Usage statistics posted on various websites suggest that many web developers prefer Laravel to other PHP frameworks. Laravel’s expressive syntax makes it easy for developers to quickly create custom web applications. Additionally, the framework accelerates the development of custom web applications by simplifying common web development tasks such as session management, routing, authentication, file system management, and unit testing. Laravel developers can further streamline web development by leveraging object-oriented libraries, command line interface, template engine, ORM system, and queue services.

Laravel has also been constantly evolving to meet emerging web development trends. For example, Laravel 5 comes with a redesigned directory structure, simplifies method injection and path caching, and supports multiple file systems natively. But the built-in functions make Laravel slower than other PHP frameworks. Many developers even opt for Lumen, the light version of Laravel, to make the website run faster. The smartest Laravel developers even optimize the performance of web applications by implementing a number of best practices and tips.

7 Tricks to Improve the Performance and Speed ​​of Laravel Applications

1) Switch from lazy loading to eager loading

Eloquent’s Object Relational Mapper (ORM) makes it easy for Laravel developers to work with multiple databases; perform create, retrieve, update, and delete (CRUD) operations; and map object models to database tables. But Eloquent ORM performs database operations based on lazy loading approach. It does not retrieve data until it is explicitly referenced in code.

The lazy loading approach negatively affects website performance by executing additional queries. Laravel developers can easily speed up website by switching from lazy loading to eager loading. The eager loading approach retrieves data along with related object models when the query is initially executed. Therefore, the web application can deliver data to the client faster without executing additional queries.

2) Compress response data

While working with API-based frameworks, developers improve website loading speed by compressing response data. Laravel developers can easily speed up the web application by compressing the response data. They can leverage the Eloquent ORM to retrieve data to be displayed to an end user through a single query. But the additional data will affect the speed of the website and increase the bandwidth consumption.

Programmers can easily speed up the Laravel application by compressing the retrieved data through view models. The view models will create various subsets of the data models and send the data element to the screen for the user. Laravel even allows developers to compress response data and convert object model data by using robust libraries like Fractal. Programmers can use Fractal to provide a presentation and transformation layer to the retrieved data.

3) Use a JIT compiler for Laravel

Web developers often use PHP compilers to compile PHP scripts into native machine code. Native machine code runs smoothly on a computer without the need for a PHP interpreter. Smarter web developers use just-in-time (JIT) compilers to speed up the web application by compiling the PHP scripts once. Many programmers even compile PHP code through third party JIT compilers instead of Zend Engine.

Laravel developers can easily speed up web applications by using an open source virtual machine like HHVM. HHVM uses a JIT compiler to run PHP programs quickly and significantly improve web application performance. However, HHVM currently supports the core features of PHP 7. Developers can use HHVM to speed up their Laravel application without spending any additional time and effort.

4) Run artisan optimization commands

Laravel 5 allows developers to improve the speed and performance of applications by running a set of commands. Developers can easily speed up the Laravel application by running commands to optimize the storage path, compiling commonly used classes into a single file, combining all configurations into a single file, creating a path cache file, and compiling view files. Optimization commands further help programmers to perform a number of routine web development tasks.

5) Precompile website assets

In a development environment, developers simplify website maintenance by storing website assets in different files. Additional files often negatively affect the loading speed of the website. Laravel developers can easily speed up the website by storing assets in fewer files while deploying the application. Laravel allows developers to efficiently pre-compile website assets through handcrafted command line tools.

Developers can run specific craft commands to compile frequently used classes into a single file and combine configuration files and paths into single files. Compilation and combination will help the programmers to make the website load faster. However, the effectiveness of the speed optimization technique may differ from website to website.

6) Explore ways to implement caching

Laravel developers can easily speed up web application by caching configuration and routes. They can even run artisan commands to cache settings and update settings when changes are made. Similarly, they can run the artisan command to move routes to the application controller, cache the routes, and update the route caches. At the same time, developers can also consider using a robust tool like Redis as a cache and session controller.

7) Remove unnecessary plugins and unused services

While using Laravel, programmers use plugins to add functionality to the web application without writing additional code. But plugins often cause the web application to load additional libraries and files. Developers can easily improve Laravel application performance by removing unnecessary plugins and trimming necessary plugins.

You can easily identify the providers loaded with the web application by looking at the config/app.php file. They can also run artisan commands to trim unnecessary files and use composer to reduce dependencies while the app loads. Developers can even disable unused services in the config/app.php file to make the website load faster without affecting its functionality.

Overall, the features and tools provided by Laravel make it easy for programmers to create web applications according to different business needs. But they have to explore ways to speed up the Laravel application to prevent user churn and improve website ranking in search engines. Laravel developers can easily optimize web application performance and speed by implementing some simple tricks and best practices.