PHP vs Python: Choosing the Right Language for Web Development

The difference between PHp v/s Python

PHP vs Python:

Before we begin about PHP vs Python or which language is better for web development. Let us start with the basics of each language. Particularly, the language used for web development in Python and PHP. We are also going to find out how Python is better than PHP when it comes to web development

 

PHP (Hypertext Pre-processor)

To begin with, PHP is a scripting language that is designed for web development and is used to create dynamic as well as interactive HTML web pages. Particularly, this is also a general-purpose language that is used for programming. This language was introduced by Rasmus Lerdorf in the year 1994. Therefore, the full form is known as Personal Home Pages but it is now known as Hypertext Preprocessor.

 

Moreover, PHP is nothing but an HTML-based web Scripting language. This means that PHP code can be inserted in between HTML snippets of a web page. It is the fastest way to create database-enabled as well as dynamic websites. However, PHP Supports enterprise as well as main web servers such as Apache, Microsoft IIS, Netscape, etc and it also works on operating systems such as Linux, Unix, Windows, and Mac OS.

Advantages of PHP:

 

  • Open Source:

It is based on the Open source programming concept and this means that you do not have to pay to use it. You can download it for free and use the PHP language.

 

  • Simple and easy to use:

When you compare with other scripting languages, it is very simple, easy to use and understand and is used widely all over the world. Its robust and secure features provide it an advantage to use and implement in web servers for serving PHP and HTML web pages

 

  • Interpreted language:

PHP is an interpreted language, and this means that a compiler is not necessarily eliminating the need for any compilation process.

 

  • Platform Independent:

PHP code is platform-independent which means that it can run independently of any platform such as Windows, Unix, Linux, Mac OS, etc

 

  • Speed:

PHP is comparatively faster than any other scripting language since it uses many system resources.

 

  • Error Reporting:

PHP has a function for error reporting to generate the warning so that one can easily find the errors as well as fix them on time.

 

Hire PHP Developers within 1 Hour for your Web Development.

 

Disadvantages:

 

  • Security:

As we already discussed the language is based on the Open Source License. All the people that are using it can access the source code and if there exist any bugs in the source code it can be used to explore the weakness of PHP.

 

  • Unfit for modular applications:

It is hard to maintain the applications as the language itself is not very modular.

 

 

Let’s discuss some basics of Python.

 

What is Python?

To begin with, Python is a high-level programming language that is used for general-purpose programming. Particularly, the language was designed and developed by Guido van Rossum. Therefore, it was released in 1991 and has kept a design philosophy that emphasizes code readability notably using remarkable white space.

It is used for the following, Software development, web development, mathematics as well and system scripting. Moreover, there are 2 major versions of the Python language, Python 2 and Python 3.

However, Python has a natural style of writing which makes it easy to read and understand as well as it is equally fun to use as well. Some reasons python as gained popularity because:

 

Advantages of Python:

 

  • Beginner Friendly Language:

It is a very user-friendly language that is beginner-friendly because it is easy to understand as well as fun to use. That is one of the reasons that Python has gained huge popularity to be a beginner-friendly language.

 

  • High-Level Language:

As it is a high-level programming language so while you are using the Python language the user need not worry about low-level details such as memory management.

 

  • Shorter code:

Another advantage of using Python language is that it is well known for producing shorter codes when compared to other programming languages to achieve the same task

  • Clear Syntax:

Python does not use curly braces, it has a very clear, orthogonal and brief syntax.

 

  • Object-oriented:

Python supports both procedure-oriented programming and object-oriented programming. It has a very powerful but easy way of performing object-oriented programming compared to other programming languages

Now, let’s look at some of the main reasons why to prefer using Python over the PHP language If we talk about the readability as well as maintainability of both languages PHP is not much maintainable as compared to Python.

Python has more security features when you compare it to PHP.

In PHP, functional programming is not provided but in Python, functional programming and techniques are possible.

PHP was designed with the sole purpose of being a ‘web development’ language while Python was designed with the sole purpose of being a ‘general purpose’ language.

Python has a more united and commanding standard library, and the library is much better than that of PHP
Python has a more dense and clean syntax that is easily readable which helps developers in web development.

 

Hire Python Developers within 1 Hour for your Web Development.

 

Also Read: Why Use Python for Web Development? Pros & Cons for Business

 

PHP vs Python- Direct Comparison

PHP 

Python

PHP is a server-side scripting language Python is a general-purpose programming language
PHP does not use object-oriented approach Python uses object-oriented approach
PHP is used only in web development Python can be used for other purposes other than web development
PHP is open source Python is also open source
No support for Hot technologies like machine learning or Artificial intelligence Support of Hot technologies like machine learning and artificial intelligence exists
PHP cannot be used for data science Python is used for data science
PHP requires a server to execute Python does not require a server to execute
Web developers make use of PHP Data scientists make use of PHP
There are various frameworks developed like Laravel and Codeigniter which make use of PHP There are multiple third-party tools and frameworks developed using Python like Django and R
The first web server was powered using PHP Python also used for the development of web infrastructure
PHP is easy to learn and implement Python also easy to learn and implement
PHP-embedded HTML statements in web development Python does not embed HTML statements in code

 

Read More: PHP with Laravel or Python with Django, which is best for web development?

 

Conclusion:

So now we know which language is best suited for which environments and how we can use the language with the best of the features to satisfy and complete a programming task. We hope that you have found this blog helpful. If you are looking to Hire PHP developers for any web designing project then do give us a call to discuss your requirements. If you are looking to Hire Python developers then also provide us with your requirements. We are here to help you design that masterpiece website.

Author

  • With 14+ years in IT and entrepreneurship, I co-founded Nimap Infotech, a digital transformation company that has delivered 1200+ projects and built a team of 400+ engineers. I’ve also led mobile development teams at Accenture India and IBM Apple Garage and developed a network of 7k+ iOS and Android developers. As an Angel Investor, tech advisor, and mentor, I actively engage with the startup ecosystem.

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