Developers can use several technologies to facilitate back-end development. The list contains programming languages, frameworks, libraries, and more. Among them, PHP and Django are two popular back-end technologies driving several businesses.
According to Stack Overflow, over 40% of developers love to code using PHP. When it comes to Django, 14.99% of software engineers regularly use the technology.
However, Django still powers more than 91,000 websites and 55,773 unique domains. Therefore, both technologies have a strong hold across the internet.
Businesses need to choose the right back-end technology based on their development needs. Otherwise, your project can suffer a setback or even lead to failure.
Therefore, we will do a PHP vs. Django comparison to help you make an informed decision.
How to Choose the Right Back-End Technology for Your Project?
Your tech stack will impact the performance and quality of your apps. Therefore, choose the right technologies for your back-end based on:
The Nature of Your Project
Complex and data-intensive apps need a different tech stack from a simple MVP app. Additionally, you should consider your scaling requirements in the future. The amount and complexity of features are also a factor to consider.
Team Expertise
All programming languages and frameworks have a learning curve. Therefore, you should choose the technologies that align with the expertise of your developers. Otherwise, you may have to outsource your project.
Cost
Cost is a big factor when choosing your back-end tech stack. Some tools are open-source and don’t need any upfront investment. However, you may have to pay for any additional resources you need.
Paid tools, on the other hand, can add to your costs. However, a reliable tool can also save time and speed up development to lower expenses.
Next, let’s dive into our PHP vs. Django comparison.
Everything You Should Know About PHP for Back-End Development
PHP is one of the oldest and most popular backend languages. It is an open-source scripting language used for developing dynamic web content. It can help developers manage and perform several actions on the server, like reading or deleting files.
PHP is also one of the best back-end programming languages for managing databases. It can also allow programmers to encrypt data and manage user access. You can also embed PHP code in HTML codes and files, which makes it familiar to front-end and back-end developers.
PHP can be used to automate workflows for server-end development and is suitable for:
- Database-driven apps
- eCommerce apps
- Image processing web apps
- Custom scripting of coding
- Scripting at the server-side
- Desktop apps
- CMS like WordPress
Advantages of PHP
PHP has several perks for back-end development:
- Reduces development time with pre-written scripts
- Most developers are already familiar with PHP
- Compatible with different operating systems like Windows and Linux
- Supports major databases
Disadvantages of PHP
Every programming language has a few cons and PHP is the same. The drawbacks include:
- Need to write boilerplate code every time
- Suffers from performance issues
- Needs expertise to boost security
Everything You Should Know About Django for Back-End Development
Django is a full-scale framework to develop web apps. It is open-source and written in Python, a popular choice for web development. Additionally, Django follows the MVT approach to enable the rapid development of web apps.
It also comes with a vast library of resources to reduce dependencies. Developers can build an app with less effort based on the pre-built modules in the framework. As a result, Django can help your developers save countless hours and market your app faster.
Django is suitable for a range of projects, like:
- Web app development with ORM support
- Data-intensive apps
- Artificial intelligence (AI) or machine learning (ML)
- Back-end with API
- Scalable web apps
Advantages of Django:
The perks of using Django include:
- Rapid development
- Reusability of code
- Easy to scale
- More secure against threats like SQL injections and cross-site attacks
- Supports most relational databases
Disadvantages of Django
Let’s go over the major drawbacks of Django:
- Monolithic framework
- Challenging to learn
- Handles one request at a time
Next, let’s check out what is the best choice for your needs – PHP or Django!
PHP vs. Django: What to Choose?
The choice of back-end technology comes down to your development objectives. Below is a guide to help you choose the best tech stack for your project.
When to Choose PHP
PHP is a good choice for small-scale projects. It is also ideal for solving specific problems by writing your code. Additionally, PHP is the best back-end language for apps that don’t need to scale in the coming days. You should also keep PHP for apps that don’t have features relying on real-time changes.
However, PHP is the right solution to build a web app or website from scratch. Businesses can hire a PHP developer to create an interactive website with hand-written codes. In addition, they can save time and manual labor by using a range of PHP frameworks like Laravel or CakePHP.
PHP is also a suitable technology to develop computer apps for your tools. It can also help you integrate your app with the cloud to achieve scalability.
Moreover, PHP is a suitable programming language for apps that require heavy image processing. You can also use PHP to create a CMS like WordPress.
In addition, PHP suits projects that depend on databases like MySQL or Oracle. You can easily achieve integration and automate different tasks on the server end.
Most importantly, PHP is a better language compared to competitors like JSP or ASP. It is also simpler to code and manage than other scripting languages.
In the end, PHP has a big community that supports its development. Endless resources exist to improve your knowledge and expertise.
When to Choose Django
Django is the best framework to develop a complete web app. It can help you develop awesome features and market your app faster for quicker returns. Developers can streamline their workflow and use readily available components to tie a web app together.
Additionally, Django supports modern tech advancements like AI and ML. Therefore, it is the right choice for apps that rely on such technologies. Also, the framework is apt to create apps that function across different platforms without problems.
Best of all, Django lets you leverage the capabilities of Python, a more immersive language than PHP. So, you could go for python development outsourcing and Django later on, depending on your project needs. As a result, you can expect more security and peace of mind. You can protect your apps from cyber-attacks and attempts of forgery.
In addition, Django is a scalable framework and lets you scale your apps without limitations. You can also reuse your code across projects to save time and costs. Moreover, Django also allows the development of features rapidly.
Django suits a few types of apps better than PHP. You should consider using Django if your app makes comprehensive use of real-time maps. It is also a preferred framework to create media streaming apps and web browsers.
Additionally, you can use Django with the most common databases in the market. However, you will need Django to run on your server to develop or manage your apps.
Final Thoughts
Both PHP and Django are useful back-end technologies. However, you have to understand the differences between PHP vs. Django to choose the right tool for your project. You should start by assessing the nature of your project and app. Next, you should determine if your developers are familiar with the technologies. Then you can use Django to develop apps rapidly and market them faster. PHP is best for small projects that don’t have too many features. However, some developers use a mix of technologies to facilitate development.
Last Updated on by kalidaspandian