PHP Cheat Sheet (2026): Syntax, Arrays, Functions & PHP 8

A PHP cheat sheet for 2026 assumes PHP 8+: typed properties, match, the nullsafe operator, named arguments, and PDO for SQL. PHP still renders HTML, talks to MySQL, and runs on Apache/XAMPP. Skip mysql_* functions, unquoted array keys, and mixing HTML with SQL.

This PHP cheat sheet is written for people searching for a fast, accurate reference: students, junior developers, and teams shipping production software. Pin it, copy the snippets, and come back when syntax slips.

Quick reference

• Tags: <?php start. Echo short <?= $title ?> in views. Skip <? short open if it is disabled.
• Types: string, int, float, bool, array, object, mixed, ?string nullable.
• Arrays: [1, 2] and ["k" => "v"]. foreach ($rows as $k => $v).
• Functions: function add(int $a, int $b): int { return $a + $b; }.
• Nullsafe: $user?->email — no notice if $user is null.
• match: match ($status) { "ok" => 1, default => 0 } — strict compare.
• String: Double-quoted strings interpolate $name. Use heredoc/nowdoc for long SQL or HTML blocks.
• Errors: Throw Exception. Do not @ suppress. declare(strict_types=1); in new files.

Copy-paste examples

Typed helper and match

Enable strict types in new files. match is not switch — it returns a value and uses ===.

<?php
declare(strict_types=1);

function label(?string $status): string
{
    return match ($status) {
        'paid' => 'Paid',
        'due' => 'Due',
        null, '' => 'Unknown',
        default => 'Other',
    };
}

function firstEmail(array $user): ?string
{
    return $user['email'] ?? $user['contact']['email'] ?? null;
}

Common mistakes

• Using mysql_query or concatenated SQL from $_GET.
• == with "0" and false in auth checks — use === and hash_equals for secrets.
• Outputting user HTML without htmlspecialchars.
• Editing files without declare(strict_types=1) then passing "1" as int everywhere.

FAQ

1. Is PHP dead? No. WordPress, Laravel, and a huge web install base still run PHP 8. Treat it as a modern language, not PHP 4 tutorials.

1. PHP vs Laravel? Laravel is a framework on PHP. Learn PHP arrays, PDO, and requests first, then Blade and routing.

1. How do I run this on XAMPP? Put the project under htdocs, start Apache (and MySQL if needed), open http://localhost/....

Related PHP cheat sheets

• Php Arrays Functions Cheat Sheet
• Php Oop Cheat Sheet
• Laravel Blade Vs Php Cheat Sheet

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