PHP: The Worst Language? Exploring Design Philosophies and the “Worse is Better” Approach

PHP is often criticized as a poorly designed language, yet developers can build structurally sound software with it by adopting best practices from frameworks like Laminas and Symfony.

The discussion references Richard P. Gabriel’s 1991 essay that introduced two design philosophies: the MIT/Stanford “Right Way” emphasizing simplicity, correctness, consistency, and completeness, and the “Worse is Better” (New Jersey) style that prioritizes simplicity above all else.

Both philosophies aim for the same goals but differ in trade‑offs: the Right Way values correctness and consistency equally, while Worse is Better allows occasional sacrifices in correctness or consistency for simplicity.

The article uses Lisp as an example of the Right Way, highlighting its interactive nature, consistent design, and rich feature set, while noting its decline in popularity.

It then contrasts C and Unix, describing C’s simplicity, portability, and widespread use, and how Unix’s design spread like a virus.

Turning to PHP, the piece traces its origins from Rasmus Lerdorf’s personal homepage scripts, noting that PHP is built on C, which gives it simplicity and extensibility.

PHP’s design emphasizes simplicity in both implementation and interface, providing straightforward web‑oriented functions such as get_headers() , $_GET , and $_POST . Its core functions often favor ease of use over strict type safety.

While PHP sacrifices some consistency—especially in function naming and parameter order—it maintains enough consistency to be practical, and its simplicity often outweighs the need for strict correctness.

The language’s completeness is sufficient for web development, and community‑driven extensions evolve based on developer needs rather than adhering to a rigid “correct” model.

Finally, the article argues that the “Worse is Better” philosophy can lead to long‑lasting, flexible software, using PHP as evidence that a language deemed “worst” can still thrive when simplicity and practicality are prioritized.