Why the new generation hates PHP

Pasindu Anuhas
3 min readSep 16, 2023

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Photo by Ben Griffiths on Unsplash

PHP is a popular programming language that has been around for over 25 years. It is used to power some of the most popular websites in the world, including Wikipedia, Facebook, and WordPress. However, in recent years, PHP has become increasingly unpopular with the new generation of developers.

There are a number of reasons for this. One reason is that PHP has a reputation for being a messy and inconsistent language. It has a lot of legacy code and bad practices, which can make it difficult to learn and use.

Another reason is that PHP is not as well-suited for modern web development as some other languages. For example, it does not have strong support for asynchronous programming or object-oriented programming.

Finally, PHP has a reputation for being a language for beginners. This is because it is relatively easy to learn and get started with. However, this also means that there is a lot of low-quality PHP code out here, which can give the language a bad reputation.

Here are some of the specific reasons why the new generation hates PHP:

  • It is an old language: PHP was first released in 1995, and it has not changed much since then. This makes it feel outdated and out of touch with modern web development.
  • It is inconsistent: PHP has a lot of legacy code and bad practices, which can make it difficult to learn and use. There are also a number of different ways to do the same thing in PHP, which can lead to confusion.
  • It is not well-suited for modern web development: PHP does not have strong support for asynchronous programming or object-oriented programming, which are both important concepts in modern web development.
  • It has a reputation for being a language for beginners: This is because it is relatively easy to learn and get started with. However, this also means that there is a lot of low-quality PHP code out there, which can give the language a bad reputation.

In addition to the above reasons, here are some other reasons why the new generation hates PHP:

  • It is slow: PHP is a dynamically typed language, which means that it does not check the types of variables at compile time. This can lead to performance issues, especially for large applications.
  • It is insecure: PHP has a number of security vulnerabilities, which have been exploited by hackers in the past.
  • It has a small community: The PHP community is not as large or as active as the communities for other languages, such as Python and JavaScript. This can make it difficult to find help and support when needed.

Despite these drawbacks, PHP is still a popular language and is used by many successful companies. However, it is important to be aware of the limitations of PHP before choosing to use it for your next project.

If you are a new developer, I recommend that you choose a different language to learn, such as Python, JavaScript, or Ruby. These languages are more modern and have a better reputation. However, if you are already familiar with PHP and you are comfortable using it, then there is no need to switch to a different language.

However, it is important to be aware of the limitations of PHP and to take steps to mitigate them. For example, you should use a framework like Laravel or Symfony to help you write clean and secure PHP code. You should also use a security scanner like Composer to identify and fix security vulnerabilities in your code.

Have a Good Day!

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Pasindu Anuhas

I'm Passionate junior dev & AI researcher on an exciting journey into tech. Creating innovative solutions for positive impact. Let's go! 🚀