The document compares PHP and Python for web development, highlighting their features, pros, and cons. PHP, created in 1995, is well-suited for server-side scripting and offers extensive frameworks, while Python, launched in 1991, is favored for its ease of learning and versatility, particularly in fields like data science and machine learning. Ultimately, the choice between PHP and Python depends on the project's specific needs and complexity.

1. PHP vs Python: Which is Best for Web
Development?
For any development project to be successful, it’s important to choose the right technology and
programming language. Most of the time, developers get confused about which programming
language to choose.
Nowadays, PHP and Python have gained popularity among the programming languages for
web development projects. However, choosing one between PHP vs Python is a difficult task.
Recently, this has become a good topic for discussion.
Here, in this blog, we will compare the two popular programming languages: PHP vs Python.
Let’s see which one turns out to be the best choice for web development.
What is Python?
Python is an open-source programming language developed in the year 1991 by Guido Van
Rossum. It is one of the most commonly used languages due to its high level and easy-to-
understand syntax.

2. According to the survey by Stack Overflow, Python is one of the most preferred programming
languages. Most of the web development firms and developers around the world are using
Python web development.
What is PHP?
Custom software developers often leverage PHP's extensive features, libraries, plugins, and
add-ons to craft tailored web solutions that meet their clients' unique needs. Rasmus Lerdorf's
creation of PHP in 1995 marked the beginning of a versatile scripting language, now
appreciated for its cross-browser compatibility and adaptability to various development projects.
This adaptability remains a key reason why custom software developers continue to choose
PHP for their web development endeavors.
PHP is a practical, flexible, and fast programming language that can handle dynamic content on
HTML sites, session tracking, and databases.
Features: PHP vs Python
PHP
• Open-source language, anyone can download and use it for free.
• PHP is easy to use and code than other programming languages.
• It is more efficient than other scripting languages like ASP and JSP.
• Offers access to log in by creating a summary of the recent user accesses.
• Provides database integration and supports distinct databases such as MySQL and
Oracle.
• It has predefined error-reporting constants that generate warning or error messages.
Python
• Python is an easy-to-learn programming language.
• Provides an ideal structure and support for large applications.
• It can operate on different hardware platforms utilizing the same user interface.
• Python can be integrated with C, C++, and Java programming code.
• It’s easy to incorporate low-level modules in Python interpreter.
• Python offers high-level dynamic types of data and support for dynamic type checking.
• Its features support automatic garbage collection.
• It supports an interactive mode of testing and debugging.
Pros and Cons: PHP vs Python
Here, we will compare the pros and cons of PHP vs python for web development.
Pros of PHP

3. • Has a large ecosystem.
• Flexible and platform-independent.
• Several open-source PHP frameworks are available to use for free.
• Offers many pluggable frameworks, Open-source and object-oriented.
• Supports different database interfaces such as No SQL, PostgreSQL, and so on.
• It is supported by many operating systems and works cross-platform.
• Encourages top-notch debugging.
• Provides in-built SQL support.
• Offers support for database collection modules.
• It supports all operating systems like Windows, Linux, and UNIX.
Cons of PHP
• Delayed and wired performance.
• Not apt for content-based applications.
• Utilizes weak typing that can lead to false knowledge and data to users.
• Its core behavior can’t be changed.
• There’s no IOT alliance.
• Fewer security protocols and features.
Pros of Python
• Easy to learn and maintain.
• An open-source and uniformly unfolding language.
• Enables cross-platform code reusability.
• Object-oriented and versatile language to deploy.
• Offers WORA functionality.
• Helps in developing GUI apps.
• Has automatic garbage collection.
• It can be integrated easily with other languages, such as Java or C++.
• Provides libraries like Tenseorflow for math-intensive tasks.
Cons of Python
• Creates delays in web app testing.
• It utilizes an enormous amount of memory to help developers in easy development.
• Operates slower than other web development languages.
• Not of much use in mobile computing browsers and mobile app development.
• It has dynamic typing, which makes error detection more difficult.
• It’s too large for a simple and small app or website.
• Run time errors occurs due to duck typing.
When Should You Select PHP?
PHP is a commonly used server-side scripting language among developers. The best use cases
in which you should select PHP:
• For developing blogs, websites, and web applications.
• Work effectively on the server side.
• Less investment.

4. When Should You Select Python?
Python programming language has gained popularity in recent times. Below we have given
some of the best cases in which you should choose Python.
• For operating in the areas of robotics and data science.
• When you want accurate and extensive data analytics.
• Developing websites using the Django framework.
Why opt for PHP?
Here, we will give you some reasons why you should opt for the PHP programming language.
• Open-source language, easy to download and use.
• Easy to learn and operates effectively on the server side.
• This scripting language can run on distinct platforms such as Windows, Mac OS X,
Linux, and UNIX.
• It’s compatible with every server, like IIS, Apaches, and so on.
• Supports a broad range of databases.
Why opt for Python?
As you know, there are many advantages and disadvantages of using Python. Here, we will tell
you why you should choose Python for web development.
• Python language is easy to use and maintain.
• Python syntax is quick to understand and debug as well. Therefore, its source code is
easier to maintain.
• It has a garbage collection feature and memory addresses accordingly.
• It comes with many pre-built libraries.
• Python supports GUI apps such as Django, Tkinter, WXPython, etc.
• It’s a versatile and portable language. You can run Python on different types of operating
systems or platforms.
• Python comes with a database-friendly interface that can store a colossal amount of
data for commercial DBMS systems.
• It has an interactive shell that helps in unit testing before deploying a product.
Comparison: PHP vs Python
Above, we have given the features and pros & cons of PHP vs Python. In this section, we will
give you a comparison between PHP vs Python in accordance with different parameters.
Parameters Python PHP
Release 1991 1995

5. Learning curve Easier Steep
Language type Specialized for web
development
General purpose programming
language
Syntax Clear & concise Complex
Security High Medium
Readability High Low
Database
connectivity
Faster Slower
Debugging Fast Slower
Performance Lesser support Faster
Supported
Frameworks
Flask, Django, Web2Py Laravel, Zend, Codelgniter
GitHub Stars 40.9k 31.5k
TIOBE Rating 1st position 9th position

6. Forks 20.5 k 6.9k
Major Users Instagram, YouTube, Quora,
Reddit
Facebook, Yahoo, Flickr, Tumblr
This comprehensive comparison between PHP vs Python can help you to choose the right
language for web development. Now, we will compare some other elements that would give you
a clear picture of both PHP vs Python.
1. Ease of Learning
Python is an easier language to learn compared to PHP. If you are a beginner, then Python is a
good choice as you can learn it quickly. Python programs are shorter as well as easy to write in
comparison to other languages.
PHP programming language is made for creating sophisticated web apps. It’s not a general-
purpose language, and it takes time to learn it.
2. Ease of Use
Python is an open-source programming language that is versatile and portable. Python’s syntax
is simple, and coding is easy to learn compared to PHP. But PHP is not just an ordinary
programming language it’s used for creating dynamic web pages with HTML. This makes PHP
more difficult to use than Python.
3. Community Support
Both PHP and Python provide good community support. PHP has been in the market for a long
time and has a large community of developers. Therefore, you can immediately get support if
you opt for PHP.
However, there are even many Python developers who constantly develop python apps. So, the
community support in Python is also good. Consequently, we can’t say whether PHP or Python
is better at providing community support.
4. Flexibility
Nowadays, web apps backed by Machine Learning are in high demand. Also, ML is a significant
part of Python. Python provides many machine-learning libraries, such as Tensorflow, Theano,
Pandas, and Scikit-learn. Additionally, these libraries are rapid, unique, & robust and work
effectively with a web framework.

7. Nonetheless, Python programming language can be used in many other fields apart from web
development. But when it comes to PHP, it’s best for web development. Therefore, we can say
Python is a better choice here.
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5. Speed to Market
Python provides a comprehensive set of modules and third-party libraries to help developers
finish the project faster. One of the popular web frameworks written in Python is Django. It
utilizes the MVC pattern to allow developers to create apps fast using a significant division of
concerns and reusability.
PHP also has a vast set of tools, frameworks, and libraries. Laravel is a popular PHP framework
that allows the MVC pattern. Additionally, it comes with many helpful functionalities for web
development, like routing, templating, authentication, and so on.
6. Web Frameworks
You get robust and well-designed web development frameworks both in PHP and Python. Most
of the big businesses utilize web frameworks that PHP provides. For example, Laravel and
Symfony are mature web frameworks, and a huge community supports them. So, we can say
PHP makes web development easy.
Python also has many exceptional frameworks that are highly scalable, easy to use, fast and
secure. It’s two most popular web frameworks are Flask and Django. If you want a shorter
development period, then you can choose Django over PHP-based frameworks.
7. Library Management
Python uses Pip to handle and deal with packages. Pip ensures that Python app development is
easy, rapid, and meets development needs. Python has powerful library management
compared to PHP. It has a wide range of packages and tools that assist and make web app
development easier. So, in terms of library management, Python clearly wins it.
8. Security
When it comes to security, most businesses prefer using Python. For instance, Django offers
many pre-built security features that aid in safeguarding the apps from distinct security breaches
& threats.
Apart from that, many government organizations rely on Python as their secret hacking tool.
Most of the security problems are addressed by its large community support. However, PHP is
less strong than Python in aspects of security.
9. Environment Management

8. In terms of handling environments, Python is the best programming language. It has a
Virtualenv system that aids in installing different versions of the language and switching
between them immediately.
PHP has no comparison with Python when it comes to handling environments. There’s an
analog of PHP, VirtPHP, but it’s archived and not maintained. Therefore, most of the developers
opt for Python.
10. Debugging
Python has an in-built debugger called Python Debugger or PDB. It utilizes many debugging
strategies. PDB enables dynamic typing and lets developers work effortlessly without stating
things at the start of a program.
PHP also comes with an XDebug package for handling bugs and error-checking the codes. But
PHP development is quite slow in identifying and removing bugs. Therefore, it often experiences
security issues.
The Bottom Line
PHP vs Python: Which One You Choose for Web Development?
Our skilled developers delivers the most promising web development solutions to make dynamic
websites for your business
Book an appointment with us
From the blog, you must have inferred that both PHP and Python are good for web
development. However, there are many aspects in which Python wins over PHP. But this
doesn’t mean that you only have to opt for Python. The selection of programming language
majorly depends on the complexity and needs of the project.
Sphinx Solutions is a leading and trusted web app development company. Our team of web
developers can help you create the best web apps for your business based on your
specifications. Schedule a call with our experts to get an estimation for your web app
development project, or email us at sales@sphinx-solution.com.