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Is JavaScript Better than PHP? Which is Better for your Next Project?

JavaScript Vs PHP

By Abhishek JainPublished 3 years ago 5 min read
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This is probably one of the most frequently asked questions in the tech world. When it comes to website development, both JavaScript and PHP are needed as both of them serve different purposes. For website development, JavaScript is a client-side scripting language, and PHP is a server-based scripting language. When both these languages are combined, a dynamic website is created. Technological development led to the advent of Angular.js, Node.js and React.js, and with this, JavaScript can now be applied to server-side scripting too. This has increased the competition between PHP development and JavaScript more. In this article, we will try explaining JavaScript and PHP separately and understand which programming language will be suitable for the next project. 

JavaScript

As mentioned previously, JavaScript is a client-side scripting language and is a lightweight language. The execution of this language mainly takes place in the servers for making dynamic and interactive web pages and websites. Along with webpages, the scripting language is also used extensively in the development of various kinds of non-web projects like mobile applications, PDF, game development etc. Time efficiency is better with this language as there is no need for re-compiling. There are different versions of JavaScript like Angular.js, Node.js etc., which help in designing highly functional websites for clients and customers. 

As per the latest statistics, it has been found that almost 69% of developers use JavaScript globally, and an almost 5% more increase in the percentage is expected. As of 2019-20, JavaScript is considered the most popular programming language in the whole world now. 

PHP 

One of the most prominent and fundamental web technologies, PHP is a server-side scripting language. There are many companies offering high-quality PHP development services to customers. Large numbers of dynamically executed websites are being developed by using this language. There are innumerable outstanding features and various precise functions in the programming language, which developers use for creating database-driven websites and feature-rich web pages. Login pages, picture galleries and similar features in a website are mainly built on the PHP framework. This programming language is compatible with all operating systems, including Linux, Windows, UNIX, Mac etc., as it is an open-source platform. 

Understanding similarities of PHP and JavaScript

We always talk about the differences between PHP and JavaScript. Before we go into that, let us discuss the many similarities which are there between the scripting languages. 

Both JavaScript and PHP are object-oriented and interpreted languages. Both the platforms are open-sourced and independent of any platform. Different kinds of memory management features are common in both languages. HTTP is required for executing both the languages, and both are sensitive to variables. While PHP is popular for object-oriented scripting qualities, JavaScript can imitate these qualities with the feature of encapsulated functions. These are known as local methods or variables in PHP. 

Ask any reliable PHP development company, and they will opine that instead of using separately, it is best when PHP and JavaScript are used together for website development. While JavaScript works for the front-end, PHP functions in the backend. A vast codebase of frameworks, libraries as well as community support is provided by PHP. Online gaming sites are the perfect example where PHP and JavaScript go hand in hand with one another. 

Differences between JavaScript and PHP

Now that we have a fair idea of the similarities between PHP and JavaScript, it is time that we discuss the differences between the two scripting languages. The differences are based on the utilities and the places where the languages will be used, and on the benefits. We will discuss the various aspects on which differences will be based:

  • JavaScript vs PHP availability 
  • If you want to know and understand the difference between PHP and JavaScript, it is very important to understand the concept of availability. Availability defines the owner of the script and, most importantly, who can edit the script. Since PHP is an open-source language, the code is available free of cost, and anyone can use it. The Internet community uses and owns this language, and changes can be made in the language from the original design. PHP developers find this very useful as lots of support is available by users. On the other hand, JavaScript is not a free programming language. It is an open standard program, which is maintained by Ecma International and W3C. 

    • Use of JavaScript and PHP for web development

    This is a very interesting study regarding the percentage of websites, which are built with JavaScript vs PHP technologies. 

    It has been deciphered that about 79% of websites are seen to use PHP as the server-side programming language. Just 0.7% of websites used JavaScript as the server-side language. It was also seen that 77.4% of almost all websites, which are in the top 1,000,000, use PHP.

    But when it comes to a client-side scripting language for various websites, there is no comparison to that of JavaScript. Almost 95.2% of all websites use JavaScript for client-side scripting. 

    The area of implementation is what is important and vital. Choose the language as per your requirement. 

    • JavaScript vs. PHP integration with external code 

    PHP code can be combined with only HTML code. But, JavaScript code can be combined easily with some of the latest technologies like Ajax, XML and HTML.

    • JavaScript vs. PHP concurrency 

    In the tech world, concurrency defines that a task is not considered complete until and unless all the threads and subsequent sub-threads have completed processing. Thus, all the threads commence and terminate at the same time. PHP has multithreaded blocking output/input for performing multiple tasks simultaneously in a highly systematic approach. JavaScript, on the other hand, is a single-threaded functional script with an event-driven model and non-blocking input/output execution. This makes sure that everything runs smoothly and concurrently. 

    There are many web development companies offering custom PHP development services. Ensure that you choose the reliable one for your web development requirements. 

    For newbies in the tech industry, if you are confused as to which language you must learn, here is a small tip. JavaScript is slightly tough because of its features and complexity. However, PHP is simple to learn and use though it has a large library. 

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