications. So, you must know about the widely used PHP development tools.

Most Used PHP Frameworks

PHP is used by 77.7% of all websites (W3techs). Developers use some best PHP frameworks to make the development process convenient and fast. Have a look at the most used PHP frameworks below.

1. CakePHP:

The latest version of CakePHP is 4.3.5. It is an open-source framework and is helpful for the fast development of websites. The configuration of CakePHP is minimal, so you don’t have to struggle much with XML files.

2. Codeigniter:

Codeigniter is an MVC framework for website creation. Developers can handle errors with the easy user interface provided by this framework. Codeigniter has minimal configuration and allows rapid development.

3. Yii:

This framework has many security measures like encryption and authorization. Moreover, the documentation is written properly, consequently allowing best practices to avoid SQL injections, XSS, and CSRF attacks.

4. Symfony:

It is a collection of PHP components that are effective for website development. 6.0.2 is the latest version of Symfony, and the release date is 22 October 2005. This framework is an excellent choice to make websites and apps scalable.

5. Laravel:

Laravel 9 is the latest version of the Laravel framework. It was released on 8 February 2022. Laravel makes common tasks like sessions, routing, caching, and authentication, easy for the developers.

How Is PHP Still Relevant in 2022?

Since you know that several websites use PHP, going for it can be a safe play. Furthermore, the PHP programming language is open-source, cost-effective, and allows custom development. If you hire PHP developers, you can get a scalable website of your choice that meets your business objectives. Have a look at the reasons that make this programming language still relevant in 2022.

• PHP is easy to learn and use
• It is a platform-independent language
• PHP developers are many & have several years of experience
• It’s a tried and tested programming language
• Consists of a lot of legacy code

PHP is an old language, thus feeling reluctant to use it for your project may be common. Although the above features are also present in other languages, you can pick PHP if it suits what you are building.

Conclusion:

Why popular websites are not migrating to other technologies or programming languages? They are still using PHP, which is a sign that PHP is still beneficial. It may lack some new features, but you can go for it if you want cost-effective, platform-independent, and scalable solutions.