5 Best PHP Books for Beginners & Advanced Programmers

PHP is one of the most popular software development languages. This language is popular because it has an accessible and easy-to-learn syntax, works on all operating systems, and can build classic websites and apps, mobile app backends, REST APIs, and more.

According to the Statista website for 2021, PHP remains the most popular programming language globally, with a market share of 45.43%.

If you want to master this language or improve your knowledge of it, this article will come in handy because, in it, we will look at the five best PHP books that every PHP web developer should read in 2022:

1. Head First PHP and MySQL
Written by Lynn Bailey and Michael Morrison.

Head First PHP and MySQL is one of the best PHP guides for beginners. This reasonably large book answers all questions about creating dynamic websites driven by databases.

This book is filled with fascinating real-life examples to help you learn how to harness the power of the popular server programming language and its beloved DBMS counterpart, MySQL.

2. PHP: Beginner's Guide
Written by Vikram Vaswani.

This book covers basic PHP programs well and how you can extend those programs with functions, third-party extensions, and XML input, including MySQL database integration, which will be appreciated by those who work with DevOps services and solutions.

The PHP Book: A Beginner's Guide allows beginners to start PHP development and develop their intermediate level adequacy. The book covers software installation, syntax, data structures, built-in functions, flow control procedures, and best practices.

3. PHP Reference: Beginner to Intermediate
Written by Mario Lurig.

It is an excellent quick reference that presents content and examples suitable for beginners and intermediate users.

Here you will find fixes, tips, clarifications, and examples from the PHP manual. Interestingly, you may find a bug or require clarification by leaving a comment on the blog, which will be reviewed in the post and corrected for later versions.

4. The Joy of PHP Programming: A Beginner's Guide to Programming Interactive Web Applications with PHP and MySQL
Written by Alan Forbes.

This guide starts with basic HTML, so beginners can quickly get started. The book then proceeds step by step to explain how PHP works. It turns a PHP beginner into a professional dynamic website developer.

5. PHP and MySQL from beginner to ninja
Written by Tom Butler and Kevin Yank.

This book provides information about PHP and MySQL in an accessible way. Gradually, step by step, the reader masters the basics and more complex forms of handling the PHP language. PHP & MySQL Novice to Ninja is well written, attractive, and more than satisfactorily covers the basics of PHP and MySQL.

Conclusion

In its article on the most in-demand programming languages today, Forbes lists PHP as one of the top five in the industry. And this is not surprising - for example, many dedicated development teams, simple web applications, and complex systems.

If you are already starting to program in PHP or want to learn about the nuances and expand your knowledge base about this language, the books from this list will come in handy.

Author's bio: Anastasiia Lastovetska is a technology writer at MLSDev, a software development company that builds web & mobile app solutions from scratch. She researches the area of technology to create great content about app development, UX/UI design, and tech & business consulting.