PHP
The classic server-side scripting language.
PHP is taught here in 13 lessons, running from PHP: getting started through to Testing, frameworks and deployment. Each lesson takes one topic, shows the working code, and links onward to the next, so the course can be read straight through in order.
| Track | Back-end Development |
| Lessons | 13 |
| Level | Beginner to intermediate |
| Reading time | about 3 hours |
| Prerequisites | Helpful, but not required: Node.js |
Lessons
- PHP: getting startedHow PHP runs on the server, mixing code with HTML, and the request/response model behind almost every classic website.
- PHP variables and stringsDynamic typing, interpolation, heredoc, and the loose-comparison quirks that cause real security bugs.
- PHP arraysOne type for lists and maps, the array functions worth knowing, and array_map/filter across collections.
- Forms, sessions and safetyHandling GET and POST, validating input, keeping sessions, and the defences against the classic web attacks.
- A modern PHP toolchain with ComposerInstall a current PHP, serve it locally, and let Composer handle dependencies, PSR-4 autoloading and the tooling around the language.
- Functions, control flow and type declarationsmatch, loops, typed parameters and returns, nullable and union types, named arguments, variadics and first-class callables.
- Object-oriented PHPClasses and promoted constructors, visibility, static members, inheritance, interfaces, traits, readonly properties and enums.
- Modern PHP 8 features in practiceProperty hooks, asymmetric visibility, the pipe operator, clone-with, attributes, and the rewritten DOM and URI extensions.
- Errors, exceptions and loggingError versus Exception, try/catch/finally, custom exception types, turning warnings into exceptions, log levels and production error display.
- Files, streams and the filesystemReading and writing files, handles and modes, stream contexts and wrappers, uploads, temporary files, permissions, and CSV or JSON round-trips.
- Databases with PDO and prepared statementsDSN and connection options, bound parameters, transactions, fetch modes, mapping rows to objects, and avoiding N+1 queries.
- Composer, dependencies and coding standardsVersion constraints and the lockfile, scripts, autoload optimisation, PSR-12 formatting, PHPStan and Rector in one repeatable workflow.
- Testing, frameworks and deploymentPHPUnit and Pest, unit versus feature tests, a tour of Laravel and Symfony routing, and shipping with OPcache, PHP-FPM and zero-downtime releases.
More in Back-end Development
Node.js Java HTTP Go Rust Spring Boot Laravel Ruby GraphQL
FAQ
How long does the PHP course take?
It has 13 lessons, about 3 hours of reading. Expect roughly twice that if you type out and run every example.
Do I need prior experience for PHP?
Not strictly. It helps to have read Node.js first, because some lessons build on it, but every lesson explains its own assumptions.
What should I read after PHP?
Continue with Java (13 lessons), the next course in Back-end Development.
Last refreshed 2026-09-18.