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What Is A PHP Development Company?
PHP development companies specialize in building secure and functional PHP solutions that facilitate business growth.
They help transform businesses of all sizes and industries by building highly functional websites and other solutions, combining the latest technologies with their expertise.
In 2018, there were 5.5 million PHP developers around the world and because of the high demand for PHP services, the number is constantly increasing.
What Do The Top PHP Development Companies Do?
A typical PHP development company has a team that shares different qualities, skills and responsibilities.
Some typical tasks that they execute include:
- Design, implement and maintain all stages of PHP apps
- Develop, implement, test and maintain application software
- Build technical designs for apps and code for PHP programs
- Take part in the software development activities of the software development team
- Analyze, program, test, and debug software as needed
- Identify both production and non-production issues for the applications
- Convert software requirements into specifications
- Endorse improvements and changes in the software
Of course, a PHP developer will have their focus areas, but most companies will offer a full spectrum of programming language expertise.
What Is PHP Web Development And Why Is It One Of The Most Sought-After PHP Services?
PHP is widely used for website and web application building. It is one of the most popular and most commonly used development options because it is:
- Reliable
- Secure
- Much faster than other languages
The main reasons why most businesses opt for PHP websites are their enhanced performance, compatibility with major operating systems and flexibility.
How Much Do PHP Development Services Cost?
The cost of PHP development services mostly depends on the following factors:
- The size of the project
- The timeframe of the project
- The company’s seniority and expertise
Location is a major factor in service pricing.
For instance, a North American PHP development company commands some of the highest rates on the global market, while those from Asia and Africa tend to command the lowest.
Here’s an overview of how much top PHP development companies will cost you in different parts of the world:
- North American experts charge $95-$170 per hour.
- PHP developers in Central and South America charge $30-$50 per hour.
- PHP software development firms in Eastern Europe charge between $25-$50 per hour.
- Top experts based in Asia and Africa charge between $18-$40 per hour.
Don’t take the disparity in the cost per hour fool you. That does not have to be indicative of a PHP developer’s skill level.
In fact, some of the best developers love abroad where the cost of living is much lower than in the West and, therefore, they command lower prices.
This is one of the reasons why outsourcing is increasing in popularity. You can get highly qualified PHP development companies for a fraction of what their colleagues in the United States would cost you, simply because one is living in New York and the other in Kyiv, for example.
Why Hire PHP Developers?
Research shows that 78.9% of all web services are written in PHP. In fact, big-name brands ranging from Slack to Spotify use PHP to power their digital platforms.
So, if you find yourself wondering why you need a development partner, first take a moment to realize the benefits of building a website on PHP:
- As an open-source framework, it can help keep your business under-budget.
- PHP tends to reuse lines of code, which shortens development time.
- It is easy to integrate other platforms, such as Windows, Linux, and macOS.
- PHP-based websites are easy to scale and grow in conjunction with a business.
- And more
What’s more, PHP is also an open-source language. So, unlike other popular languages,
you don’t have to wait for its next version release.
Your PHP development company will continually update and maintain your website to keep it up-to-date and meet your requirements. This is why counting on such a partner is necessary.
The Top Advantages Of Partnering With PHP Development Companies
Many programming languages ebb and flow in popularity. One moment, every software developer from New York to Tokyo is using a writing code with a particular language, and the next no one seems to remember how to write a simple syntax.
Just look at where BASIC, PASCAL, or ALGOL were in the 1980s and where they are now. But one programming language is here to stay.
That, of course, is PHP, or PHP: Hypertext Preprocessor.
There are 39,191,714 live websites written in PHP.
In fact, since inception, the programming language has gone through a number of versions.
Currently, around 62% of all websites that use PHP are powered by version 5, although the newer version 7 is gaining on it with a 37.5% share. Older versions, like 3 and 4 are rarely used anymore and are no longer supported.
Version 8 should see the light of day somewhere in Q1 2021.
And, considering the fact that WordPress is powered by PHP, it seems the future of this language is guaranteed and, with it, the future of PHP developers.
But PHP’s capabilities span far beyond WordPress websites – and more PHP experts know that.
Although other programming languages may have additional features, PHP is the most widely used server-side programming language for website and web application development for a good reason.
Here are just a few of the biggest advantages of PHP development:
- It is compatible with all operating systems: Whether you are using Windows, macOS, Linux, Unix, Apache or MySQL, PHP will work flawlessly on it. That alone makes it ideal for cross-platform software development.
- It is rich in resources, tools, functionalities and documentation: From documentation tools to dependency managers and more, PHP has plenty to offer. There’s also an incredible amount of documentation available online that addresses every topic imaginable about PHP development that you can make use of.
- It is dynamic and flexible: PHP is an encrypted and highly secure programming language and this allows it to be very scalable. And if that’s not enough, it’s also one of the best languages out there for custom software development as you can easily combine it with various libraries, or write its code in any editor.
- It is free and open-source: PHP is also an entirely open-source and free language. That means it is more readily available so there shouldn’t be a lack of PHP developers to choose from. There’s a huge developer community dedicated to PHP out there.
How To Find The Right PHP Development Company For Your Business?
Finding the right partner for your business is a time-consuming task.
Luckily, there are several factors that will help you determine if a PHP developer is the right one:
1. Types Of Servers
PHP development companies have a diverse experience with server types, server sizes and the number of servers they have worked with at one time.
By examining the PHP development companies’ expertise and experience with your server type, you'll be more likely to find a partner who can successfully work on your site.
2. Location
When it comes to server maintenance, it is often important that your PHP development companies are in the vicinity of your premises.
Depending on your needs, it may make more sense to only vet the companies who can visit the office, speak your language or work similar business hours.
However, sometimes brands prefer to outsource their PHP development near or offshore due to the lower cost of PHP development services and the different talents who are always in tune with the latest trends in PHP development.
3. Expertise
All in all, it is important that the companies have the expertise needed to develop and execute the solutions you need.
To help you out, we rounded up a list of the best PHP developers - all carefully vetted according to our numerous selection criteria. Scroll up to view the list.
To examine each company, focus on their:
- Experience
- Quality of their past work
- PHP expertise
- Service and average project cost
- And more
Also, focus on the finer details.
If some of the agencies’ own websites are poorly developed, load slowly or have other issues, they aren’t very likely to do much better for you, are they?
Do leave some room for redemption, however. Check out the company's past work and client reviews.
Also, reach out to their clients yourself to hear what they have to say.
Another hugely important factor in selecting the right PHP company for your business is what methodology they use. This will help you get the necessary info on how their development project cycle usually looks like and if that is something that will work for you
How To Outsource PHP Web Development Successfully
Outsourcing PHP web development has become a global trend due to the popularity of this programming language.
And here are a few steps that will help you outsource web development successfully:
- Sign a contract: A signed agreement between you and your development partner will ensure that your partner delivers what they promise. So, before you sign the paper, go through every clause and make sure to include all the responsibilities and deliverables. Since software projects tend to be costly, consult your legal representative on the terms before entering the partnership.
- Establish open communication: Set up the communication channels, assign roles and streamline the communication process. This will be one of the pillars of your collaboration, so you want to ensure your information flow, your instructions, updates and reaction times are optimized.
- Use a project management tool: All experienced software companies have their preferred project management tools, but most are willing to adopt the client’s preference. Ensure that you are comfortable with the tool you are using and your teams are fully trained and disciplined about it. This tool will give you transparency over your project, including progress and bottlenecks.
- Apply Agile methodologies: Agile methodologies will help you understand the nature of your project and the objectives you want to achieve. What’s more, they also allow you to keep track of the project's life cycle and establish a better working atmosphere with your developer.
- Pay attention to UX: User experience is one of the key factors in making your product attractive and useful to your users. Ask your developer to provide you with a workflow mock-up for approval and testing.
Additionally, think of outsourcing your project to a company that offers post-launch PHP development services as your website will require regular updates and maintenance.
Takeaways
The big question is, should you use PHP or some other programming language?
Due to its flexibility and compatibility with many operating systems, PHP is most often the right choice for businesses that need a website or web application.
What’s more, the fact that it is more reliable, faster and more secure make brands choose PHP development services over other programming languages.
So, what makes PHP different (if not, better) from other programming languages?
PHP development is:
- Open-source, which means everyone can use it for free.
- Independent of any platform so you can run PHP on Windows, Linux, macOS, or cross-platform.
- Cloud-ready, so many Cloud Service Providers use it for hosting.
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