Do you want to learn PHP and know how long it will take to master it for programming?
Do you already know about variables, loops, and data operations? It will take you a few weeks to learn PHP. Are you completely new to programming? Give yourself 6 months to become a PHP coder.
You will need other skills to use your PHP knowledge. Add a few weeks for each of these topics.
This article will explain exactly how long it should take you to learn PHP.
TL;DR:
- An experienced programmer familiar with variables, loops, and data operations will need 3-4 weeks to pick up PHP.
- A new programmer should allocate 6-7 months to master PHP programming.
- In addition to PHP for WordPress, you should consider learning CSS, HTML, and Javascript.
How Long Does it Take to Learn PHP?
An experienced programmer needs about 2.5 months to learn PHP and its supporting tools; a beginner programmer should set aside 7 months of study to learn PHP.
Learning the syntax and variables of PHP is only a part of what you need to become a PHP programmer. You can learn the basics of PHP fairly quickly but still need to learn the Cake PHP framework, the MySQL database, and web markup with HTML and CSS.
If you’re learning the language without the other tools you will need, expect learning PHP to take 14 days for an experienced programmer, 60 days for a new programmer,
You must also learn HTML and CSS to mark up web pages and databases to store and manipulate data.
You will also benefit greatly from creating a framework for writing your PHP code.
Table: Time for New and Experienced Students to Learn PHP
| Time to Learn PHP Principles | ||
|---|---|---|
| Concept | Noob | Programmer |
| PHP | 60 Days | 14 Days |
| Database Concepts | 30 Days | 0 Days |
| PhpMyAdmin and MySQL | 30 Days | 14 Days |
| HTML | 14 Days | 7 Days |
| CSS | 14 Days | 3 Days |
| Frameworks and Practice Programs | 60 Days | 30 Days | 7 Months | 2 Months 1 Week |
Is it Hard to Learn PHP?
PHP has a clear syntax and logical rules and is easier to learn than other programming languages.
The only difficult concepts are object-oriented programming and regular expressions.
Technically, you can make a living as a programmer without learning these concepts. You can learn PHP and MySQL and jump into harder topics as a separate project.
1. Basics of PHP
Expect PHP to take between 2 weeks and 2 months to learn. The major pieces are similar to most programming languages, including variables, loops, and functions.
1.1 Syntax and Variables
PHP, or Hypertext Preprocessor, is a popular programming language used for web development. If you’re new to PHP, learning the basics is essential. The syntax of PHP is similar to that of C and Perl, making it relatively easy to learn if you have experience with these languages.
In PHP, variables store data that can be manipulated and accessed throughout your program. To declare a variable, you must use the dollar sign ($) followed by the variable name. For example, $name = "John";. PHP is a loosely typed language, meaning you don’t need to specify the data type when declaring a variable. Instead, it infers the data type based on the assigned value.
1.2 Data Types
PHP supports various data types, including strings, integers, floats, booleans, arrays, and objects. Strings are sequences of characters enclosed in either single or double quotes. Integers are whole numbers without a decimal point, while floats are numbers with a decimal point.
Booleans represent logical values and can be either true or false. Arrays in PHP can hold multiple values of different data types. Objects are instances of classes and are used in object-oriented programming.
Understanding the different data types in PHP is crucial for writing effective and efficient code.
1.3 Operators
Operators in PHP allow you to perform different operations on variables and values. PHP supports various types of operators, including arithmetic operators (+, -, *, /), assignment operators (=, +=, -=), comparison operators (==, !=, <,>), and logical operators (&&, ||, !).</,>
Understanding and correctly using operators are essential skills in PHP programming, as they enable you to perform calculations, make comparisons, and control the flow of your code.
1.4 Strings
Strings play a significant role in PHP, as they are used to manipulate and display text. In PHP, you can concatenate strings using the dot (.) operator, which joins two or more strings together. For example, $greeting = "Hello, " . $name; would result in the string “Hello, John” if the variable $name contained the value “John”.
PHP also provides various built-in string functions that allow you to manipulate strings. These functions include strlen(), which returns the length of a string, str_replace(), which replaces occurrences of a substring within a string and strtolower(), which converts a string to lowercase.
Understanding string manipulation techniques and utilizing the available string functions will greatly enhance your PHP programming skills.
1.5 Arrays
Arrays are an essential data structure in PHP that stores multiple values in a single variable. There are three arrays in PHP: indexed, associative, and multidimensional.
Indexed arrays are arrays with numeric keys starting from 0. Associative arrays, on the other hand, use string keys to access values. Multidimensional arrays allow you to create arrays within arrays, forming a hierarchical structure.
Working with arrays in PHP involves accessing specific values using their keys, iterating over the elements, and performing various operations on them.
1.6 Control Structures
Control structures in PHP allow you to control the flow of your code based on specific conditions. These structures include if statements, loops, while loops, and switch statements.
If statements are used to execute a code block only if a specific condition is met. Loops allow you to iterate over a block of code a predetermined number of times. While loops repeat a block of code as long as a condition remains true. Switch statements provide a way to execute different blocks of code based on the value of a variable.
Understanding and effectively using control structures is essential for writing dynamic and efficient PHP code.
Congratulations! You’ve completed the basics of PHP. Now, let’s move on to intermediate PHP.
2. Intermediate PHP
PHP’s object-oriented options are not mandatory to create fully functional programs. Since object orientation is one of the more difficult concepts to learn, take the time to go over the concepts several times.
2.1 Functions
Functions in PHP allow you to group a set of statements and execute them by calling the function. Functions help modularize code, making it easier to manage and reuse.
To create a function in PHP, you need to define its name, list any required parameters, and specify the code block to execute. For example:
function sayHello($name) { echo "Hello, " . $name; } sayHello("John"); Functions can also return a value using the return keyword. This allows you to encapsulate functionality and obtain the result from the function.
Only regular expressions might be more difficult for a new programmer to learn. Regular expressions use a terse syntax derived from Unix command line interface languages. They are from a different paradigm than the easy-going PHP syntax and rules.
2.2 Object-Oriented Programming
Object-oriented programming (OOP) is a programming paradigm that creates objects containing data and methods. PHP supports OOP principles, allowing you to create classes and objects, and inherit properties and methods from other classes.
In OOP, a class is a blueprint for creating objects. It defines the properties and methods that the objects will have. An object is an instance of a class, and it can have its own unique set of values for the class properties.
Using OOP in PHP provides better code organization, reusability, and flexibility in creating complex applications.
2.3 Error Handling
Error handling is an essential aspect of PHP development, as it allows you to identify and handle errors or exceptions that may occur during the execution of your code.
PHP provides various error-handling mechanisms, including try-catch blocks, which allow you to catch and handle specific exceptions. You can also define custom error handlers that customize how errors are displayed or logged.
Effectively implementing error-handling techniques ensures that your PHP applications are robust and can gracefully handle unexpected situations.
2.4 File Handling
File handling is a fundamental aspect of PHP programming, enabling you to read from and write to files on the server. PHP offers a range of functions for file manipulation, such as fopen(), fwrite(), fread(), and fclose().
With file handling, you can create, read, update, and delete files, allowing you to store and retrieve data from disk. Understanding file-handling techniques is crucial for building applications interacting with the file system.
2.5 Regular Expressions
Regular expressions, or regex, are powerful pattern-matching tools that allow you to search for and manipulate text based on specific patterns. PHP provides built-in functions such as preg_match() and preg_replace() to work with regular expressions.
Regular expressions enable you to validate input, extract specific data from strings, and perform complex text manipulation tasks. They can be used in various scenarios, including form validation, data extraction, and text processing.
By mastering regular expressions in PHP, you can greatly enhance your ability to work with textual data effectively.
Great job! You now have a solid understanding of intermediate PHP concepts. Let’s move on to web development with PHP.
3. Web Development with PHP
A new programmer should set aside 14 days for HTML and 14 days for CSS. Practice exercises will help set these concepts for you, as HTML and CSS are visual tools. An experienced programmer will find the concepts simple but different than normal programming. This is because HTML and CSS are not programs but markup languages.
3.1 HTML and CSS Integration
PHP is commonly used with HTML and CSS to build dynamic web pages. HTML (Hypertext Markup Language) provides the webpage’s structure, while CSS (Cascading Style Sheets) defines the visual presentation.
Integrating PHP with HTML involves embedding PHP code within HTML tags using the opening <code> and closing ?> tags. This allows you to dynamically generate HTML content based on variables or conditions.
Working with HTML and CSS in PHP allows you to create visually appealing and dynamically generated web pages.
3.2 Form Handling
Web forms are essential to many websites, and PHP provides a way to handle form submissions. When a user submits a form, PHP can receive the form data, process it, and perform the necessary actions.
To handle form submissions, you need to specify the action attribute of the form tag to point to a PHP script that will handle the processing. PHP provides the $_POST and $_GET superglobal variables to access the form data.
Form handling in PHP involves validating the input, sanitizing data to prevent security vulnerabilities, and performing the desired actions based on the form data.
3.3 Sessions and Cookies
Sessions and cookies are used to maintain user state and manage user interactions in web applications.
Sessions in PHP allow you to store user-specific data on the server side. Each user is assigned a unique session ID, which is used to retrieve and store session data. Session data can be used to track user authentication, store user preferences, and maintain shopping cart contents, among other uses.
On the other hand, cookies are small pieces of data stored on the user’s browser. They can be used to remember user preferences, provide personalized experiences, and track user behavior. PHP provides functions to read and write cookies.
Understanding and effectively using sessions and cookies in PHP is crucial for creating interactive and personalized web applications.
3.4 CRUD Operations (Database)
I estimate the time to learn database operations at zero for experienced programmers. You must have had some experience with creating, reading, updating, and deleting data to have real experience.
PHP is designed around relational database concepts. You’ll learn about the libraries that allow your code to interface with data tables.
A new programmer should set aside 6 weeks to learn relational databases, CRUD (see below), and PHP database libraries. Typically for web projects, this means learning PHPMyAdmin (the database interface) and MySQL or some very close relative for the database.
CRUD (Create, Read, Update, Delete) operations are at the core of many web applications that interact with databases. PHP provides various database extensions, such as MySQLi and PDO, allowing you to perform database CRUD operations.
Create operations involve inserting new records into the database. Read operations retrieve data from the database. Update operations and modify existing records in the database. Delete operations remove records from the database.
Combining PHP with database integration allows you to create powerful web applications that store, retrieve, and manipulate data.
Awesome job! You’ve now explored web development with PHP. Let’s dive into PHP frameworks next.
4. PHP Frameworks
A PHP framework is an integrated development environment (IDE) you use to create programs. Technically, you could write PHP and HTML in Windows Notepad. A framework gives you syntax help, suggestions, and libraries to make coding much easier than that.
A new programmer should spend 60 days on frameworks. This is where you will go from theory to practice. You will use a framework to put your new knowledge into action.
An experienced programmer who does not need to learn IDE concepts should still spend 30 days on framework lessons.
4.1 Laravel
Laravel is one of the most popular PHP frameworks for building web applications. It follows the model-view-controller (MVC) architectural pattern, making organizing and maintaining code easy.
Laravel provides rich features, including a robust routing system, built-in authentication and authorization, database query builder, and Eloquent ORM for interacting with databases. It also has a vibrant community and extensive documentation, making it beginner-friendly.
Learning and utilizing Laravel can streamline your web development process and build scalable and efficient applications.
4.2 CodeIgniter
CodeIgniter is a lightweight PHP framework known for its simplicity and ease of use. It aims to provide a simple yet powerful toolkit for building web applications.
CodeIgniter features a small footprint, making it ideal for shared hosting environments. It also has a straightforward and intuitive interface, allowing developers to start their projects quickly. CodeIgniter offers easy database handling, form and data validation, and caching.
CodeIgniter is a great choice if you’re looking for a lightweight PHP framework that prioritizes simplicity and speed.
4.3 Symfony
Symfony is a full-stack PHP framework that strongly emphasizes reusable components and standardization. It follows the MVC architectural pattern and offers many features for building complex web applications.
Symfony provides a powerful command-line interface (CLI) tool called Symfony Console, simplifying development and automating repetitive tasks. It also offers features such as routing, security, template engine, form builder, and built-in testing tools.
By learning Symfony, you can access a mature and flexible PHP framework widely adopted in the industry.
4.4 CakePHP
CakePHP is a PHP framework designed to make building web applications faster and simpler. It follows the conventions-over-configuration principle, allowing developers to focus on their application’s business logic rather than the framework’s setup.
CakePHP provides features such as scaffolding, which can automatically generate code for CRUD operations based on your database schema. It also has a built-in ORM for interacting with databases, a powerful routing system, and a flexible caching system.
CakePHP is worth exploring if you value convention and want a framework that helps you start quickly.
Congratulations! You’ve discovered various PHP frameworks. Now, let’s move on to integrating databases in PHP.
5. Database Integration
5.1 MySQL
MySQL is one of the most popular relational database management systems used with PHP. It is known for its speed, scalability, and ease of use. MySQL is often used to store and retrieve data for web applications.
PHP provides various extensions, such as MySQLi and PDO, for interacting with MySQL databases. These extensions allow you to connect to a MySQL database, execute queries, fetch results, and handle errors.
Understanding how to integrate PHP with MySQL enables you to build robust and data-driven web applications.
5.2 SQL Queries
SQL (Structured Query Language) is a standard language for interacting with relational databases. In PHP, you can use SQL queries to create, read, update, and delete records in a database.
SQL queries involve manipulating data using commands such as SELECT, INSERT, UPDATE, and DELETE. They allow you to retrieve specific data, filter and sort results, join tables, and perform various operations on the database.
Writing efficient SQL queries in PHP is crucial for database-driven web applications.
5.3 Database Connectivity
To connect to a database in PHP, you need to establish a connection using the appropriate database extension. PHP provides extensions such as MySQLi and PDO that offer different approaches to connecting and working with databases.
MySQLi provides a procedural and object-oriented interface for connecting to MySQL databases. PDO, on the other hand, is a more versatile extension that supports various database systems, including MySQL, PostgreSQL, and SQLite.
Understanding database connectivity and choosing the appropriate database extension for your project is critical for seamless integration between PHP and databases.
Well done! You’ve learned about integrating databases with PHP. Now, let’s dive into testing and debugging.
6. Testing and Debugging
6.1 Unit Testing
Unit testing is a methodology for testing individual units, such as functions or methods, to ensure that they behave as expected. PHP provides testing frameworks, such as PHPUnit, that allow you to write and execute unit tests.
Unit tests help identify bugs and ensure your code meets the desired functionality. Unit testing in your PHP projects can improve code quality, catch regressions, and facilitate future modifications.
6.2 Debugging Tools
Debugging is identifying and fixing errors or issues in your code. PHP provides various tools and techniques to help you efficiently debug your applications.
One common debugging technique is to use var_dump() or print_r() to display the contents of variables and objects at specific points in the code. Another useful tool is Xdebug, an extension that provides advanced debugging features such as stack traces, variable inspection, and profiling.
Mastering debugging techniques and familiarizing yourself with PHP’s debugging tools will save you time and frustration when troubleshooting issues in your projects.
Great job! You’ve explored testing and debugging in PHP. Now, let’s dive into security considerations.
7. Security Considerations
7.1 SQL Injection Prevention
SQL injection is a common security vulnerability where an attacker can manipulate or gain unauthorized access to your database by injecting malicious SQL code. PHP offers various methods to prevent SQL injection, such as using prepared statements or parameterized queries.
Prepared statements separate the SQL code from the data, preventing malicious input from affecting the query execution. Using parameterized queries, you can bind variables to placeholders in your SQL statements, eliminating the risk of SQL injection.
Always mindful of SQL injection prevention is crucial for building secure PHP applications.
7.2 Cross-Site Scripting Prevention
Cross-site scripting (XSS) is another prevalent security vulnerability when untrusted data is displayed on a webpage without proper validation or sanitization. This allows attackers to inject malicious scripts into the web page, potentially leading to user data theft or unauthorized actions.
To prevent XSS attacks, PHP provides functions such as htmlspecialchars() and htmlentities(), which encode special characters to their HTML entities. Additionally, implementing content validation and output escaping techniques can protect your web applications from XSS vulnerabilities.
Understanding and implementing proper security measures ensures your PHP applications are resilient against common security threats.
Fantastic work! You’ve learned about security considerations in PHP. Let’s now explore advanced PHP concepts.
8. Advanced PHP Concepts
8.1 Namespaces
Namespaces in PHP allow you to organize code into logical groups to prevent naming conflicts and improve code readability. Namespaces provide a hierarchical structure similar to directories or folders.
You can avoid clashes between functions, classes, or constants with the same name using namespaces. Namespaces also enable better organization and facilitate autoloading of files.
Understanding and properly utilizing namespaces helps in writing clean and scalable PHP code.
8.2 Closures
Closures, also known as anonymous functions, are functions without a name. They allow you to create functions on the fly and use them as values within your code.
Closures are particularly useful for implementing callback functions, event handlers, and functions only needed in specific situations. They provide a concise and flexible way to encapsulate functionality.
By mastering closures, you can write more expressive and dynamic PHP code.
8.3 Reflection
Reflection is a powerful feature in PHP that allows you to examine and modify objects, classes, methods, and properties at runtime. It enables you to analyze and extract information about the structure of your code.
Reflection can be used to perform tasks such as retrieving method and property information, invoking methods dynamically, or creating new objects based on specific conditions.
Understanding and using reflection opens up possibilities for creating flexible and dynamic PHP applications.
8.4 Composer
Composer is a dependency manager for PHP that simplifies managing external libraries and packages in your projects. It lets you declare your project’s dependencies, and Composer downloads and installs them.
Using Composer, you can easily integrate third-party libraries, manage their versions, and update your project with the latest releases. Composer also enables easy autoloading of classes, reducing the need to include files manually.
Making use of Composer greatly streamlines the development process and enhances code maintainability.
8.5 Design Patterns
Design patterns provide proven solutions to common software design problems. They capture best practices and provide reusable templates for structuring code maintainably and efficiently.
Understanding and implementing design patterns in PHP allows you to write code that follows industry standards and design principles. Some popular design patterns in PHP include the Singleton pattern, Factory pattern, and Observer pattern, among others.
You can improve your PHP applications’ structure, reusability, and scalability by leveraging design patterns.
Congratulations! You’ve learned about advanced PHP concepts. Let’s move on to continuing education.
9. Continuing Education
9.1 Keeping Up with PHP Updates
PHP continuously evolves, and new releases bring new features, performance improvements, and security updates. It’s essential to stay updated with the latest PHP versions and changes.
You can keep your PHP knowledge current by regularly consulting the official PHP documentation, participating in PHP communities, and following trusted PHP blogs or websites. This lets you leverage the latest language features and programming techniques in your projects.
Stay curious and never stop learning to keep your PHP skills sharp.
9.2 Learning New Libraries and Technologies
In addition to keeping up with PHP updates, exploring and learning new libraries, frameworks, and technologies that complement PHP is valuable.
For web development, exploring front-end frameworks like React or Vue.js, learning about modern JavaScript practices, or diving into CSS preprocessors can enhance your PHP projects. Moreover, learning about deployment tools, containerization with Docker, or cloud services like AWS or Google Cloud can level up your development workflow.
Expanding your knowledge beyond PHP ensures you can utilize the best tools and technologies for your projects.
Congratulations! You now have a comprehensive understanding of PHP. Before we finish, let’s explore real-world experience.
10. Real-World Experience
10.1 Building Projects
Building real-world projects is an excellent way to apply what you’ve learned in PHP and gain hands-on experience. Start by brainstorming project ideas that align with your interests or solve a particular problem.
Consider building a simple CRUD application, an e-commerce website, or a content management system (CMS). By working on these projects, you’ll encounter real challenges, learn to collaborate with databases, ensure security, and create dynamic web pages.
Building projects strengthens your PHP skills and showcases your abilities to potential employers or clients.
10.2 Collaborating on Open-Source Projects
Contributing to open-source PHP projects is an excellent way to improve your skills and work alongside experienced developers. Open-source projects provide opportunities to learn from others, gain insights about industry best practices, and make meaningful contributions to the PHP community.
Look for open-source PHP projects on platforms like GitHub and start by identifying issues you can help resolve or features you can contribute. Collaborating with others on open-source projects can expand your network, enhance your problem-solving abilities, and boost your overall expertise in PHP.
Conclusion
None of the pieces are difficult, but there are thousands of pieces to learning PHP.
An experienced programmer needs two solid months to pick up PHP, HTML/CSS, MySQL/RDBMS, frameworks, security, and debugging.
A new programmer should set aside 7 months of study to learn these concepts.
Keep exploring, practicing, and applying your knowledge to become a more proficient PHP developer. Happy coding!
