Top 10 PHP Frameworks for Web Development in 2021

There is a wide difference in how the concept of a website has evolved to Progressive Web Apps and other web applications. One of the upsides to the same is that web apps in 2021 deliver more value and functionality than yesteryears. Due to the same, there is a rise in the need to hire dedicated PHP developers in the IT industry.

Yet, for years PHP has remained one of the go-to languages for creating websites, as observed by the experience of many PHP web development companies. This is because the language has been a secure platform for almost two decades and has introduced updates at regular intervals. But as a whole, website development is a cumbersome task that requires developers to write thousands of lines of code. This can seem alright if one has to write this code once, but programmers have to start creating a website from scratch every time.

This is where one understands the importance of a framework. A framework is an abstract that offers reusable generic code that saves a lot of time and effort. It’s due to the contribution of these frameworks that developers can adhere to a swift development process. But as the language has been in the business for more than two decades, numerous frameworks have made it to the market. Due to an excess of choices, it’s difficult to decide the right one for your business.

This read can be the perfect solution to this confusion. Here we bring you the best PHP frameworks that have already been tested for different business needs.

1. Laravel

Like PHP comes to mind when we talk about web development, Laravel is what tops the list when we talk about top PHP frameworks. The framework was introduced in 2011 and is the most popular, open-source, and free PHP framework globally. The sole reason it is the best is its ability to handle complex problems and offer solutions quicker. Some of the most important tasks, such as sessions, caching, authentication, and routing, are simplified using Laravel. There are many Laravel web development companies that can vouch for the same.

Reasons to Choose Laravel

• Whether small or large, Laravel offers the best functionality when creating apps that have complex back ends. With the advent of Homestead, a prepackaged, all-in-one vagrant box, it has become extremely easy to install this framework.
• You can easily customize your app with the presence of different features. They are MVC architecture support, seamless data migration, routing, security, authentication, view template engine, and more.
• Laraval has all it takes to build a modern web application, i.e. it is quick, highly expressive, and secure. Therefore, laravel is the perfect platform to develop enterprise or web apps that change with web trends.

2. CodeIgniter

This is a PHP framework with one of the smallest footprints, i.e. about 2 MB in size, including the documentation. Therefore, CodeIgniter is the perfect place to create dynamic websites. It contains various prebuild modules that assist in creating reusable and robust components. From a developer’s perspective, CodeIgniter web development services offer the most well-paying job profiles in the business.

Reasons to Choose CodeIgniter

• It’s a framework that is hassle-free to install, is lightweight, and straightforward. It’s the perfect fit for beginners due to its highly illustrated documentation and simple setup process.
• It’s best to create scalable apps. And the stand-out features include top-notch error handling, MVC architecture, inbuilt security tools, and excellent documentation.
• CodeIgniter is lightning fast as compared to other frameworks. Due to its high performance, it’s the perfect choice to build lightweight apps that run on modest servers. Unfortunately, due to the irregular releases, the platform isn’t that good at offering high-level security.

3. CakePHP

If you wish to use a framework that will offer a simple and elegant look to your website, your search is over. One can create visually appealing and feature-rich websites using CakePHP. Being a CRUD framework, i.e. create, read, update, and delete, CakePHP is one of the easiest learning frameworks. The Thai framework made it to the market in the 2000s and has introduced many new components and updates. Therefore, this framework would be the first choice for a CakePHP web development company.

Reasons to Choose CakePHP

• To get started, one would only need a web server and a copy of the framework. Thus, it offers easy installation and use.
• Due to many stand-out security features like cross-site request forgery protection(CSRF), cross-site scripting protection (XSS), input validation, SQL injection prevention, and more, make this is a perfect platform to develop commercial apps.
• Some of the other notable features of this framework include proper class inheritance, validation, security, fast builds, and a modern framework. In addition to this, CakePHP offers extensive support and documentation to its developers.

4. Symfony

Symfony is also one of the oldest platforms, as it was launched in 2005. It’s an MVC framework that’s mature and reliable. Symfony can be counted as one of the only platforms that follow the PHP web standards to the word.

Reasons to Choose Symfony

• The framework is easy to configure on most platforms and perfectly fits large-scale enterprise projects.
• Symfony offers reusable PHP components while being stable and boasting database engine independence. It also allows seamless integration with other vendor libraries and complies with most design patterns and web practices.
• One can also integrate with bigger projects like Drupal, and therefore, it’s considered highly flexible. However, when it comes to competition, Laravel is its biggest competitor with many similar features.

But Laravel is made for beginners and advanced developers alike as it offers simplicity and delivers value. On the other hand, Symfony is a bit difficult to learn and targets advanced developers. Apart from this, the Symfony security mechanism is difficult to use, and as it follows the “developers do it all” rule, it can be a bit slow compared to other frameworks.

5. Yii

Yii stands for Yes, it is! The framework is highly performant while also being evolutionary and simple. It offers the perfect blend of features for creating modern web applications. Yii has earned itself the universal web programming framework as it’s suitable for creating all kinds of web apps. The exponential increase in Yii development companies around the globe is the perfect example of how trending this framework is.

Reasons to Choose Yii

• The framework has an easy installation process. And due to its robust security features, it’s perfect to create portals, CMS, e-commerce projects, forums, and more that are highly secure.
• As the data from the database can be modelled in terms of objects, it allows developers to avoid the jargon of writing repetitive SQL statements.
• Yii is extensible and offers high performance and speed.
• The framework is under the constant vigilance of experts and core developer team members. To get help, you can post queries on Yii forums and get them answered by the massive community.
• It’s a highly flexible platform where one customizes nearly every bit of its core code. Yet, if you’re beginning with PHP programming, Yii has a steep learning curve. To develop web apps using the same one might need to hire dedicated developers.

6. Phalcon

Phalcon follows the MVC architecture pattern and is a full-stack PHP framework (i.e. it supports both front and back end development). The platform was designed in 2012, originally using C and C++. However, one doesn’t have to bother about learning the C programming language as Phalcon is already being delivered as a C-extension.

Reasons to Choose Phalcon

• Phalcon can be best put to use while creating web apps that fall well within enterprise-level guidelines. Any developer with a basic PHP programming language can try this platform.
• High execution speed, managing assets, security, and top caching are some of the key features.
• If you aim to develop a blazing fast website, there can’t be a better choice than Falcon. This is because, unlike other frameworks, Falcon offers optimized performance with its efficient memory utilization.
• One of the downsides of this platform is that it’s a bit slow to patch bugs, which can concern fixing security issues.

7. Zend Framework

This is a fully object-oriented framework that offers extendibility with its features like inheritance and interfaces. You can use it to create high-quality applications for enterprises, as the platform is built on Agile methodology. Furthermore, Zend can be extremely useful in adding project-specific functionalities as its highly customizable. This is an add-on for developers that are prone to working with best PHP practices.

Reasons to Choose Zend

• This is the preferred framework for large enterprises like banks and IT sectors. This is because it possesses the necessary features to handle complex projects.
• This is possible due to some stand-out features such as simple cloud API, session management, MVC components, and data encryption.
• One has the right to choose the components they want to use and integrate them with external libraries. The framework will offer a steep learning curve to mobile app builders. But it also has a large community and extensive documentation to assist you every step of the way.

8. Slim

As the name suggests, the framework is extremely powerful in creating APIs and web applications.

Reasons to Choose Slim

• As Slim is easy to learn, developers use it to create web services and RESTful APIs.
• Client-side HTTP caching, session, URL routing, cookie encryption, and more are some of the key features of this framework.
• It’s one of the only frameworks that doesn’t require full-stack functionality to create small web applications.

9. PHPixie

PHPixie made it to the market in 2012 and implemented the HMVC design pattern. The framework aims to build high-performance read-only websites.

Reasons to Choose PHPixie

• Stand-out features include standard ORM (object-relational mapping), input validation, caching, authentication, authorization capabilities, and more.
• As the framework is created using independent components, you can access it without any framework. Therefore, it’s most suitable for creating customized web apps, social networking websites, and web development services.

10. FuelPHP

FuelPHP is also a full-stack development framework that was created in 2011. It supports the MVC design pattern while also using its hierarchical model view controller (HMVC). Due to HMVC, the app doesn’t have to duplicate content on multiple pages. Therefore, it consumes less memory and time.

Reasons to Choose FuelPHP

• Other key features include RESTful implementation, vulnerability protection, URL routing system, and caching system.
• Developers can leverage this framework to create end-to-end web solutions that can vary in complexity and size.

Wrapping Up

Here’s a wrap to this read. We hope our blog offers you the essential information on the top 10 PHP frameworks in the market. PHP has always been the primary choice for top web development services. What do you think about PHP? Converse with us in the comments section. Thank you for reading.