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10 most popular PHP frameworks in 2020-21

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Posted On June 2, 2023

PHP is high in demand in the IT industry to create web applications and some of the PHP Frameworks have gained much popularity in recent years. PHP is going to be the most popular platform to develop dynamic & modern web applications in 2020-2021. See how we work to develop top-notch PHP applications here. Let us have a look at the most popular PHP Frameworks in 2020-21.

What is PHP?

 The full form of PHP is Hypertext Pre Processor and earlier it was Personal Home Page. PHP is a server-side scripting language embedded in HTML. It’s a powerful tool to create static as well as dynamic web pages/ websites. PHP is an open-source, completely free, and is widely used to create various websites around the globe.

Why use a PHP framework?

First of all, let’s understand what is PHP Framework? Well, it’s a platform to create PHP web applications. Every PHP framework contains libraries with pre-installed functions. It offers a basic structure to develop web applications. Frameworks help to speed up the development process. Hence, it’s a general solution to fulfill the frequent requirements of most PHP developers.

Check out some of our favourite PHP Frameworks here.

So let us dig deeper into this and discuss some of the most popular PHP Frameworks:

  1. Laravel

Released in 2011, Laravel is one of the most popular PHP frameworks. It is an open-source and widely used framework and also one of the fastest. It simplifies common tasks such as routing, caching, sessions, and authentication.

Laravel is recommended when you want to develop applications with complex backends. It will handle complex web applications with additional security. To know more about Laravel Development, click here.

Why use Laravel?

  • Laravel has numerous built-in functions and add ons.
  • It’s a robust tool integration.
  • It offers instant hosting and deployment.
  • The availability of loads of online tutorials and documentation makes Laravel more user-friendly.
  • Laravel provides strong encryption packages.
  • It is ideal for modern web applications. As it is extremely powerful, speedy, and secure.
  1. CakePHP

CakePHP is one of the most used PHP frameworks since its release a decade ago. It is useful to create visually impressive and rich in features website. Till now many versions of CakePHP have hit the market. Each version comes with additional features. It is also one of the easiest PHP frameworks.

CakePHP is easy to install and works well with the PHP CRUD framework (Crate-Release-Update-Delete). Other key functions of CakePHP includes sessions, cookie, request handling, validation, security, and email.

Why use CakePHP?

  • CakePHP is the easiest framework that requires only a web server and a copy of the framework.
  • Database administration is simple with CakePHP.
  • It is ideal to develop a commercial web application.
  • It offers proper class inheritance, validation, and security.
  • You will get exceptional support from its parent company.
  • CakePHP is a modern framework with great documentation.
  • CakePHP is cost-efficient and highly compatible.
  1. Symfony

Launched back in 2005, Symfony is in use longer than other PHP frameworks. However, the Symfony security mechanism is quite difficult to understand. Thus this framework is suitable for advanced developers. This is a comprehensive PHP MVE framework that has evolved with age.

Most of the developers trust Symfony to work with. It helps in creating web applications at a faster pace with simple maintenance of the website. Some of the primary components of Symfony are templating, translation, form configuration, and validation. Check Nyusoft’s Symfony application development here.

Why use Symfony?

  • Symfony is excellent to develop large-scale, enterprise-level projects.
  • It is highly flexible and easy to install and configure.
  • Symfony offers reusable libraries and components.
  • It can easily integrate with larger projects like Drupal.
  • Online tutorials for Symfony are widely available online.
  1. Yii

Yii stands for Yes, it is! Yii is a lightweight PHP framework. The installation process for Yii is simple and it is easy to extend. In this framework, PHP integrates with code ception. Yii is a perfect framework to develop modern web applications.

It is a back-end framework, just like Laravel. Yii is a universal web programming framework as it is suitable for all types of web applications. It is a component-based framework high in performance.

Why use Yii?

  • The installation process is easy.
  • The coding is lightweight.
  • It uses less memory.
  • Yii comes with robust security features. Thus it is ideal for highly secure projects like e-commerce websites.
  • No need to write repetitive SQL statements which makes it less complex.
  • Yii provides inclusive online support.
  1. CodeIgniter

CodeIgniter is the smallest framework in size. The size is only 2 MB which also includes documentation. However, the small size does not make this framework less powerful. The current version of CodeIgniter is 3.1.11.

CodeIgniter is a smart choice when you’re creating lightweight and scalable web applications. It can also be used to create dynamic web applications. Some of the key features of CodeIgniter are MVC architecture, inbuilt security tools, and high-level error handling. CodeIgniter is a major part of application developments at Nyusoft.

Why use CodeIgniter?

  • CodeIgniter framework is a great choice for beginners.
  • Even though it is open-source, CodeIgniter is easy to learn and use.
  • It’s safe and user-friendly.
  • Ideal to develop scalable web applications.
  • Well-documented with online tutorial videos.
  1. Phalcon

Phalcon is written in C and Zephir. The highlight of this framework is its speed. Phalcon is a full-stake PHP framework that has faster execution of web components. This framework is best to develop custom web applications.

Phalcon has been updated continuously since its release in 2012. The latest release consists of components like MVC, ORM, and caching. The main functionalities of Phalcon are caching, high security, enhanced execution speed, and asset management.

Why use Phalcon?

  • Faster execution.
  • The innovative architecture along with form builder and flash messages.
  • Efficient memory utilization.
  • Ideal to make highly configurable web applications.
  • Performance optimization.
  1. Slim

Slim is a PHP framework that is perfect to develop RESTful APIs. It allows you to write simple and powerful web applications in a faster way. Slim is a micro-framework which has a minimal design.

The slim framework has an active user base with constant maintenance and updates. This framework is pretty easy to learn, just like PHP. SLim is useful for small web applications in which a full-stack PHP framework is not needed. The key features of Slim are sessions, client-side HTTP caching, cookie encryption, and URL routing.

Why use Slim?

  • It provides excellent security with great documentation.
  • Slim framework is rich in features,
  • This framework is very user-friendly and ideal to develop small web applications.
  • It minimizes the debugging process.
  • Offers improved security.
  1. PHPixie

Released back in 2012, PHPixie is one of the newest frameworks in the market. It’s a high-performance PHP framework used for read-only websites. Some of the main functionalities of PHPixie are HMVC architecture, caching, authentication, standard ORM, authorization, and validation.

PHPixie was built using various independent components. It implements an HMVC architecture. This framework is easy to get started with when you are a beginner.

Why use PHPixie?

  • PHPixie is more focused on page speed and load time.
  • It is perfect for social networking websites because PHPixie can be used without the framework.
  • It has a Composer Class Map Generation.
  • It supports MongoDB.
  • The architecture is stable and adaptable.
  1. FuelPHP

FuelPHP is a full-stack PHP framework which released in 2011. It uses a cascading file system. It is one of the top PHP frameworks. Written in PHP 5.3, FuelPHP is simple and flexible.

Some of the many features of FuelPHP are HMVC, cookies, sessions, forms, caching, ActiveRecord, and templating. FuelPHP is created from the best ideas of other frameworks. It adds a voluntary class called ‘presenter class’ in between controller and view layers.

Why use FuelPHP?

  • It has a lightweight ORM model.
  • It offers a flexible URL.
  • FuelPHP helps developers to deliver end-to-end web solutions.
  • This framework is diverse in size with a modular structure.
  • It offers input filtering and excellent security.
  1. Zend

Zend framework is one the most popular and one of the most lightweight PHP framework. It is easy to learn with online training. The highlight of Zend is the consistency in design and OOP.

Zend is here to deliver high-quality web applications and is highly customizable. It is extendable because of the features like interfaces and inheritance. Also, Zend offers the feature of code reusability. It saves development time. It is built in agile methodology.

Why use Zend?

  • Zend can integrate with external libraries.
  • It has a large community base and brilliant documentation.
  • Zend is ideal for enterprise-level complex projects.
  • It has multifunctional quality.
  • Flexible architecture and faster development.
  • Zend supports 300+ contributors and is productive.

You can choose the best PHP framework as per your requirements. PHP frameworks cover almost every need of the industry. It is an easy task to find the perfect PHP framework for you in 2020-2021. Nyusoft offers a range of PHP frameworks to choose from for the website development.