Laravel or CakePHP: The More Reliable PHP Framework for Web Development in 2023

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  • By Sandeep Kumar
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  • clock 9 minutes MIN READ
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  • calendar Updated: December 2, 2022

The similarities between CakePHP and Laravel may be challenging to identify.

Still, both are PHP open-source frameworks that are developed using a model-view-controller (MVC) design and have significant popularity within the developer community.

These PHP frameworks may appear similar at first glance, but if you dig deep and examine their features, advantages, structures, costs, PHP syntax, and other aspects, the true differences become apparent.

The truth is that when there is a CakePHP vs. Laravel argument, there is much to say regarding web development.

Barchart, Alphacoders, Alison, Watchseries, and Laracast are some of the many well-known websites created with Laravel.

Education Unlimited, Elite Performance and Fitness, Mygasfeed, Followmytv, and other well-known websites have been created with CakePHP.

Depending on the project requirements, their expertise with the framework, and other factors, developers choose between Laravel and CakePHP.

However, before doing so, it’s crucial to have a thorough understanding of the pros and cons of each of the frameworks.

Laravel – An Overview

Laravel is a free and open-source PHP framework that serves developers with a wide range of helpful tools and resources to build robust web applications.

Expressive command-line interfaces, quick web development tools, and comparable features are all provided by Laravel.

This framework enables developers to create reliable applications with minimal code.

Additionally, Laravel developers are able to work with databases using object-relational mapping easily.

Some of the significant advantages of choosing Laravel for web developers include the following:

1. Highly Scalable

Laravel is considered to be a highly scalable app development PHP framework.

This is primarily due to Laravel’s capabilities, which include two-way data binding, quick and simple migrations, unit testing, integration with messaging apps, and many other things.

In addition, Laravel web development offers many features that one can take advantage of, including its Artisan tool or Eloquent, its object-relational mapper (ORM).

Large-sized libraries and HTTP support also add to the list of Laravel’s features.

2. MVC Structure

Laravel developers enjoy the model view controller architecture because it makes it easier for them to categorize data when developing various websites and applications efficiently.

It enables programmers to easily divide tasks into the three parts of the model, view, and controller (the view is what your customers view, the controller decides how customers interact with what they really view, and the model is considered to be the crux of the data where your web solutions lie).

3. Community Support

People who can assist you jump past the learning curve or who can join your network are what you need whether you offer development services or are knee-deep in a developing setting.

Fortunately, Laravel enjoys widespread community support due to its popularity.

Since this open-source PHP-based framework, there are no high license fees or upfront costs associated with using it.

Being beginner-friendly, Laravel development makes it a mere cakewalk for various developers to get started on their web development projects.

CakePHP – An Overview

Another open-source PHP framework that makes it easier to curate and maintain robust web applications is CakePHP.

It serves developers with built-in support for business logic, validation, secure request processing, unit testing, and much more.

Since CakePHP supports multiple languages, developers tend to hop on this framework extensively.

This PHP framework supports databases such as MYSQL, PostgreSQL, SQLite, and others. CakePHP 1.0 was created by Michal Tatarynowicz and released in May 2006.

It was created keeping in mind the Ruby framework. Similar to Laravel, CakePHP also supports HTTP routing and has its own ORM.

CakePHP is based on an HMVC (hierarchical model view controller) architecture, which means that it does not provide a data binding process.

This feature contrasts Laravel, whose MVC design implements a two-way data binding process to drive applications.

Some of the most prominent advantages of choosing CakePHP for web developers include the following:

1. Support For Many SQL Types

A database abstraction layer in CakePHP gives users access to libraries.

This implies that you can easily connect this programming language to various databases, including PearDB, MySQL, SQLite, and PostgreSQL.

Such databases are designed to make uploading and manipulating the data much less challenging!

2. Support Small Data Sets While Providing the Same Features As Laravel

While CakePHP can effectively handle smaller websites and offers developers almost as many tools as Laravel, the latter is recognized for supporting larger ecosystems and more complicated designs.

On the other hand, CakePHP enables developers to build websites with a smaller scope while still utilizing nearly all of Laravel’s features.

Additionally, it implies that those developers won’t experience a steep learning curve if they are already familiar with Laravel.

3. Simpler Methods

CakePHP is considered a more user-friendly framework since it performs better, allows users to reuse the code, tweaks functionality, and even offers quick tests.

Despite this, many developers may view Laravel as the more versatile alternative because of its ease of handling data and documentation.

Comparison Between Laravel VS. CakePHP

Since you now clearly understand both frameworks, it’s time to compare them and land on the perfect alternative.

Usage

Both the frameworks, Laravel, and CakePHP, are free to use. Laravel, however, is open-source and free to use.

On the other hand, CakePHP needs a license to run and be used. Compared to CakePHP, Laravel’s free-to-use functionality tends to draw developers at a huge scale.

Architecture

The Laravel framework is MVC-based.

The model, the view, and the controller are the three components of the MVC architecture.

The controller interacts with the model for any data queries, the view for user inputs, and the model for efficiently handling application data.

The controller then modifies the view as necessary.

Two-way data binding is a unique feature served by Laravel that enables developers to share and update data across several component classes.

CakePHP uses the Hierarchical-Model-View-Controller (HMVC) architecture.

Different components in the HMVC architecture have their own model-view-controller triads that communicate with one another to update the application.

CakePHP boosts extensibility, increases reuse, and reduces various dependencies by utilizing HMVC architecture.

While CakePHP’s HMVC architecture works best for small-sized, less complex websites, Laravel’s MVC architecture is best suited for enterprise solutions.

Templates

Laravel creates various kinds of original layouts using the templating engine Blade.

The Blade allows developers to establish a unified design and structure using simple PHP code.

The views in the resources directory are compiled and cached by Blade for quick access.

CakePHP uses standard PHP files with the CTP extension for templates. These templates require an additional PHP syntax to control output and structures efficiently.

Moreover, these templates provide the logic required to smoothly organize the data sent by the controller into a user-friendly presentation manner.

CakePHP templates can easily change the HMVC structure, whereas the Blade in Laravel can not.

Object Relational Mapping

CakePHP and Laravel use eloquent ORM for curating multiple queries and data retrieval.

Eloquent ORM makes it a mere cakewalk for developers to structure the database efficiently.

However, Query Builder and Eloquent ORM are the two ORM choices provided by Laravel. The returns from both ORMs are quite poor.

On the other hand, CakePHP ensures consistent results by not causing any problems during object-relational mapping.

Security

Advanced security features, including hashing, encryption, and decoding, are extensively offered by CakePHP.

Not only this, but CakePHP limits cross-controller communication, handles blackhole call-backs, avoids form tampering, and confines activities to SSL seamlessly.

On the other hand, Laravel only provides the most fundamental security measures, including user authentication, password validation, password reminders, and protection against cross-site request forgeries.

Due to this, CakePHP proves to be a better option than Laravel for security purposes.

Testing

Unit testing and feature testing are the two methods provided by Laravel for robust testing of your application.

While unit testing allows you to test your classes, models, and controllers, feature testing is best for testing your whole codebase.

CakePHP provides online testing in addition to unit testing.

While web testing enables you to automate testing for various website components to spot and fix faults, unit testing allows you to test discrete sections of your code.

This is why both CakePHP and Laravel tend to have robust testing features.

Comparison Table:

Basis              

LaravelCakePHP

Speed

Not the fastestFaster than Laravel

Security

Good securityBetter than Laravel’s

Scalability

Suitable for larger projects and more scalable as compared to CakePHPThis is best for smaller projects and is less scalable than Laravel

Performance

Serves quite good performance and is the best framework for complex projectsHas better performance than Laravel when it comes down to smaller projects

Wrapping Up

We’re confident that you can better choose which PHP framework is most appropriate for your needs now that you have a better understanding of the advantages of utilizing Laravel and CakePHP and have evaluated them against one another.

When developers tend to get confused about what they should choose for web development amongst Laravel vs. CakePHP, one must first be aware of the project’s needs.

You might need a website that loads quickly or an application that is easy to scale. More often than not, the cost can also be a deciding factor when you choose between the two frameworks.

You need to choose which framework would aid you after determining why you are starting the project and with what goal(s), and then land on a decision.

Due to its strong scalability and data backup possibilities, Laravel is more prevalent when compared to CakePHP.

It includes well-organized documentation and community support, making it very user-friendly for newcomers.

On the other hand, CakePHP is a wonderful option for developers as well, but it is challenging for beginners.

It’s better to move forward with Laravel if you have a bigger project because you can scale better by utilizing its features and capabilities.

We at RV Technologies bring our years of experience in Laravel web development to the table and strive to provide you with best-in-class applications.

Our technical experts understand all the nuances of the framework and help guide you throughout the project, just as you need!

Get in touch with our professionals today!

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