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7 Best Free PHP Tutorials For Beginners in 2024

What is PHP?

PHP is a general-purpose scripting language that is particularly well-suited for server-side web development, where PHP typically runs on the webserver.

Why should you learn PHP?

PHP is an extremely versatile scripting language, making it a very good choice for web development. A PHP skill is a valuable addition to anyone's development toolbox, so anyone looking to add it to their arsenal should consider doing so.

Even though you can learn PHP without knowing HTML, it is highly recommended that at least you have a basic understanding of HTML.

Free PHP Courses For Beginners List

  1. PHP: Master the Basics and Code Dynamic Websites - (Free)
  2. Building Web Applications in PHP - (Free)
  3. Building Database Applications in PHP - (Free)
  4. PHP for Beginners - Become a PHP Master
  5. Learning PHP
  6. What's New in PHP 7
  7. PHP Essential Training

Disclosure: We may get a small affiliate commission if you buy a course through links on this page. Thank you.

Free PHP Online Courses Certifications List

1. PHP: Master the Basics and Code Dynamic Websites - (Free)

Code Your Very Own Dynamic Websites by Learning PHP Through Real-World Application & Examples.

The course is a beginner's guide to creating dynamic websites with PHP, so you don't need any previous experience with it. However, knowing HTML and CSS is a good idea.

In this PHP course, you will:

  • have a thorough understanding of the PHP fundamentals.
  • have coded a handful of useful dynamic PHP examples.
  • focus on building a dynamic website for a restaurant.

Throughout the course, you will build several dynamic PHP examples, but in the end, we will create a dynamic site for a (fictitious) restaurant. Upon completion, you will have coded a handful of helpful dynamic PHP examples.

Course rating: 4.6 out of 5.0 (14,740 Ratings total)
Duration: 6 Hour 20 Minutes
Certificate: Certificate on Purchase

2. Building Web Applications in PHP - (Free)

Offered by the University of the Michigan.

This course will help you learn about the basic structure of a web application and how a web browser interacts with a web server. You'll be introduced to the request/response cycle, including GET/POST/Redirect.

Topics in this PHP course include:

  • Introduction to Dynamic Web Content
  • HyperText Markup Language (HTML)
  • Cascading Style Sheets (CSS)
  • Installing PHP and SQL
  • Introduction to PHP
  • PHP Arrays
  • PHP Functions
  • PHP and HTML Forms

The course will also give you a basic understanding of Hypertext Markup Language (HTML), as well as basic syntax and data structures of the PHP language, as well as variables, logic, arrays, array iteration, error handling, and superglobal variables.

Lastly, you will learn and master the steps of installing and using an integrated PHP/MySQL environment like XAMPP and MAMP.

Course rating: 4.7 out of 5.0 (3,911 Total Enrollments)
Duration: 31 Hours
Certificate: Certificate on Completion

3. Building Database Applications in PHP - (Free)

Offered by the University of the Michigan.

This course will focus on the object-oriented patterns available in PHP. You will discover how to connect to a MySQL database using the Portable Data Objects (PDO) library and execute SQL commands using the PHP language. Also, we'll discuss how PHP handles cookies and session data.

Topics in this PHP course include:

  • PHP Objects
  • Connecting PHP and MySQL
  • PHP Cookies and Sessions
  • PHP Redirect, Routing, and Authentication
  • Building a CRUD Application

This course teaches you how PHP avoids double posting, how flash messages are implemented, and how to use a session to log in to a web application. After that, you will build the first 'complete' application that has multiple screens to Create, Read, Update and Delete (CRUD) our data.

Course rating: 4.9 out of 5.0 (41,652 Total Enrollments)
Duration: 24 Hours
Certificate: Certificate on completion

4. PHP for Beginners - Become a PHP Master

Learn everything you need to become a professional PHP developer.

The course will teach you the fundamentals of Procedural PHP, Object-Oriented PHP, and MySQL while building a CMS system similar to WordPress, Joomla, or Drupal.

In this PHP course, you will learn:

  • to create a (CMS) Content Management System like WordPress, Drupal or Joomla.
  • about using Databases.
  • MySQL
  • Object Oriented Programming
  • PHP security.
  • Sessions
  • Password hashing
  • Email sending
  • How to launch your application online.
  • How to use forms to submit data to databases.
  • How to use AJAX to submit data to the server without refreshing the page.

Course rating: 4.4 out of 5.0 (21,924 Ratings Total)
Duration: 37 Hours
Certificate: Certificate on completion

5. Learning PHP

Learn to build basic programs in PHP and create dynamic web pages.

PHP is one of the most popular server-side languages for building dynamic websites. However, nonprogrammers often find it intimidating, despite its ease of use. This introductory course will change that for you through a series of easy-to-follow, clear, and focused lessons

Topics in this PHP course include:

  • The Basics

  • Control Structures

  • Math in PHP

  • Loops

  • Functions and Objects

  • Including External Files

  • Troubleshooting Your Code

  • Processing Forms

  • Advanced Topics

After explaining what PHP is, you will learn about the features of the language. In a series of hands-on exercises, students will explore control structures, variables, arguments, and person classes. After that, you will focus on more advanced topics, including try/catch statements, dealing with changes between versions of PHP, and form validation.

Upon completing this PHP course, you'll have the skills required to develop and maintain interactive websites using PHP.

Course rating: 4.7 out of 5.0 (30,715 Total Enrollments)
Duration: 4 Hours 41 Minutes
Certificate: Certificate on completion

6. What's New in PHP 7

PHP 7 is the major version number of PHP since 2004.

The course will help you get the most out of the new features and warn you about any changes that may break backwards compatibility and legacy code.

Topics in this PHP course include:

  • What's New

  • What's Changed

Course rating: 4.0 out of 5.0
Duration: 1 Hours 45 Minutes
Certificate: Certificate on completion

7. PHP Essential Training

Learn the fundamentals of PHP, a popular programming language that you can use to create dynamic web pages.

PHP is a popular programming language that may be used to create simple web page code. If you've been developing websites in HTML, understanding PHP will allow you to construct dynamic pages.

Topics in this PHP course include:

  • PHP Overview

  • First Steps

  • Explore Data Types

  • Control Structures: Logical Expressions

  • Control Structures: Loops

  • User-Defined Functions

  • Debug

In this course, you will learn about the fundamentals of PHP. It will cover topics such as embedding PHP code into an HTML page and describing basic PHP data types like strings and arrays. Moreover, the class will cover the different control structures in PHP, how to use built-in PHP functions, and how to define your own custom functions.

Course rating: 4.7 out of 5.0 (9,558 Total Enrollments)
Duration: 1 Hours 18 Minutes
Certificate: Certificate on completion


Hey! We hope you have found these Online PHP Courses & Certifications list helpful and intriguing. Since you've made it this far then certainly you are willing to learn more and here at Coursesity, it is our duty to enlighten people with knowledge on topics they are willing to learn.

Top comments (2)

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leslieeeee profile image
Leslie

If you are macOS user, ServBay.dev is a good tool, especially for the beginners. It handles all PHP, MariaDB, PostgreSQL versions, plus Redis and Memcached. Run multiple PHP instances simultaneously and switch easily. This tool has made my PHP dev simpler. Worth a shot!

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diana_kerr profile image
Diana kerr

This blog is the best PHP learnig. The comprehensive list of free tutorials and detailed course descriptions make it perfect for beginners. The inclusion of reputable courses from institutions like the University of Michigan is especially appreciated. This blog truly is the best PHP learning website. Thanks for sharing these fantastic resources!