PHP developers

Hire a PHP developer for the code your business runs on

From a team that has developed 300+ PHP websites and applications. Hire a developer for framework or plain PHP work: new modules, bug fixes, API integrations, database tuning and version upgrades.

  • 300+ PHP applications built
  • Legacy code welcome
  • Resumes before you decide
Hire a PHP Developer See our work
What your developer brings
  • Modern PHP practice
  • Legacy code rescue
  • Databases and SQL
  • APIs and third-party services
  • Security fixes
  • Servers and deployment
Request developer profiles Reply within one business day. NDA on request.
Why hire

Old PHP systems are hard to staff

A lot of working businesses run on PHP that nobody would describe as modern. An order system written in plain PHP a decade ago. An intranet on an old framework release. A customer portal where the queries sit inside the HTML. It earns money every day, so it cannot be thrown away, and the person who wrote it has left.

Hiring for that is awkward. Developers who like new frameworks do not want the job, and juniors are dangerous near it. What you need is someone patient, who reads before changing, adds tests around what they touch and improves the code in steps while the business keeps running. That is the profile we shortlist for PHP roles. When a rebuild or a move to a framework is the better answer, we say so, and our PHP migration and upgrade service covers that route.

  • Whoever wrote it has moved on

    The system works, mostly, but there is no documentation and no handover. A recruiter cannot tell you which candidate will cope with ten years of someone else's decisions.

  • The server needs a newer PHP

    Your host is retiring the PHP release your application depends on. Somebody has to find every deprecated function and removed extension before the switch, not after.

  • One developer is a single point of failure

    A lone employee or freelancer holds all the knowledge in their head. When they are away, nothing moves. A developer backed by a team and a project manager spreads that risk.

  • Framework fashion does not help you

    Candidates want to rewrite everything in whatever they used last. You want invoices to go out on Monday. The hire has to respect what already works.

Skills

The unglamorous skills PHP work needs

Good PHP work is unglamorous: careful reading, small safe changes and tests. Our developers bring that discipline to both old and new code.

Modern PHP practice

Typed, namespaced code with Composer autoloading and PSR standards, static analysis with PHPStan, and dependency injection where it earns its keep. No clever tricks the next person cannot read.

Legacy code rescue

Old mysql functions replaced with PDO and prepared statements, includes untangled into classes and globals removed in stages, with tests written first around the behavior that must not change.

Databases and SQL

Schema design, indexes, slow query analysis with EXPLAIN, transactions and migrations for MySQL, MariaDB and PostgreSQL, plus safe scripts for cleaning years of inconsistent data.

APIs and third-party services

REST and SOAP clients and servers, OAuth, payment gateways, shipping, SMS and accounting integrations, with timeouts, retries and logging so failures are visible.

Security fixes

SQL injection, cross-site scripting, CSRF, weak password storage, unsafe uploads and session handling reviewed against OWASP guidance and fixed in order of exposure.

Servers and deployment

Nginx or Apache with PHP-FPM, OPcache, cron jobs, queues and log rotation, and a repeatable deployment from Git in place of files edited over FTP.

Hand over

PHP work you can pass on

01

Upgrade to a supported PHP version

A scan of the codebase for incompatible code, fixes on a branch, a test server on the new version and a planned switch with a way back if something was missed.

02

A new module in an old system

A reporting screen, an approval step, an export for your accountant, added in the style of the existing application so it does not become a second system inside the first.

03

Bug backlog and small changes

The list your staff has kept for years: wrong totals, a slow search, a report that times out. Worked through in priority order with a note on each cause.

04

An API for a mobile app or partner

Endpoints added on top of the existing database with authentication, validation and documentation, so a new app or a partner can use your data without direct database access.

In depth

Taking over a codebase someone else wrote

Reading comes before writing

For the first week your developer changes almost nothing. They get the application running locally from a database copy, which on old systems is a task in itself: missing extensions, hard-coded paths, credentials in a dozen files. They trace the main flows (login, the core transaction, the nightly cron jobs), list the external services the code calls and note anything alarming, such as passwords stored unhashed or queries built from raw input. You receive that as a plain document with three headings: urgent, soon and can wait.

Week two brings version control and a safety net

If the code is not in Git, it goes in. If deployment means copying files by FTP, we set up a staging server and a scripted deploy. Then the developer writes characterization tests around the most valuable paths. These tests record what the code does today without judging it, so a later change that alters an invoice total or a stock figure is caught at once.

How tasks move after that

Work arrives as tickets from your operations people or a product owner. For bugs, an example record and the expected result is the most useful thing you can give. The developer fixes the cause on a branch, extends the tests, opens a pull request and deploys to staging for you to confirm. Each change tidies the code it touches a little. Over months the worst files shrink, without a risky rewrite and without a freeze on new features. Reporting follows the engagement model you pick, from a note on completion to a daily summary.

Review and the rewrite question

Pull requests are read by a second developer, yours or ours, with attention to query safety and side effects on shared tables. Sooner or later someone asks whether to rewrite in a framework. Your developer should answer with evidence from your own code: how much is dead, how much is tangled, what a staged move to Laravel would involve against continuing as you are. If moving wins, a Laravel developer can join without starting from zero.

Deciding whether they are right for you

A strong PHP developer makes few promises in week one and keeps them. Watch for small, frequent, reversible changes. Be wary of anyone who proposes a rewrite before they can explain how your month-end run works. By the end of the first month you should also be able to read their notes and understand your own system better than you did before.

Engagement models

Three ways to work with your developer

Part timeFull time Most chosenHourly
Effort4 hours a day8 hours a day8 hours a day
AllocationSharedDedicatedDedicated
Minimum term40 hours a month120 hours a month160 hours a month
BillingWeekly, in advanceMonthly, in advanceMonthly, in advance
ReportingOn completionWeeklyDaily
SupportChat, emailChat, emailChat, email, calls

Five working days a week. Rates depend on the role and seniority, and are quoted after a free consultation.

Hiring process

From first call to first commit

  1. 1

    Tell us what you need

    We go through the work, the stack, the hours and the time zone you want covered.

  2. 2

    We shortlist developers

    You get profiles of developers from our own team who fit the role.

  3. 3

    You review and interview

    Read their resumes, talk to them, set a small test task if you like.

  4. 4

    Ask for more options

    Not convinced yet? We put forward other candidates until you are.

  5. 5

    Confirm and sign

    Pick an engagement model. The contract and NDA are signed before work starts.

  6. 6

    Kick-off call

    Meet your developer and project manager, share access, agree the first week.

What you get

What you keep from the engagement

  • Your application in Git with a staging server
  • Tests around the paths that earn money
  • A written list of risks, ranked by urgency
  • Scripted deployments in place of FTP edits
  • Documentation that outlives the engagement
FAQ

PHP hiring questions we get

Will a developer take on code with no framework and no documentation?
Yes, that is familiar ground for our PHP developers. The first weeks go into getting the application running locally, putting it under version control and documenting the main flows. After that, changes are made in small steps with tests around them.
Can you upgrade our application to a current PHP version?
Yes. We scan the code for functions and extensions that no longer exist, fix them on a branch and test on a server running the target version. How long it takes depends on the size of the codebase and the age of its libraries, which we assess before suggesting hours.
Should we rewrite the system instead of maintaining it?
Usually not all at once. A full rewrite stops feature work for months and tends to lose behavior nobody wrote down. Replacing the system module by module behind the same database is slower on paper and far safer in practice. Your developer will give you an honest view after the audit.
Which frameworks do your PHP developers know?
Laravel and CodeIgniter are the two we use most, alongside plain PHP and WordPress. If your application is on one of them, ask for a specialist. We have separate pages for hiring a Laravel developer and a CodeIgniter developer.
Who has access to our server and database?
Only the people working on your account, using named credentials that you issue and can revoke. Development uses a copy of the database, with sensitive fields masked where the task allows. An NDA can be signed before any access is granted.
How do we know the hours are being used well?
Every task is logged against the ticket it belongs to, and reports arrive at the interval set by your engagement model. Because changes go through pull requests, you can also see exactly what was done. If the pace seems off, the project manager is the person to raise it with.
Related

PHP Development

Custom PHP Development

PHP Migration & Upgrade

Laravel Developer

CodeIgniter Developer
Hire a developer

Tell us about your PHP application

Say what it does, roughly how old it is and what needs to change. We reply within one business day and can share resumes of PHP developers used to inherited code.

  • Free consultation and quote
  • NDA on request
  • You own the source code
  • Reply within one business day
Prefer to talk first? Book a call WhatsApp wwc@worldwincoder.com

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