11 Best PHP Books for Beginners & Advanced Programmers

We are reader supported and may earn a commission when you buy through links on our site

PHP is a server-side scripting language used to develop static and dynamic websites or web applications. PHP stands for Hypertext Pre-processor, which earlier stood for Personal Home Pages.

Are you interested in learning the PHP language and looking for some excellent book that will help you skyrocket your PHP expertise? Then you have come to the right place.

Here is a curated list of the best books to learn PHP for beginners. These books are highly recommended by PHP experts and are helpful for students to grasp the programming fundamentals. These resources will guide you to build your career in this promising field and make you a better PHP developer. Read more…

Best Books to Learn PHP

Book Title:	Author Name:	Latest Edition:	Publisher:	Ratings:	Link:
Learning PHP, MySQL & JavaScript	Robin Nixon	5th edition	O′Reilly		Learn More
Headfirst PHP & MySQL	Lynn Beighley	1st edition	O′Reilly		Learn More
The Joy of PHP	Alan Forbes	6th edition	BeakCheck LLC		Learn More
PHP for the Web	Larry Ullman	5th edition	‎Peachpit Press		Learn More
PHP and MySQL Web Development	Luke Welling	5th edition	Addison-Wesley		Learn More

1) Learning PHP, MySQL & JavaScript: With jQuery, CSS & HTML5

Learning PHP, MySQL & JavaScript: With jQuery, CSS & HTML5 is a book written by Robin Nixon. The book helps you to build interactive, data-driven websites. In this edition, you’ll also study dynamic web programming with the latest versions, PHP, MySQL, JavaScript, CSS, HTML5, and key jQuery libraries.

At the end of the book, you will be able to learn how to build a social networking site that is suitable for desktop and mobile browsers.

---

2) Headfirst PHP & MySQL (A Brain-friendly Guide)

Headfirst PHP & MySQL is the ultimate learning guide is a book written by Lynn Beighley. The book helps you to build dynamic, database-driven websites using PHP along with MySQL.

Packed with real-world examples. This book teaches you all the essentials for server-side programming, from the basic PHP and MySQL coding. You will also learn topics like form validation, session IDs, and joins, file I/O operations, etc.

---

3) The Joy of PHP: A Beginner’s Guide to Programming Interactive Web Applications with PHP and MySQL

The Joy of PHP is a book written by Alan Forbes. The writer starts with some basic HTML. This helps the beginner to catch up quickly and then goes step by step on how PHP works. The book allows you to start with the easy stuff like how to create and run simple PHP scripts, which helps you to modify web pages.

The book covers topics like installing and configuring PHP, Introduction to HTML, basic PHP Syntax, control structures, how to use a database, such as MySQL, etc.

---

4) PHP for the Web: Visual QuickStart Guide

PHP for the Web: Visual QuickStart Guide is a task-based visual reference guide uses step-by-step instructions. It also provides plenty of screenshots that help beginner and intermediate users to clear basic PHP concepts.

The writer Larry Ullman guides readers through the ins and outs of both PHP 5 and PHP 7. The book uses real-world examples to guide you through dynamic web development using PHP and show you what to do step by step.

---

5) PHP and MySQL Web Development (Developer’s Library)

PHP and MySQL Web Development is a book written by Luke Welling. The book describes the basics of the PHP language, explains how to set up and works with a MySQL database. You will also learn how you can use PHP to interact with the database and the server.

This PHP learning book focuses on real-world applications. It also covers important aspects of security and authentication to build a real-world website.

---

6) PHP & MySQL

PHP and MySQL is a book written by Mike McGrath. This book is for new assumes you have no previous experience of any programming or scripting language. Therefore, it is an ideal book for the newcomer to learn PHP and MySQL technologies.

This PHP book demonstrates, by example, how to produce data-driven web pages using a PHP scripting language and MySQL database server.

You will also learn how to write PHP server-side scripts and create MySQL queries and how to create an e-commerce shopping cart.

---

7) PHP and MySQL for Dynamic Web Sites

PHP and MySQL for Dynamic Web Sites is a book written by Larry Ullman. It helps to develop dynamic, database-driven web sites, MySQL, and PHP.

This PHP book also covers security, sessions, and cookies, and using additional Web tools, with several sections for creating sample applications. This book also includes the latest features and techniques with PHP and MySQL.

---

8) Modern PHP: New Features and Good Practices

Advanced PHP: New Features and Good Practices book is written by Josh Lockhart. In this book, you will learn best practices for learning PHP application architecture, databases, testing, debugging, etc. Therefore, if you have a basic understanding of PHP, it is a deal book for you.

The book teaches you some best PHP development methods like application security errors and exceptions, and more.

---

9) PHP: The Complete Reference

The Complete Reference is a book written by Steven Holzner. This PHP learning book deals with explaining how you can personalize the PHP work space, define operators and variables, manipulate strings and arrays, etc.

You will also learn how to access database information, tracks client-side preferences using cookies, executes FTP, and email transactions. This PHP book also covers how you can publish your applications to the Web.

You will also learn how to use PHP’s object-oriented tools to build blogs, guest books, with server-side file storage.

---

10) PHP Advanced and Object-Oriented Programming: Visual QuickPro Guide

QuickPro Guide is a PHP book written by Larry E. Ullman. This book offers step-by-step instructions, complete scripts, and expert tips to guide readers. The book begins by PHP and then the database program (MySQL).

Then the writer also covers topics like security, sessions, and cookies and using several other sections for creating sample applications. In this PHP book, you will receive the bulk of the new material that helps you to learn the latest features and techniques with PHP and MySQL.

---

11) Murach’s PHP and MySQL (Murach: Training & Reference)

Murach’s PHP and MySQL is a book written by Mike Murach. The book is divided into four sections. In the first section, you will learn how to develop, test, and debug your first PHP applications.

Section 2, you will learn skills like how to work with form data, arrays, sessions, cookies, objects, and regular expressions, etc.

Section 3 of this book teaches you how to design and create a database. The last section teaches you the specialized web skills.

---

12) PHP Cookbook: Solutions & Examples for PHP Programmers

PHP Cookbook: Solutions & Examples for PHP Programmers Is an ideal reference PHP book written by David Sklar and Adam Trachtenberg. The book provides the best solutions for creating dynamic web content, everything from using basic data types to querying databases for RESTful APIs to testing and securing your site.

This PHP book covers topics like strings, numbers, arrays, and dates and times. You will also learn how you can access databases using PDO, SQLite, RESTful API clients and servers, including HTTP, XML, and OAuth.

FAQ:

🏅 What is PHP?

PHP is a server side scripting language. that is used to develop Static websites or Dynamic websites or Web applications. PHP stands for Hypertext Pre-processor, that earlier stood for Personal Home Pages.

📚 Which are the Best PHP Books?

Following are some of the Best PHP Books for Beginners & Advanced Programmers:

• Learning PHP, MySQL & JavaScript: With jQuery, CSS & HTML5
• Headfirst PHP & MySQL (A Brain-friendly Guide)
• The Joy of PHP: A Beginner’s Guide to Programming Interactive Web Applications with PHP and MySQL
• PHP for the Web: Visual QuickStart Guide
• PHP and MySQL Web Development (Developer’s Library)

🚀 What are the basic requirements to learn PHP?

Just a full form of PHP would be enough. This book list is designed for beginners as well as experienced developers.