One of the best-known and most widely used scripting languages today is PHP. It is used by a lot of developers, has excellent support from the development community, and is very fast and stable. For example, WordPress is based on the PHP scripting language.
That is why there are so many tools that PHP developers use in their daily work, even emergency recovery tools, for web app development services.
Below we will describe some of the most popular PHP tools. We will list the tools used as development environments, then the tools for performance, code profiling, and logging, as well as the tools for debugging.
1. Scriptcase
Scriptcase is a great tool that allows developers to develop web pages and applications with a browser preview. Links to databases and very good reports can be generated. This development environment is mainly intended for medium and big companies because it is not affordable for everyone.
Some of the main features of this tool are the ability to connect to most database engines; there is the ability to create self-explanatory charts; the ability to export data in XLS format, and to create very detailed reports.
You can try Scriptcase for free for a period of 20 days, and if you want to continue using it, you will pay 279.20 USD per year to use only one database; the Pro version costs 319.20 USD per year, and the most expensive version is called Enterprise and costs 479.20 USD per year.
2. Sublime Text
This is one of the best text editors over an IDE. It is highly reviewed and suitable for smaller companies that do not have a high budget or servers on which they can store large amounts of data.
One of the best features of this tool is that multiple instances of code or text can be edited at the same time.
As we have already mentioned, this tool is intended for companies that do not have a high budget; for its use, you will pay only 80 USD/lifetime.
3. Eclipse PDT
Eclipse PDT is a great tool mostly used by developers who write Java code. Of course, there is the possibility of using it for other programming languages such as PHP. Although it is an open-source tool, it is very demanding and consumes a lot of resources, which could be a problem for companies with a smaller budget.
Some of the best options of this tool are the ability to profile code in PHP as well as do formatting, use code templates, debug and highlight syntax.
Since the tool is completely free, we recommend that you try it.
4. Zend
Zend is one of the most famous tools today. It has a very large set of features that can be applied to any server, including cloud servers and services. Unlike the previously mentioned tools, Zend can be used by all companies, from small and beginner to large corporations.
Some of the most important options of this tool are the possibility of cloud implementation and support for MS Azure and AWS.
If you want to have this tool for personal use, then you will pay 89 USD. The basic license costs 189 USD. If you want to try this tool for free, there is a free trial.
5. XAMPP
XAMPP is a great and advanced tool created by the Apache Friends organization. It is optimized to work with MySQL databases.
Some of the basic features of this tool are a very easy installation with a wizard, Perl and MySQL being part of the installation, the ability to install CMS components, and a very light and clear interface to manage all installed components.
XAMPP is one of the oldest development platforms for PHP and is part of the Apache products group.
The tool is completely free to use, so we advise you to try it out.
6. Retrace
Retrace is a great tool for tracking development errors, monitoring performance, and improving code. Within this tool, there are all the additional tools in one place that will make the job easier for developers.
This tool is one of the best for teams that want to speed up an application but also to diagnose errors and speed up the server performance.
The main features of this tool are the ability to track resource utilization on the server, track key application metrics, and profile code in a way that you know exactly what each piece of code is doing.
If you want to try this tool for free, you can do so within a period of 14 days.
If you use this tool on servers that are not in production, then you will pay 10 USD per month per server. For servers in production, the price is from 25 USD to 50 USD per month.
7. Zephir
Zephir is a very powerful software that is considered to be a code enhancement tool. Within this tool, you can create compiled functions that run within the PHP engine. It is used by everyone, from individuals and small companies to large and serious corporations.
The main features of this tool are compiling components into common libraries with the purpose of faster execution and creating functions similar to the C programming language. But, the most important feature is the price; this product is completely free.
8. New Relic
When it comes to the APM industry, then New Relic is the best and most famous tool. It supports a very large number of development languages such as PHP, Java, Ruby, and .NET. On the interactive and clean interface, you can monitor absolutely all the performance of your applications as well as the behavior of mobile applications.
Some of the leading features of this tool are its browser, complete infrastructure monitoring, performance monitoring, execution within SQL databases, and detailed diagnostics.
New Relic is not a cheap solution, so you will pay 75 USD to 600 USD per month, depending on your needs. If you buy an annual license you can get a better price.
9. SonarSource
SonarSource is a tool created to help improve security in the PHP language. It was created in 2010 and is already recognized as one of the leading tools in the industry. Inside the tool, there is a PHP scanner that will try to figure out if your code has any vulnerabilities.
This is a very powerful tool that has a large set of options and is robust to handle. Key features include full PHP support, code quality analysis, built-in vulnerability detection mechanisms, compliance with industry security standards, and the ability to export all data.
You can get the price of the product only on request via the official website.
10. Vagrant
Vagrant is a great tool that can be used to control different versions of the environment, which PHP developers can find very useful. Virtual environments can be created within this tool, so multiple versions of PHP can be used.
Some of the best options of this tool are the ability to create a development environment with the components you need in the current project and deleting those environments when you no longer need them.
The tool is completely free, so we advise you to test it.
11. Git
Git is one of the most famous and popular version control tools. It can be used as a standalone solution. Plus, it is used by many developers for personal projects and by small and large companies.
This tool is used very much, and it is easy to find help within the community. The interface of this tool is very easy to learn, and there is also support for servers that are in the cloud.
The tool is completely free, and you should try it out.
12. Debugbar
Debugbar is a great tool for all developers, not just those who use PHP. It is very good for finding errors within HTML and JS code.
Some of the most important options are an overview of CSS elements, the ability to evaluate JavaScript, the ability to make changes directly within the HTML code, the ability to see changes live, and the ability to monitor network traffic.
Since this is a completely free tool, we advise you to try it.
13. Xdebug
When it comes to finding errors in PHP code, then Xdebug is an indispensable tool. It can be integrated into the IDE, and most IDEs support it. Most of the tools used to develop PHP code include Xdebug, so its use is very widespread.
This is a tool that originated back in 2002, and its main features are that it works with most IDEs, has the ability to quickly debug code, and can be used in combination with other debugging tools.
Xdebug is a free tool that you should definitely try.
14. SolarWinds AppOptics
AppOptics is a great tool by SolarWinds. This tool supports monitoring application performance, resource utilization and helps companies visualize the performance of their software solutions.
Some of the most important features of this tool are the ability to integrate with a very large number of other tools, the ability to monitor the complete infrastructure and servers, the ability to monitor application execution, very good options for metrics, detailed analytics, and fast data export.
The cost of this tool is 20 USD per host. The price includes an infrastructure monitoring service and 400 metrics per host.
15. phpDesigner
phpDesigner is one of the best tools, and probably the most feature-rich IDE ever made for PHP developers. This tool has absolutely everything you need to debug web applications.
Given the price, this tool is not the best solution for small businesses. Licensing fees are quite high. The Single Commercial license costs 69 EUR, and for other commercial prices, you must send an inquiry via the official website.
16. phpDocumentor
phpDocumentor is one of the best and most well-known tools for creating PHP documentation. It is possible to create PHP documentation directly from the source code. This is an open-source tool that has a web-based interface.
Within this tool, there is an option to automatically analyze PHP code and print documentation in some of the popular formats such as PDF, HTML, CHM, or Docbook. You can link different documents together to create cross-references and guides. Inside this tool are very nice PHP templates that you can use in your projects.
The tool is free, and you can get a copy of it on the official website.
17. NetBeans
NetBeans is probably the most commonly used IDE for developing PHP applications. Its initial purpose was the development of the Java programming language, but over time it has grown into a good tool that also supports the development of PHP software.
The tool is very good and supports extensions for other programming languages such as C, C ++, and HTML5. It is available in several world languages, which makes this tool available to a huge number of developers. The main feature of this tool is the ability to work with all popular frameworks such as Zend, CakePHP, and even WordPress. It is important to emphasize that this tool has the option of smart code completion as well as a very good syntax highlighter. It’s free, so be sure to try it out.
18. CodeLobster IDE
CodeLobster IDE stands out as an intelligent, free cross-platform Integrated Development Environment (IDE) designed for proficient editing of PHP, HTML, CSS, and JavaScript files.
It provides specialized support for various frameworks and content management systems, including Drupal, WordPress, Joomla, Magento, CodeIgniter, CakePHP, Symfony, Vue, Yii, CodeIgniter, Angular, Laravel, React, Phalcon, Backbone, Bootstrap, jQuery, Twig, Python, Node.js.
Its cross-platform functionality ensures accessibility on various operating systems, making CodeLobster IDE a valuable tool for web developers seeking a comprehensive and user-friendly coding experience for different programming languages and web development platforms.
Conclusion
Since PHP is one of the most popular programming languages today, there are many tools that make it easier to work with. We have described some of the best and most useful tools that should make it easier for you to develop PHP applications. Since most of these tools are free, we advise you to try them, and for the best results, you can use more tools in combination.