Top 12 PHP Developer Skills to Put on Your Resume
In today’s noisy tech market, a PHP resume wins attention when it’s sharp, current, and honest about what you can build. These twelve skills keep you relevant, interview-ready, and dangerous (in the good way) across modern PHP work.
PHP Developer Skills
1. PHP7/PHP8
PHP 7 ushered in a huge speed boost and saner types. It’s now end-of-life, so treat it as legacy. PHP 8.x is where you live: union types, attributes, match, constructor property promotion, plus ongoing performance gains. Later 8.x releases added practical niceties like enums and readonly properties, stronger typing, and better error messaging. Cleaner code. Faster code. Fewer surprises.
Why It's Important
Modern PHP (8.x) lets you ship safer, faster features with fewer guardrails you have to invent yourself. Type improvements, performance enhancements, and better tooling mean sturdier applications and a calmer on-call life.
How to Improve PHP7/PHP8 Skills
Lean into types: typed properties, return types, union types; reduce guesswork and bugs.
Use modern syntax: arrow functions, match expressions, constructor property promotion.
Attributes over comments: replace docblock annotations with native attributes where it fits.
Know JIT’s tradeoffs: it shines for compute-heavy tasks; measure, don’t assume.
Preloading: preload core libraries for faster warm starts in production.
Track deprecations: run with strict reporting; fix deprecations early.
Follow PSR standards: consistent code style and interfaces help teams move faster.
Profile ruthlessly: use tools like Xdebug and Blackfire; optimize where data proves it matters.
Security first: input validation, escaping, and regular dependency updates. Always.
Stay current: read release notes; try new 8.x features in small slices before rolling wide.
How to Display PHP7/PHP8 Skills on Your Resume
2. Laravel
Laravel is a batteries-included PHP framework (MVC) that trades boilerplate for expressiveness. Routing, middleware, Blade, queues, events, Eloquent—most of what web apps need is already there, thoughtfully wired.
Why It's Important
It accelerates delivery without boxing you in. Strong conventions, deep ecosystem, and tooling that lets teams build durable features quickly.
How to Improve Laravel Skills
Master the core: routing, middleware, service container, Eloquent relationships and scopes, Blade components.
Build for production: queues, caching, broadcasting, horizon, task scheduling, and event-driven patterns.
Architect cleanly: request validation, form requests, policies, repositories where it makes sense.
Test early: HTTP tests, database tests, fakes; make refactors painless.
Ecosystem fluency: Scout, Cashier, Sanctum/Passport, Sail, Pint; pick the right tools for the job.
Keep pace: track release notes; align with LTS versions when stability matters.
Ship things: real projects surface real gaps; iterate and harden.
How to Display Laravel Skills on Your Resume
3. Symfony
Symfony is both a full-stack framework and a toolbox of battle-tested components. It’s structured, scalable, and happy powering high-traffic apps or being the quiet backbone inside other frameworks.
Why It's Important
Predictable architecture plus high-quality components equals maintainable code at scale. You get flexibility without chaos.
How to Improve Symfony Skills
Internalize the lifecycle: requests, controllers, events, kernel—understand how the pieces click.
Live in components: HttpFoundation, Console, DependencyInjection, Messenger, Validator—use them well.
Symfony Flex: streamline recipes, configuration, and DX for smoother projects.
Doctrine depth: mapping, migrations, performance tuning, and careful query design.
Security and Auth: guards, authenticators, voters; secure by default.
Automated tests: PHPUnit and functional tests; keep regressions out.
Contribute and read code: core and bundle source teaches patterns you can reuse.
Ship real features: complexity reveals itself in production; respond with structure, not hacks.
How to Display Symfony Skills on Your Resume
4. MySQL
MySQL is the relational backbone for a huge swath of PHP apps. InnoDB, transactions, indexes, reliable replication—structured data done fast and predictably.
Why It's Important
It’s a stable, scalable store for application state and reporting. Pair it with sane schema design and you get speed without heroics.
How to Improve MySQL Skills
Design first: normalize where useful, denormalize carefully; choose the right types and constraints.
Index with intent: composite indexes that match query shapes; watch cardinality and selectivity.
Interrogate queries: use EXPLAIN and the Slow Query Log; fix the worst offenders first.
Tune the engine: buffer pool size, connections, log settings; measure, adjust, repeat.
Transactions and isolation: choose levels that balance correctness with throughput.
Caching strategy: rely on application-layer caches (Redis/Memcached) and make the most of InnoDB buffer pool. The old MySQL Query Cache is gone in 8.0.
Maintenance: analyze and optimize tables, rotate logs, and keep statistics fresh.
How to Display MySQL Skills on Your Resume
5. JavaScript
JavaScript handles the lively bits in the browser. Together with PHP on the server, you get smooth, reactive experiences without roundtripping every click.
Why It's Important
Client-side logic delivers instant feedback and rich interactions, while PHP keeps the data trustworthy and secure server-side. A strong pair.
How to Improve JavaScript Skills
Core language: scope, closures, prototypes, modules; be fluent.
Async mindset: callbacks, promises, async/await; orchestrate concurrency sanely.
Modern syntax: destructuring, rest/spread, template literals, arrow functions.
Build something: small widgets, SPA slices, or real components—practice beats theory.
Pick a framework: React, Vue, or Angular—learn one deeply enough to ship production code.
How to Display JavaScript Skills on Your Resume
6. jQuery
jQuery trims the rough edges of the DOM and AJAX with a compact API. While modern browsers and frameworks reduced the need, it still appears in legacy code and many production sites.
Why It's Important
For quick DOM manipulation, event handling, and retrofitting older codebases, jQuery keeps things moving without heavy rewrites.
How to Improve jQuery Skills
Selectors and traversal: pick elements precisely and move through the DOM efficiently.
Events and delegation: handle dynamic content without spraying listeners everywhere.
AJAX flows: serialize data, handle errors, and surface user feedback cleanly.
jQuery UI and plugins: where appropriate, leverage widgets and patterns rather than reinvent.
Performance and cleanup: batch DOM writes, detach before heavy changes, unbind on teardown.
Know when not to use it: vanilla JS or framework tools may be cleaner for new code.
How to Display jQuery Skills on Your Resume
7. HTML5
HTML5 gives structure and meaning to your pages. Semantic elements, accessible forms, native media—content with intention.
Why It's Important
Clean structure improves SEO, accessibility, and maintainability. Your PHP-rendered views deserve a sturdy, semantic backbone.
How to Improve HTML5 Skills
Semantic tags: header, nav, section, article, aside, footer—use them purposefully.
Accessible by default: proper labels, roles, landmarks; keyboard- and screen-reader-friendly.
Responsive layouts: fluid grids and media queries; design for phones first, then scale up.
Forms that help: native validation, input types (email, number, date), and helpful error states.
Media and graphics: video/audio tags, SVG, and Canvas when interaction demands it.
Performance hygiene: fewer requests, compressed assets, pragmatic preloading.
How to Display HTML5 Skills on Your Resume
8. CSS3
CSS3 shapes how it all feels. Layout systems, animations, variables—your UI gets polish without a mountain of div soup.
Why It's Important
Looks matter. Usability matters more. CSS3 makes both achievable without fighting the cascade every minute of the day.
How to Improve CSS3 Skills
Fundamentals: box model, specificity, positioning; tame the cascade.
Flexbox and Grid: modern layout power tools; build responsive interfaces without hacks.
Custom properties: themeable, maintainable design systems with CSS variables.
Pseudo-classes/elements: :focus-visible, :nth-child, ::before/::after for clean, accessible interactions.
Preprocessors: Sass for mixins, nesting, and organization at scale.
Animations and transitions: motion with intent; keep it smooth and meaningful.
Debug like a pro: browser devtools to inspect, isolate, and fix styling glitches fast.
How to Display CSS3 Skills on Your Resume
9. Git
Git tracks every change and lets teams collaborate without stepping on each other. Branches for ideas, merges for decisions, history for accountability.
Why It's Important
Version control is the safety net and the map. You move faster when you can always roll back, branch off, and review with confidence.
How to Improve Git Skills
Daily fluency: add, commit, pull, push, fetch, merge, rebase; also git switch and git restore.
Branching strategy: feature branches, trunk-based, or GitFlow—pick one, commit to it.
Interactive rebase: squash and reorder to keep history readable.
Stash and cherry-pick: juggle work without messy commits; rescue the one change you actually wanted.
Hooks and automation: lint, test, and format before code ever hits main.
.gitignore sanity: keep secrets and build artifacts out of the repo.
Readable logs: conventional commit messages, short and descriptive; future you will say thanks.
How to Display Git Skills on Your Resume
10. RESTful APIs
REST uses HTTP methods and resource-oriented URLs to move data around—predictably, statelessly, cacheably. Your PHP app can expose services or consume them with minimal ceremony.
Why It's Important
Interoperability. Microservices, third-party integrations, mobile apps—REST sits comfortably in the middle of all of it.
How to Improve RESTful APIs Skills
HTTP done right: map CRUD to GET, POST, PUT/PATCH, DELETE; use proper status codes.
Version endpoints: v1, v2—break changes safely and clearly.
Cache smartly: ETags, Cache-Control, conditional requests—fewer wasted cycles.
Secure the edge: OAuth 2.0 or token auth, HTTPS everywhere, rigorous input validation.
Rate limiting and quotas: fairness and protection against abuse.
Shape your payloads: JSON by default; be consistent with envelopes and error formats.
HATEOAS where useful: discoverability in complex workflows.
Document with OpenAPI/Swagger: generate clients, keep docs in lockstep with code.
Observe: structured logs, tracing, and metrics; find hotspots before users do.
How to Display RESTful APIs Skills on Your Resume
11. Composer
Composer manages PHP dependencies, autoloading, and scripts. One file, one command, and your project stays in sync everywhere.
Why It's Important
It standardizes how you bring in libraries and keeps versions predictable across environments and teammates.
How to Improve Composer Skills
Keep Composer fresh: update Composer itself; new versions fix bugs and tighten security.
Respect SemVer: pick stable constraints; avoid surprise breaks during updates.
Autoloader tuning: optimize with composer dump-autoload -o; use classmap-authoritative in prod.
Audit dependencies: run composer audit; prune what you don’t need.
Scripts that help: wire pre/post hooks for tests, static analysis, and code style checks.
Private packages: use Satis or a private registry when your org needs internal libraries.
Review outdated: composer outdated to spot upgrades; update regularly with care.
How to Display Composer Skills on Your Resume
12. Docker
Docker wraps your app and its dependencies into containers, so it runs the same on your laptop, in CI, and in production. Goodbye “works on my machine.”
Why It's Important
Environment drift kills time. Containers give consistency, speed up onboarding, and make deployments more reliable.
How to Improve Docker Skills
Tight Dockerfiles: multi-stage builds, small base images, fewer layers; faster pulls, fewer CVEs.
Use official PHP images: start from maintained, trustworthy bases; extend thoughtfully.
Compose for services: wire PHP, Nginx, MySQL/Redis with docker compose; version and share the stack.
Persist data: volumes for databases and uploads; separate state from containers.
Performance tuning: opcode cache, php.ini tweaks, and web server config tuned for containers.
Security posture: run as non-root, scan images, pin tags, and keep secrets out of images.
Network clarity: understand bridges, ports, and DNS inside Compose networks.
CI/CD integration: build with BuildKit, cache layers, push immutable tags; automate tests before deploys.
How to Display Docker Skills on Your Resume
