How to Validate Input Fields in Laravel 11 Using alpha, alpha_num, and alpha_dash Rules

In Laravel 11 you can restrict input fields to specific characters by using built‑in validation rules such as alpha, alpha_num and alpha_dash. The alpha_num rule permits any Unicode letters, marks and numbers, while alpha allows only letters and marks. The alpha_dash rule extends alpha_num by also allowing the ASCII hyphen (-) and underscore (_).

alpha_num

The rule requires the field to contain only Unicode alphanumeric characters, which include:

\p{L}: all Unicode letter characters

\p{M}: all Unicode mark characters (e.g., diacritics)

\p{N}: all Unicode number characters

Thus it accepts letters and numbers from many languages.

alpha

The rule requires only Unicode letters and marks:

\p{L}: all Unicode letter characters

\p{M}: all Unicode mark characters

Digits and other symbols are rejected.

alpha_dash

This rule permits Unicode letters, marks, numbers, plus the ASCII hyphen and underscore:

\p{L}

\p{M}

\p{N}

ASCII hyphen (-)

ASCII underscore (_)

It therefore allows letters, numbers, and the characters "-" and "_".

Example 1 – Using alpha

<?php
namespace App\Http\Controllers;

use Illuminate\Http\Request;
use App\User;

class UserController extends Controller
{
    public function create()
    {
        return view('index');
    }

    public function store(Request $request)
    {
        $request->validate([
            'name' => 'required|alpha',
            'email' => 'required|email|unique:users'
        ]);

        $input = $request->all();
        $user = User::create($input);

        return back()->with('success', 'User created successfully.');
    }
}

Example 2 – Using alpha_num

<?php
namespace App\Http\Controllers;

use Illuminate\Http\Request;
use App\User;

class UserController extends Controller
{
    public function create()
    {
        return view('index');
    }

    public function store(Request $request)
    {
        $request->validate([
            'name' => 'required|alpha_num',
            'email' => 'required|email|unique:users'
        ]);

        $input = $request->all();
        $user = User::create($input);

        return back()->with('success', 'User created successfully.');
    }
}

Example 3 – Using regex for letters only

<?php
namespace App\Http\Controllers;

use Illuminate\Http\Request;
use App\User;

class UserController extends Controller
{
    public function create()
    {
        return view('index');
    }

    public function store(Request $request)
    {
        $request->validate([
            'name' => 'required|regex:/^[a-zA-Z]+$/u',
            'email' => 'required|email|unique:users'
        ]);

        $input = $request->all();
        $user = User::create($input);

        return back()->with('success', 'User created successfully.');
    }
}