How Much Should You Pay for a PHP Developer?

PHP is one of the most widely used languages for creating websites and the demand for experts on this language is always high. It was invented in 1995 and currently supporting millions of websites worldwide. The reason for its broad adaption if the flexibility that it provides along with plenty of options. It gave a new environment to developers which they never had before, it has also become a favourite program for many experts to create bespoke products.

With this language, creating a perfectly dynamic website that serves the business with its best is very easy. Today, there are many other languages available for creating websites like Java, Node and React but PHP remains the best choice for many. In this article, we will discuss the reasons behind the massive popularity of this language.

What makes PHP special?

PHP stands for hypertext preprocessor now, but in the beginning, it was called Personal Home Page. It works as a server-side scripting language which helps developers create dynamic and static websites both. It is the most widely used and the oldest scripting language as it has powered 80% of functional websites now and it has been used by the developers for over 20 years.

Most of the websites that we visit today have been developed using PHP. Even those who are used by millions of users every day such as Wikipedia, Facebook, WordPress, Yahoo, Flickr, Tumblr were developed on this language. There are multiple benefits which make PHP a favorite of many developers:

Open Source- It is absolutely complimentary for every developer in the world. Moreover, the community of PHP developers is large which makes sharing of upgrades and code libraries quite easy.

Cost Efficient- As it is free of cost, the language becomes very cost-effective for businesses. It also comes with integrated solutions and requires no license which ultimately results in a lesser cost for development.

Scalability- PHP enables your website to handle increasing traffic.

Integration- It supports all the leading platforms (MacOS, UNIX, Windows, RISC OS, Linux), web servers (Microsoft Internet Information Server, Apache), personal web servers (Caudium, iPlanet, Netscape), and web browsers as well.

Speed- PHP makes the entire process of development very fast owing to its own memory, it also reduces data processing time and loading time.

Security- The level of security of PHP is at par with all other advanced languages used for creating websites and applications.

Customization- Plenty of features let you create bespoke websites.

Control- You get the amazing capacity to control the development and website.

The three prime focus areas of development which makes PHP special:

• Websites and web applications
• Desktop applications (GUI)
• Command line scripting
• The most useful features of PHP are:
• Working with popular databases like Oracle, MySQL, dBase.
• Producing dynamic page content
• Data encryption
• Reading, collecting and processing form data
• Graphic creation
• Sending and receiving cookies
• Working with HTML
• Managing user-access
• Operating with files on the server (create, open, read, write, etc)

The chief responsibility of a PHP developer is to maintain, write and test the codes for web pages. He/she will be assigned to the job of creating implementing websites, applications, and programs. The developer is expected to work on frameworks like Joomla, Symfony, Yii, Kohana, Laravel, CakePHP, Zend, Codeigniter, etc. In simple words, he/she is a web developer.

There is a large category of complex tasks that the PHP developers can handle today. At the time of hiring a PHP developer, you need to make sure that you select them on the basis of their skills. The applicants may give you a list of skills and you need to check if are true to their works. An expert on this language must have the following skills:

• Knowledge of control system (SVN/ Git)
• Knowledge of CSS and HTML
• Familiarity with frameworks such as Symphony, YII2, Laravel
• Understanding of SQL/MySQL databases
• Knowledge of Joomla, WordPress, Drupal
• Familiarity with OOP (object-oriented programming)
• Understanding of control systems (SVN/Git)
• Knowledge of JavaScript

No matter what type of engineer or any other professional you are hiring, the hiring process remains uniform. There are little specifications which change but the overall mold remains the same. The interviewer also has to possess a little knowledge about a certain subject. In the case of PHP developers, you can take follow the process mentioned below:

CV Review: First of all, you need to go through all the CV’s you have received and then select the best ones on the basis of skills and experience that match your requirement.

Interview: Talk to the candidates personally so you gauge how true are their claims about the mentioned skill sets.

Technical Test: An essential round to check if the candidates are technically skilled to deliver what you require them to.

Decision-making: After checking the skills and knowing their perspective about the job, you take the decision of hiring them or not. If you have any doubt, you can re-assess the candidate or ask him/her to apply later.

Interview Questions

The questions that you ask the candidate should be furnished in a way that they help you figure out the willingness of the candidates to perform. Here’s a list of technical questions that you can refer to:

Explain the functions of include () and require () commands

Differentiate between unlink() and unset()?

Point out the most common errors in PHP

Which regional database do you refer to and why?

Define the functions of MVC and its components?

What are the functions of SQL joins and injections, how to prevent them?

Explain the mechanism of PHP session?

Tell us about the PHP design patterns that you have worked with

Differentiate between PHP3, PHP4, PHP5, and PHP7

You may also ask questions about REST, HTTP, testing basics, performance, Ajax, and security concerns. To evaluate the experience of the candidates, it is recommended to ask about the projects he/she has worked on. Also, ask about the biggest challenges, solutions, and perspective on PHP.

Coding Task

The coding task should be assigned to the developers depending on their skillset. You can classify the candidates in three different categories which are junior, middle and senior. And make sure that the tasks contribute to the overall process of development. You could also appoint a team leader for this particular task.

There are a few websites which have handled the coding task really well. One of them is Devskiller which is a great help for testing the skillset of a medium level PHP developer.

For specific platforms as well, testing and implementation become rather important. For example, an auctioning website makes take a little longer to secure its privacy policy and to make its personal data anonymous. Using tools for making email addresses, phone numbers and usernames anonymous is easier on such a platform. There are also different methods which make the process wholly valid.

There are different types of tests which help in ascertaining the efficiency of the code:

Algorithmic Test- It is entirely theoretical and designed to gauge the problem-solving skills of the developer.

Whiteboard Interview- Having the developer solve a problem on a board rather than paper or computer. It is a good method of determining how close can the developer get while figuring out the solutions and reduces the chances of plagiarism as well.

Multiple Choice Test- Another test which is entirely theoretical which focuses on determining only the knowledge, not skills.

The best way to find professionals today is to use recruitment websites and platforms such as LinkedIn, monsterindia.com, etc. Another option is to look for suitable candidates on freelance websites like StackOverflow, Upwork, Fiverr, Toptal, etc.

You can also refer to forums and communities specifically built for PHP developers. Other platforms such as Clutch and Good firms can also help you when it comes to finding a developer for website development projects. You can do a full survey of candidates using these platforms.

Posting your project on a platform and getting bids from the candidates is another great option that you have. You would be able to truncate the whole process and make it much easier. Because you get direct offers and you can choose the candidates very effectively.

Cost to hire a PHP developer

The cost depends on the skills, experience and most importantly the location you are in. For example, a developer from the USA could charge around $85,000 per annum. While the developers from India, Vietnam and the Philippines are available at a very cheaper price. That’s the reason most of the offshore project are assigned to developers over there.

In fact, every country has a certain price for PHP developers. Besides the pay scale, there is no such comparison that you draw out in their services. There could be a slight difference in the quality of coding but more or less, you will get the same level of services. However, if you really want to get services at a cheaper price, you can get it from India. It is a place where you find the most talented developers at the cheapest price.

It is very easy to track the progress of your project through skype calls or conferences. You can also hire dedicated developers who will exclusively work on your project unless it is finished. Technoloader is one of the IT solutions providers that provide this service at a very reasonable price with a team that comprises of professionals who have years of experience.

Country        Salary P.A.

Switzerland   $67,000

Denmark        $70,000

Norway          $68,000

UK                   $52,000

Israel              $47,000

Germany        $55,000

Netherlands  $45,000

Finland           $45,000

Besides the pay scale, there is no such comparison that you draw out in their services. There could be a slight difference in the quality of coding but more or less, you will get the same level of services. However, if you really want to get services at a cheaper price, you can get it from India. It is a place where you find the most talented developers at the cheapest price.

It is very easy to track the progress of your project through skype calls or conferences. You can also hire dedicated developers who will exclusively work on your project unless it is finished. Technoloader is one of the IT solutions providers that provide this service at a very reasonable price with a team that comprises of professionals who have years of experience. 

Looking for a PHP Developer? Call/Whatsapp at :  +91 7014607737 | Skype : technoloader
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