Best PHP Frameworks

What are PHP Frameworks?

PHP is a commonly used scripting language that is most popularly used in web development. A PHP framework supports and simplifies the creation and collaborative development of applications in PHP. They support rapid, stable development of applications by providing a basic organized structure, and a tested library of development tools or modules. These automate some of the more routine or straightforward but time-consuming elements of coding hence PHP Frameworks support rapid application development (RAD).

In addition to saving the user time, PHP frameworks also allow for collaboration between other developers. Designs, documentations, and standards can all be clearly and easily communicated through team projects. The design patterns typically used by these frameworks are typically that of a model view controller concerned with the manipulation of data.

PHP frameworks features

Presently PHP Frameworks provide the following capabilities to developers:

• Open, extensible component architecture
• Library of tools for automation common tasks
• Code generation and scaffolding tools for rapid deployment
• Simple, friendly library interface
• Model-view-controller (MVC) architectural pattern
• Multiple database access methods
• Support for multiple caching mechanisms
• Translation / localization
• Modular packaging system
• Package dependency management
• Query builder for SQL or NoSQL databases
• Application deployment & maintenance utilities
• Security features (e.g. form tampering prevention, SQL injection prevention, etc.)
• Application error logging, data validation
• User authentication / authorization
• Support for hooks and class extensions
• Supportive communities of co-developers

PHP framework comparison

When searching for the right PHP frameworks, consider the following:

• Ease of Use. Some frameworks will be tricky if you’re not too familiar with their functions, and therefore having this steep of a learning curve may waste too much of your time. Be sure the product isn’t too difficult to learn for you or fellow developers. It’s also worth noting that most will contain libraries with pre-packaged functions in which developers can use their code for future projects. Therefore, in order to properly function, it’s important to have a thorough understanding of these library functions and it’s coding.
• Technical requirements. It’s important that the technical requirements needed to fit the needs of your project are met by the framework of your choice. Most of the framework vendors offer a minimum PHP version, and you’ll want to make sure it is compatible with your needs.
• Security. There are many PHP framework security threats that can cause harm to your projects. Though using these frameworks minimizes the chances for hackers, be sure to research the amount of security that goes into each system.

Pricing Information

The most popular PHP frameworks are free and open-source or available under the MIT license. In addition to being free, the most popular frameworks have active development environments. Forums and developers are available for help, and indeed for growing contributions to component libraries. A few PHP frameworks provide advanced libraries and live assistance at cost.