Node JS or PHP - Which One is Better in 2023 & Beyond?

Node.JS and PHP, both are considered as the topmost and popular technologies when it is about server-side development. Both fall under the category of backend development and consist of different techniques but also share some similar features.

Talking about the backend infrastructure, then it is the backbone of any development project that acts at the pillar. Ideally, backend development means the server-side app development and everything that holds communication between the browser and the database. Backend development primarily focuses on how the website will work after the development process.

Market Share of Node.JS and PHP

Node.JS -

• 85% of respondents advocating are making use of Node.JS for the web application development need
• One of the most popular open-source projects of today’s time
• It consists of thousands of users that cover IBM, NASA, PayPal, Microsoft, LinkedIn, Uber, Walmart, Netflix and the list is long…
• 43% of Node.JS developers are using Node.JS for the need for developing enterprise applications
• Node.JS can boost the performance of applications by 50%
• It is capable of reducing the whole development cost by 58%

Top 10 websites that are developed in PHP -

1. Facebook
2. Yahoo
3. Tumblr
4. Wikipedia
5. WordPress
6. Flickr
7. MailChimp
8. iStockPhoto
9. Canva
10. Baidu

Top 10 websites that are developed in Node.JS -

1. LinkedIn
2. PayPal
3. Wall Street Journal Online
4. Yahoo
5. Nearbuy
6. Netflix
7. Uber
8. NASA
9. Shutterstock
10. Medium

Now, let’s dive into the brief information on PHP and Node.JS

PHP

Rasmus Lerdorf is known as the father of PHP who designed this language that first appeared in 1995 i.e. 25 years ago. It is a general-purpose scripting language that suits majorly to web development. originally, PHP was Calle as Personal Home Page but later on, it changed to PHP: Hypertext Preprocessor that is the recursive initialism. PHP is a server-side scripting language that is utilized for creating static as well as dynamic websites along with web applications. The scripts of PHP can be interpreted only on that server on which PHP has been installed. Also, the top PHP development tools help in simplifying and accelerating the whole custom web app development work.

Node.JS

Ryan Dahl is an American software engineer who is the original developer of Node.JS. Talking about Node.JS, it is an open-source, cross-platform and JavaScript runtime environment that helps in educating the JavaScript code outside of the web browser. Also, Node.JS allows developers to make use of JavaScript for writing command-line tools and for the need of server-side scripting and running scripts which are server-side for producing the dynamic web page content before the page is sent directly to the web browser of the user. Node.JS frameworks provide full support for multiple databases.

Pros and Cons of PHP and Node.JS

The Ruling Points of PHP

• Easy to Learn Language
  It has been proven by developers that PHP is the easiest scripting language to learn as compared to other web languages. It has logical and well-organized syntax and easy-to-understand command functions. That’s why developers find PHP a very easy language to learn and create web applications hassle-free.
• Highly Flexible
  PHP provides huge flexibility during an ongoing project or even after the completion of the project. Flexibility is important in the scripting language as it is a functionality that can change at any stage of the project and can save your time. While working on any of the projects, the developer does not require to write fresh code every time as you can make use of the existing codes and functions. 
• Effortless Integration & Huge Compatibility
  PHP offers huge compatibility with a majority of operating systems as it can run on diverse platforms that cover UNIX, LINUX and Solaris. Also, it can get integrated easily with different technologies like Java, current software doesn’t need re-development. All of these will save a lot of time and money.
• Great Performance
  Depending on the coding of the web developer, PHP has huge potential for turning it into an efficient language. It is highly scalable when utilized to write codes and can be used for building a larger number of applications.
• Cost-Efficient Language
  It is an open-source web language which is available at free of cost. There is no cost involved in buying an expensive license or software. It can work easily with diverse databases like MySQL, Apache and PostgreSQL. The development cost of a website is very less when using PHP.

Some of the drawbacks of PHP

• Security
  As it is an open-source language, all people can view the whole source code. If some bugs are present in the source code then that can be utilized by people for exposing the weakness of it.
• Not suitable for huge applications
  Using PHP, it is a little bit difficult to utilize it for building large applications. As the PHP language is not highly modular, large applications can be built out of the programming language is again difficult to maintain.
• Fragile
  Unexpected bugs can come and surprise unwary developers during implicit conversions. This can be even slower and also faster. There are many different ways of completing any particular task and it is not strongly typed. It can get interpreted and make use of curly braces.
• Weak Error Handling Method
  PHP framework holds a poor error handling method and does not provide an accurate solution to developers. That’s why all the qualified developers have to overcome this problem.
• Less Prone to Handle Many Apps
  It is not much capable to manage a large number of applications. The reason behind this less management is that it is not a competent modular language. Already, PHP is imitating all the features of Java language.

The ruling points of Node.JS

• Individual Language
  Node.JS is an individual language as it makes use of a single language all over the app development stack. This is beneficial because using an individual language on front-end and back-end both will help in enhancing the overall functionality of your application. With the best Node.JS services, you will be able to create a feature-rich application.
• Server-Side Solution
  Node.JS builds non-blocking I/O applications that help in easily serving multiple concurrent events. A developer effortlessly developed a high scalable server-side solution that maximizes the use of a single CPU.
• Highly Flexible
  Node.JS is well-known for its flexibility that it offers while any website development. There are no such strict rules present when you are using Node.JS. But there are few dependencies and guidelines that you have to follow while its usage. It is better to contact an experienced Node.JS development company for getting good guidance on the Node.JS website development needs.
• Not Much Complex
  Node.JS is not a complex platform to use but it still needs some lines of coding. Also, it will need the developer to have a full understanding of all the closures and callback functions.
• Make Use of JSON
  JSON works best with Node.JS and makes its use for better website development. Talking about PHP, then it doesn’t make much use of JSON as compared to Node.JS.

Some of the drawbacks of Node.JS

• Not Capable of Handling CPU-Intensive Apps
  Node.JS supports an event-based and a single-threaded environment and because of which it is not much capable of handling CPU-intensive applications. Some of the concurrent requests of Node.JS are generating video, audio, and editing graphics that can not be handled by Node.JS.
• Immature
  It offers the developers to access a variety of third-party modules that are developed by the community. But the whole ecosystem of Node.JS is immature to handle this. The continuous bugs and inconsistency in the versions make it an unsuitable platform for the maintenance team.
• Complex
  Node.JS has a complex structure that makes it tough for a developer to code for a particular website. On the other hand, PHP has a simple structure that makes it easier for any developer to create an application.
• No need for client app
  Only shipping the data in HTML format will be useful for creating the code structure. Node.JS does not support this kind of code structure. PHP is designed to build such apps and is more useful as compared to Node.JS.
• Less Coding Speed
  The speed of coding in Node.JS is very low because of its complex structure. Developers take huge time in creating web apps using Node.JS but PHP is very fast in creating web apps.

Ups and Downside of PHP

Ups and Downside of Node.JS

Top-notch performance statement for Node.JS & PHP

Popularity of Node.JS

The adoration of Node.JS amongst people

• Uses JavaScript for creating web apps
• JS runs single-threaded, asynchronous programming
• 98% of Huge Companies use Node.JS
• 73% of developers love Node.JS

Popularity of PHP

The adoration of PHP amongst people

• Server-side scripting language
• Fast turn-around time
• Enhanced security
• Affordable to use and preferred choice of developers

Major differences between Node.JS and PHP are listed below

1. Syntax of base code & accessibility to the command line
2. Synchronous VS Asynchronous Programming Support
   Node.JS supports asynchronous programming that allows the JavaScript engine for running through the whole code and that too in just one request without waiting for any other request or the function to get back. It helps to make the whole development much faster. You can hire Node.JS developers for completing this task and get your work done without facing any errors.
   PHP supports the synchronized programming process and keeps you waiting unless the current request for the execution. It means if any of the code line or function that will take a lot of time for the execution and the next function or line in a row will need to wait till the current function get completed currently and return. There are some Apis in PHP that provides full support for Asynchronous programming.
3. Different Modules of Node.JS & PHP
   Node.JS consists of built-in modules like bundled Node Package Manager (NPM). That’s the reason that the package management system is registered to it by default and make things simple to use and publish.
   On the contrary, PHP does not have any built-in modules and you will need to install third-party modules like PEAR and Composer. PEAR is a kind of framework and distribution system that works as a dependency management tool in PHP and assists developers to declare and manage like installation and update the library on which the project is dependent.
4. Support of Frameworks & Libraries
   Node.JS uses several kinds of frameworks like koa.js, happy, total.js, express, and more such and also it uses a full-stack Node.JS framework like Derby and Meteor. Choosing the right Node.JS development services, you will get expert advice to choose from which Node.JS framework or library.
   PHP makes use of several frameworks like CodeIgnitor, CakePHP, Laravel, and more such that helps developers to create secured and robust web apps. Top library software are Kohana, How project, PHPixie, FreeType, Protocol Buffers, and more such.

Diverse use cases of Node.JS and PHP

The use cases of PHP covers -

• Website and web applications
• Server-side scripting
• Command-line scripting
• Desktop (GUI) applications
• Processing and saving user input from form data
• Restricting access to some pages of your website 

The use cases of Node.JS covers -

• Creating web applications
• Front-ends
• Barn-ends and servers
• Creating API
• Scripting and automation
• Microservices

Limitations of Node.JS and PHP

How to make a Final Choice from these two i.e. Node.JS and PHP

By reading the above blog by Intuz, you will get a clear idea about the good and bad of both the technologies as everything has been explained in detail. In the end, it will be purely your decision to choose any one form both the technologies depending on your project requirements. But before you pick any one to ensure every little information on the projects.