Top PHP Interview Questions [2024]

PHP is the most widely used open-source, server-side scripting language in web development. A general-purpose language, PHP is used to create dynamic websites and applications. Interviewing PHP candidates commonly consists of basic and advanced questions to assess technical ability. We sourced these questions from the PHP community based on developers’ own interview experience and what our clients found important to ask.

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PHP Interview Questions

These are the types of questions typically asked during PHP interviews. We created them to help you test your understanding of the popular programming language, or guide your initial technical screening with PHP candidates.

What is an anonymous function?
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Can you explain the purpose of the header() function in PHP?
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What is a trait and how does it differ from traditional inheritance in object-oriented programming?
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What is autoload in PHP and why is it important?
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How does object comparison work in PHP? Explain the difference between the comparison operator (==) and the identity operator (===).
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What is visibility in PHP?
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How can type casting be used in PHP? What are the valid cast types in PHP?
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What is the difference between define and const in PHP?
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What is the purpose of setting the session.use_only_cookies configuration parameter to 1 in PHP, and what kind of attack does it protect against?
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How do type hints, or type declarations, help in writing more reliable PHP code?
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How is the scope resolution operator (::) used in PHP, and what is its purpose?
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What is the purpose of the @ operator in PHP?
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This list isn't exhaustive, and interviewing typically includes an assessment of soft skills and technical ability through a take-home assignment or live coding exercise. You can learn more about hiring here.

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