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  1. Stackups
  2. Application & Data
  3. Frameworks
  4. Frameworks
  5. Laravel vs Slim

Laravel vs Slim

OverviewDecisionsComparisonAlternatives

Overview

Laravel
Laravel
Stacks28.7K
Followers23.7K
Votes3.9K
GitHub Stars82.6K
Forks24.6K
Slim
Slim
Stacks273
Followers391
Votes152
GitHub Stars12.2K
Forks2.0K

Laravel vs Slim: What are the differences?

Laravel and Slim are both popular PHP frameworks that are widely used in web development. Let's explore the key differences between them.

  1. Feature Set: Laravel is known for its comprehensive feature set, which includes built-in authentication, routing, caching, and support for various database systems. It also provides a robust ORM (Object Relational Mapping) tool called Eloquent. On the other hand, Slim is a minimalist framework that focuses on simplicity and lightweight design. It provides the core functionalities for building RESTful APIs and web applications but lacks some advanced features found in Laravel.

  2. Learning Curve: Laravel, being a full-featured framework, has a steeper learning curve compared to Slim. It has a large ecosystem with abundant documentation, tutorials, and community support. Slim, on the other hand, has a smaller learning curve as it is simpler and easier to grasp. It is a good choice for developers who prefer a lightweight framework without much complexity.

  3. Code Size: Due to its minimalist approach, Slim has a smaller code footprint compared to Laravel. Slim doesn't include unnecessary components or features, making it suitable for small projects or microservices where performance optimization is crucial. Laravel, on the other hand, includes additional functionalities and libraries, which can increase the overall code size.

  4. Community Support: Laravel has a large and active community, which contributes to its popularity. The vast community support ensures regular updates, bug fixes, and the availability of a wide range of third-party packages. Slim, although not as popular as Laravel, also has an active community, but the support and available resources may be relatively limited compared to Laravel.

  5. Project Size: Laravel is considered more suitable for large-scale projects due to its comprehensive feature set and powerful tools like Eloquent ORM. It provides an organized structure to handle complex applications efficiently. Slim, on the other hand, is preferred for small to medium-sized projects or when lightweight and minimalistic design is a priority.

  6. Integration with External Libraries: Laravel offers seamless integration with external libraries, making it easier to incorporate popular packages and tools into your project. It has built-in support for packages like PHPUnit, Faker, and MailTrap, which aids in the development process. In contrast, Slim, being more lightweight, may require manual integration of external libraries, which can be time-consuming.

In summary, Laravel is a feature-rich framework suitable for large-scale projects with a steep learning curve, while Slim is a minimalist framework with a smaller code footprint and easier learning curve, making it ideal for smaller projects or microservices in need of performance optimization.

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Advice on Laravel, Slim

John
John

Jun 28, 2019

ReviewonLaravelLaravel

I use Laravel because it has integrated unit testing that making TDD a breeze. Having a View (Blade engine) making me easier to work without too many efforts in front-end.

I do recommend going into the root of programming once getting stable on any framework. Go beyond Symfony, go beyond PHP, go into the roots to the mother of programming; c++, c, smalltalk, erlang OTP. Understand the fundamental principle of abstraction.

A framework is just a framework, it helps in getting feedback quickly; like practicing dancing in front of a mirror. Getting fundamentals right is the one true key in doing it right. Programming is not hard, but abstract-programming is extremely hard.

3.83k views3.83k
Comments
Eva
Eva

Fullstack developer

Jul 28, 2020

Needs adviceonJavaJavaSpring BootSpring BootJavaScriptJavaScript

Hello, I am a fullstack web developer. I have been working for a company with Java/ Spring Boot and client-side JavaScript(mainly jQuery, some AngularJS) for the past 4 years. As I wish to now work as a freelancer, I am faced with a dilemma: which stack to choose given my current knowledge and the state of the market?

I've heard PHP is very popular in the freelance world. I don't know PHP. However, I'm sure it wouldn't be difficult to learn since it has many similarities with Java (OOP). It seems to me that Laravel has similarities with Spring Boot (it's MVC and OOP). Also, people say Laravel works well with Vue.js, which is my favorite JS framework.

On the other hand, I already know the Javascript language, and I like Vue.js, so I figure I could go the fullstack Javascript route with ExpressJS. However, I am not sure if these techs are ripe for freelancing (with regards to RAD, stability, reliability, security, costs, etc.) Is it true that Express is almost always used with MongoDB? Because my experience is mostly with SQL databases.

The projects I would like to work on are custom web applications/websites for small businesses. I have developed custom ERPs before and found that Java was a good fit, except for it taking a long time to develop. I cannot make a choice, and I am constantly switching between trying PHP and Node.js/Express. Any real-world advice would be welcome! I would love to find a stack that I enjoy while doing meaningful freelance coding.

826k views826k
Comments
washie
washie

Developer at Bytecom

Jun 14, 2020

Decided

i find python quite resourceful. given the bulk of libraries that python has and the trends of the tech i find django which runs on python to be the framework of choice to the upcoming web services and application. Laravel on the other hand which is powered by PHP is also quite resourceful and great for startups and common web applications.

758k views758k
Comments

Detailed Comparison

Laravel
Laravel
Slim
Slim

It is a web application framework with expressive, elegant syntax. It attempts to take the pain out of development by easing common tasks used in the majority of web projects, such as authentication, routing, sessions, and caching.

Slim is easy to use for both beginners and professionals. Slim favors cleanliness over terseness and common cases over edge cases. Its interface is simple, intuitive, and extensively documented — both online and in the code itself.

Template Engine; MVC Architecture Support; Eloquent ORM (Object Relational Mapping); Security; Artisan; Libraries & Modular; Database Migration System; Unit-Testing
-
Statistics
GitHub Stars
82.6K
GitHub Stars
12.2K
GitHub Forks
24.6K
GitHub Forks
2.0K
Stacks
28.7K
Stacks
273
Followers
23.7K
Followers
391
Votes
3.9K
Votes
152
Pros & Cons
Pros
  • 556
    Clean architecture
  • 393
    Growing community
  • 371
    Composer friendly
  • 345
    Open source
  • 326
    The only framework to consider for php
Cons
  • 54
    PHP
  • 33
    Too many dependency
  • 23
    Slower than the other two
  • 17
    A lot of static method calls for convenience
  • 15
    Too many include
Pros
  • 33
    Microframework
  • 27
    API
  • 22
    Open source
  • 21
    Php
  • 11
    Fast
Integrations
PHP
PHP
Django
Django
CodeIgniter
CodeIgniter
CakePHP
CakePHP
PHP
PHP

What are some alternatives to Laravel, Slim?

Node.js

Node.js

Node.js uses an event-driven, non-blocking I/O model that makes it lightweight and efficient, perfect for data-intensive real-time applications that run across distributed devices.

Rails

Rails

Rails is a web-application framework that includes everything needed to create database-backed web applications according to the Model-View-Controller (MVC) pattern.

Django

Django

Django is a high-level Python Web framework that encourages rapid development and clean, pragmatic design.

.NET

.NET

.NET is a general purpose development platform. With .NET, you can use multiple languages, editors, and libraries to build native applications for web, mobile, desktop, gaming, and IoT for Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, and more.

ASP.NET Core

ASP.NET Core

A free and open-source web framework, and higher performance than ASP.NET, developed by Microsoft and the community. It is a modular framework that runs on both the full .NET Framework, on Windows, and the cross-platform .NET Core.

ExpressJS

ExpressJS

Express is a minimal and flexible node.js web application framework, providing a robust set of features for building single and multi-page, and hybrid web applications.

Symfony

Symfony

It is written with speed and flexibility in mind. It allows developers to build better and easy to maintain websites with PHP..

Spring

Spring

A key element of Spring is infrastructural support at the application level: Spring focuses on the "plumbing" of enterprise applications so that teams can focus on application-level business logic, without unnecessary ties to specific deployment environments.

Spring Boot

Spring Boot

Spring Boot makes it easy to create stand-alone, production-grade Spring based Applications that you can "just run". We take an opinionated view of the Spring platform and third-party libraries so you can get started with minimum fuss. Most Spring Boot applications need very little Spring configuration.

Android SDK

Android SDK

Android provides a rich application framework that allows you to build innovative apps and games for mobile devices in a Java language environment.

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