PHP is one of the most admired programming languages in the world of software and web development. It powers nearly 80% of the total websites on the internet and is among the most preferred programming languages by dedicated PHP developers.

The reasons behind the popularity of PHP web development are simplicity in learning, seamless running on almost every web server, a broad portfolio of frameworks, and the ability to enable satisfactory website development for a large community.

This is why most businesses nowadays hire PHP developer for their projects. It is an easy process to hire professional and experienced web developers, but how do you find the right one for your web development project?

In this article, let’s understand how to hire the best PHP developers for website development.

Core Skills of a PHP Developer

• Grip over best PHP practices and design patterns

In web development, design patterns play a crucial role. These can accelerate the overall development processes by bringing in solutions to common problems. Moreover, design patterns are also great at enhancing code readability. The most used design patterns in PHP are Factory, Strategy, Singleton, etc.

So, if you hire a PHP web developer on an hourly basis, then the developers with command over design patterns can save you both time and money.

• Handy with relevant tools

Tools like Composer, PHP Standard Recommendation (PSR), and PHPUnit are important to be used while working on PHP projects. For instance, Composer helps in handling libraries, classes, and functions. It allows the developers in installing different versions of libraries quickly and update them whenever required. PSR helps in optimizing the interoperability of PHP components and frameworks. So, the developers must be handy with such essential tools.

• Knowledge of multiple PHP frameworks

Experienced PHP web developers can handle both simple and complicated business-grade websites, eCommerce websites, web apps, as well as content management websites. For these sort of projects, you must check whether the developers are handy with the major PHP frameworks, including Laravel, Codelgniter, CakePHP, Yii, etc.

• Problem Solving

It is the problem-solving approach of a web developer that differentiates him from average developers. It is a must-needed skill in all aspects of web development to solve unexpected issues. Additionally, critical thinking for analyzing the issues and coming up with solutions is important for better coding skills.

Hiring the Best PHP Developers

Now that you know the skills to look out for in PHP web developer, you can hire the right candidate for your project from the following sources:

• Developer communities

You can find several online communities having tons of PHP developers as active members. For instance, you can find such networks and communities on GitHub, CodeProject, CodeGuru, as well as on social platforms like LinkedIn and Facebook. All you need to do is post your requirement and find plenty of experienced web developers showing interest in your project. You need to figure out the right one and get your project done.

• Freelance portals and sites

Today, you can find numerous freelance websites and portals that bring together freelancers, businesses, and individuals. Some of the most popular freelance portals and sites include Upwork, Freelancer.com, Toptal, etc. You can share a brief introduction about your project on these portals. Interested freelancers will bid on your project with their skills and pricing.

You can check their previous work and profile to know about their expertise. Based on the profile review, work, and quotation, you can hire a PHP developer for your web development project. You can also hire multiple developers if you want.

• Hire PHP developer from companies

There are many reliable and trusted web development companies that offer businesses with experienced PHP developers. You can hire PHP developers of all skill levels and experience, depending on your project. The benefit of hiring from a web development company is that the developers are experienced with working on various types of projects and can provide custom development for different types of projects.

You can choose to hire PHP programmers or a team of developers for your project. This is a great option if you have a robust and big project.

Wrapping Up:

Hiring an experienced PHP developer is essential for creating an excellent web development project, whether it is a simple portfolio website or a complex eCommerce website. Look out for the skills mentioned above before hiring the developer. Depending on your project complexity and the required number of professionals, you can decide whether to hire a freelance developer or from a web development company.