php haters, we need to talk

[00:00:00]Who the writes PHP code like this? This is even worse than I thought. Consider interacting with the video in some way.

[00:00:05]Well, you are requesting for it. Let's actually interact with the video. PHP is Today we are reacting to a new video on my channel. This video is called it why everyone hates PHP and why you should too. I'm going to just be real with you.

[00:00:21]PHP in 2026 is badass, okay? We have literally our own TypeScript. We have past PHP for testing, which is the equivalent of V testing just. We are literally in the top of the game, okay? So, I'm going to react to this video. In case you don't know me, staff engineer at Laravel.

[00:00:38]Let's go.

[00:00:39]>> Let's just say it like that. PHP is terrible. Between all of the programming languages that have ever existed, few of them are as hated as PHP is. This programming language is hated by the code >> By the way, the only people that hate PHP in 2026 are the people that have not done PHP in the last 20 years. That's what I think, you know, they tried PHP with WordPress, with very old frameworks, and they haven't tried PHP with Laravel, for example. Laravel is badass, okay? In 2026, PHP is much different than 20 years ago, meaning that back in the days people, you know, they used to look at PHP, and it kind of sucked. I'm going to be honest with you, PHP sucked really hardcore back in the days, but things are much better right now. We have PHP stand, we have Rector PHP, we have a lot of very modern frameworks like Laravel, Symfony, and more, and I would advise you to just give it a try after those 20 years, because you will be surprised. I'm going to just tell you that already, okay?

[00:01:30]>> in community while still having a loyal user base. But why is PHP hated by the community? And is it actually as hated as the internet makes it look like?

[00:01:38]You'll find out in this video, where I'll also bring my PHP programmer friend who will tell us his opinion on the language, and how he thinks the language is actually over hated and pretty good.

[00:01:46]PHP was created to be a general purpose scripting language mainly for web development. It was originally created >> Shut, this is so true. PHP originally was made to literally do templating, okay? You see like view, react in all those UI libraries, PHP originally was made for building HTML. And after 1 year, everyone was doing like financial applications with PHP. They was like literally using it for really important systems, which is hilarious.

[00:02:15]>> by Danish-Canadian programmer Rasmus Lerdorf in 1993 and 1995. It handles >> Just by the way, to demystify, the creator of PHP, Rasmus, is not even involved with PHP anymore. A lot of people think that he's still involved with PHP, like doing stuff for PHP, not true. He's not even involved anymore, okay?

[00:02:33]>> 1995. It handles the back end of websites and is generally used to handle form data, manage databases, and create custom content for websites. Programming languages are supposed to offer a vast number of possibilities, syntax, algorithm. That's what makes the beauty of it. When learning Python, you can easily make any program you want. That [music] is not the case with PHP. It's often criticized for its ease of use and lack of opportunities. Anyone can code in PHP, and many inexperienced developers pick up the programming language and start writing functional but problematic code, which is difficult to understand >> Just by the way, I think it's actually very good that languages like PHP, Python, and Ruby are really easy for people to getting started. Meaning that you cannot expect someone starting with Rust or starting with C or C++. It's a lot of stuff to take in. However, when you start with Ruby, with Python, and PHP, there is stuff you don't have to deal with, like memory, like garbage collector. You don't have to deal with memory. You can just literally get stuff done in a very, very easy way.

[00:03:30]>> and and really messy. Without forgetting the lack of security in the web apps that result from that. I mean, PHP is a programming language like any other. You can make anything you want with it. But the difference is how you can solve problems in those languages. PHP was originally designed with a focus on web development, and its primary use case is evident in its architecture. While it is possible to create command line programs in PHP, it wasn't the language's intended purpose. Additionally, early versions of PHP were known for their somewhat make >> Just by the way, I do think that some of the stats we see of PHP decreasing on the world in general, I think it comes from the fact that originally when PHP was conceived, it was being used for everything, okay? And there is stuff that clearly PHP is not suited for. One example is for doing front-end. Of course, JavaScript is way better suited for that job. Another example is mobile applications. There is way better languages for building mobile apps that is not PHP. One question from the chat is beginners will pick Rust and write bad code. Well, one cool thing about Rust is that you cannot really write bad code. The compiler is so strong that you cannot write Rust code that does not compile, which is kind of crazy.

[00:04:39]>> shift nature. Rasmus Lerdorf initially conceived PHP as a template language for his web pages, which influenced its early development. I can go on Reddit and write that I want to learn PHP, and most of the answers will be to go for another programming language and get a greater return for your time. They are not wrong since its reputation has taken over and people tend to recommend more modern and suitable languages, just like Python to beginners. So, why waste your time learning that language? Well, to see that, let's analyze a snippet of PHP code together. We're first going to start by install >> I'm literally curious to see the snippet that you will write cuz there is a lot of stuff on PHP right now in 2026 that it wasn't there 10 years ago. So, probably it will be super outdated, but maybe not. Maybe maybe it will not be outdated. Let's >> following the language. And here is a sample code that will run. This is a simple login page made with PHP, and as you can see, the code is >> Who the writes PHP code like this?

[00:05:28]Nobody writes PHP code like this in 2026. I'm done. I'm done with this video. Who writes code like this? This is even worse than I thought. Like, who writes codes like this? Nobody uses session variable global variable. Nobody writes raw SQL with PHP. They all use like some sort of query builder behind the scenes. Nobody uses these functions behind the scenes. Like this is literally stuff for credit builders. No right Nobody writes PHP on the HTML itself. Like this video is Nobody, literally nobody. This is code not from 10 years ago. This is code from 20 years ago. Can we just agree on that one? Come on. I'm getting super pissed.

[00:06:03]>> Hard to read. This could maybe come from me not knowing the language enough. But the language is well known for >> It does come from you not knowing THE LANGUAGE ENOUGH.

[00:06:11]>> [laughter] [screaming] >> IT DOES COME FROM YOU NOT knowing enough. I'm going to just tell you that already, okay? I'm going to cry right now.

[00:06:20]>> [laughter] >> with its lack of strict structure and convention, which result >> Oh my god. Oh my god. It does lack of structure because you don't know what is PHP in 2026.

[00:06:35]That's why. This is cool stuff right here. What we are seeing right now is modern PHP. Do you see any HTML on it?

[00:06:40]You don't. Do you see any any session variables, global stuff? You don't. You just see good stuff. Jesus Christ.

[00:06:46]>> It's an inconsistent and difficult to [music] maintain code. Auditing and maintenance become really hard. Well, I mean, just imagine coming back from a week of vacation and taking a look at that. This has >> Because nobody does that. I'm I don't know, man. This is YouTube clickbait.

[00:07:00]Yeah, man. This is This is bad.

[00:07:02]>> definitely contributed to the negative outlook on the language and its bad reputation. If you've been watching this long and have enjoyed the video, consider interacting with the video in some way. It helps with the algorithm.

[00:07:11]>> All right. Well, you are requesting for it. Let's actually interact with the video. PHP is not anymore like that.

[00:07:18]Nobody does PHP like that anymore.

[00:07:23]Literally, check this. Now, let's actually send it to the YPHP in 2026 website. Here we go.

[00:07:33]I no good. Going to give it a thumbs up just because he's like making content for me. That's That's only reason.

[00:07:40]>> Anyone can understand that if a programming language has high demand in the market and will make you good money, then I'm not going to waste your time.

[00:07:46]It doesn't. Most companies aren't looking for PHP developers anymore, resulting in videos like PHP will make you poor. I fired >> Most companies are not looking for PHP developers anymore. I mean, of course they are. They are looking at the PHP developers just like they are looking for JavaScript or Python or Ruby developers. It's the same stuff. They are mainstream languages. Of course people are looking for that.

[00:08:07]>> For sure. Where he said >> We defend our grounds. Dude, I'm sorry. I'm sorry, but what I've just said is not defending my ground. It's just facts. PHP does not look at that.

[00:08:17]You know what I mean? PHP does not look like that anymore.

[00:08:19]>> that HTML programmers make more money than PHP programmers. And we can definitely all agree that HTML is a programming language, right? Well, PHP can't be so bad, right? Well, no. The language has its ups and is made for a wider community, explaining its simplicity. Now, my friend will tell us about his experience with PHP and why it's not actually as bad as people make it out to.

[00:08:39]>> Oh, okay. Yeah, bringing a PHP developer to tell him how PHP stands stands in 2026, hopefully.

[00:08:45]>> I started using PHP [music] in school.

[00:08:47]It was pretty difficult to write complex code for dynamic websites. Because of the syntax, our code became very unreadable. But then a few years later, I stumbled upon Laravel, a powerful [laughter] but simple framework utilizing [music] PHP to create web applications. Laravel convinced me that PHP isn't bad at all. I also did some scripting and I learned a lot from it.

[00:09:05]There are plenty of libraries to build whatever you want in an efficient and secure way. If you want to learn PHP to keep up with the industry, no problem.

[00:09:12]But nowadays, JavaScript [music] and Java are at the lead. JavaScript can be used for anything, including strong backends, which can perform very well.

[00:09:19]Well, >> I still think that well, on everything you have said, I agree that JavaScript is a very popular language and you can literally do a lot of things with JavaScript. I don't think JavaScript is a good solution for the backend. I think Java is a good solution for a backend, just like PHP. I think Java is not a good solution for a front end. And regardless, I mean, he was right. like PHP has evolved a lot, especially with Laravel.

[00:09:40]>> Conclusion of the video, don't learn PHP.

[00:09:42]>> Well, I would end this video with do learn PHP. this is a react to why everyone hates PHP. The original video will be on the link below. Don't forget subscribe my channel. Also, W sponsor for making this video come true. Let me know what you think on the comments below. Click on the like button, subscribe the channel. Love you all.

[00:09:59]Peace out.