Laravel is one of the most popular web frameworks among engineers worldwide. This comes as no surprise as it has robust security and advanced architecture that streamlines the development process. This PHP framework also offers multiple useful features and provides an impressive performance. That’s why thousands of companies trust this framework and use it in their tech stacks, often for building complex business-focused solutions.
As great as Laravel’s performance might be, you’ll be glad to know that there are many techniques for optimizing that performance even more. What’s more, the framework allows you to boost your app’s performance anytime you feel it’s necessary.
Still, it’s always a good idea to look at some tips & tricks that’ll help you get the most out of your Laravel application.
How does optimizing Laravel performance benefit your business?
Developing a high-performing app is an obvious objective for all web development teams. The idea behind that is simple: improved performance equals better apps. But that’s not the only reason why you should think about optimizing your Laravel app’s performance. Here are other reasons:
- Supports business growth: Better Laravel performance equals more satisfied clients. If your program works flawlessly, people will enjoy using it.
- Accelerates website speed: A proper Laravel system allows for better traffic handling and faster loading. And it’s well-known that users (and Google!) love fast-loading websites.
- Enhances efficiency: Optimizing Laravel performance improves the delivery team’s efficiency. It enables team members to do more with less effort, freeing up their time to focus on other vital tasks.
Tips for successful Laravel performance optimization
Let’s look at some top tips and tricks for optimizing Laravel performance.
Run route caching
We’ll start with route caching ― a perfect optimization feature for applications with numerous configurations and routes. It allows you to read all of the program’s routes, transform them into arrays, and cache them. For that, you can use this command:
php artisan route:cache
It’s vital to note that you should apply the route cache command after any changes to the config or routes files. If not, Laravel will load the previous modifications, negating any later adjustments.
To clear the cache, run the following command:
php artisan route:clear
Bonus tip: Use the route cache command only in production environments. It won’t function on the development server.
Compress images
Pictures impact your site’s appearance, but they also affect the loading speed. That’s why image compression is the trick you should definitely apply when optimizing Laravel performance.
It’s crucial to keep a few pointers in mind to preserve the quality and resolution of the images while compressing.
For instance, if you’re using Laravel Mix, applying an NPM package like ImageMin to compile your pictures is best. Also, if you want to compress a very large image, use TinyPNG first and then run ImageMin to compress it as much as possible.
Use a content delivery network (CDN)
Another cool trick for optimizing Laravel performance is to load static assets from the CDN server. This allows data to reach users more quickly, which is especially useful for large files.
The thing is that this technique saves the most recent version of your website to a globally distributed network of servers. As a result, visitors can swiftly access your website even if they are geographically distant from your location. For example, if someone’s viewing your website from South Korea, it’s faster to load assets from a South Korean CDN server than from a US server.
Apply assets bundling and minifying
All Laravel applications, by default, include the Laravel Mix package. It provides a user-friendly API that enables a variety of CSS and JavaScript preprocessors to make Webpack builds for your PHP applications.
With the help of Laravel Mix, you can quickly combine multiple style formats into a single file.
However, bundling all assets together could result in an extremely large file. To prevent this, consider minifying your JavaScript and CSS files before bundling.
The npm run prod command clears the application of any unnecessary code. It reduces the size of the assets and enables quicker retrieval, optimizing Laravel performance.
Use JIT compiler
Computers don’t understand PHP natively — you can’t just compile it to bytecode and run it. Instead, it must have “a middleman”, such as the Zend engine, which interprets PHP files and executes C routines. Unfortunately, you need to resort to that middleman every time you run the app. It requires a lot of time and resources, slowing down your program.
That’s where the Just-in-Time (JIT) compiler comes into play.
It allows you to compile the code rapidly and all at once, optimizing Laravel performance. For Laravel projects, the recommended JIT compiler is HHVM. It’s a Facebook product that many businesses use, including Wikipedia and Slack.
Time to start optimizing Laravel performance
Laravel is a robust framework that helps you build modern, efficient programs. But it’s essential to remember that you have to optimize to achieve the most outstanding results.
By implementing the tips mentioned above, you’ll undoubtedly see a significant improvement in the performance of your Laravel app. Combine the platform’s advantages with our optimization techniques to keep producing great, smooth-running solutions!
