# PhpStorm  Software Pricing, Alternatives & More 2026 | Capterra

> With the help of Capterra, learn about PhpStorm  Software - reviews, pricing plans, popular comparisons to other Integrated Development Environment (IDE) products and more.

Source: https://www.capterra.com/p/186624/PhpStorm

---

# 

 PhpStorm Software Review 2026: Features, Integrations, Pros & Cons

Last updated on March 13, 2026

Provider data verified by our Software Research team, and reviews moderated by our Reviews Verification team.

[Description](#description)[Use cases](#use-cases)[Alternatives](#alternatives)[FAQs](#faqs)[Users](#users)[Features](#features)[Pricing](#pricing)[Integrations](#integrations)[Support](#support)[Reviews](#reviews)

PhpStorm

## What is PhpStorm ?

PhpStorm is a lightweight and smart PHP IDE designed with a focus on developer productivity. It understands your code at a deep level and provides smart code completion and on-the-fly error checking. PhpStorm is always ready to help you shape your code, run unit tests, or provide visual debugging. PhpStorm is perfect for working with Symfony, Laravel, Drupal, WordPress, Laminas, Magento, CakePHP, as well as front-end technologies like HTML, CSS, JavaScript, TypeScript, Vue.js, React, and more.

## What is PhpStorm used for?

[Integrated Development Environment (IDE)](https://www.capterra.com/ide-software/)[Source Code Management](https://www.capterra.com/source-code-management-software/)

Overall rating

Based on 160 user reviews

Reviews sentiment

Positive

100%

Neutral

0%

Negative

0%

Starting price

$249

Per User, Per Year

Free trial  
available

Includes Free Version

Capterra Shortlist charts the highest-rated and most popular products...

Our "Best of" badge program showcases products with the highest ratings...

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Do you work for PhpStorm ?[Manage this product listing](https://digitalmarkets.gartner.com/get-listed/claim-bx?url=http://www.jetbrains.com&name=PhpStorm )

## Compare with a popular alternative

Capterra selects software alternatives based on relevant features, verified user reviews and user interactions. Placement may be influenced by client status.

### PhpStorm

4.8 (160)

VS.

[### Microsoft Visual Studio](https://www.capterra.com/p/80230/microsoft-visual-studio/)

[4.6 (3,007)](https://www.capterra.com/p/80230/microsoft-visual-studio/reviews/)

Starting Price

$249

Per User, Per Year

Starting Price

$499.92

Per User, Per Month

Free Trial

Free Version

Pricing Options

Free Trial

Free Version

Ease Of Use

4.5 (160)

Ease Of Use

4.3 (2,969)

Value For Money

4.4 (136)

Value For Money

4.4 (2,231)

Customer Service

4.5 (102)

Customer Service

4.2 (2,069)

## PhpStorm alternatives

Highest Rated

[IntelliJ IDEA](https://www.capterra.com/p/136010/IntelliJ-IDEA/)

[4.7 (1,259)](https://www.capterra.com/p/136010/IntelliJ-IDEA/reviews/)

Starting price

$19.90

Per User, Per Month

Pricing Options

Free Trial

Free Version

User Rating

98%

of reviewers

rated it above 4 stars

[Learn More](https://www.capterra.com/p/136010/IntelliJ-IDEA/)

[PyCharm](https://www.capterra.com/p/186625/PyCharm/)

[4.7 (370)](https://www.capterra.com/p/186625/PyCharm/reviews/)

Starting price

$249.00

Per User, Per Month

Pricing Options

Free Trial

Free Version

User Rating

98%

of reviewers

rated it above 4 stars

[Learn More](https://www.capterra.com/p/186625/PyCharm/)

[Eclipse IDE](https://www.capterra.com/p/205298/Eclipse-IDE/)

[4.3 (205)](https://www.capterra.com/p/205298/Eclipse-IDE/reviews/)

Starting price

Contact vendor for pricing

Pricing Options

Free Trial

Free Version

User Rating

85%

of reviewers

rated it above 4 stars

[Learn More](https://www.capterra.com/p/205298/Eclipse-IDE/)

[Apache NetBeans](https://www.capterra.com/p/178681/Apache-NetBeans/)

[4.3 (231)](https://www.capterra.com/p/178681/Apache-NetBeans/reviews/)

Starting price

Contact vendor for pricing

Pricing Options

Free Trial

Free Version

User Rating

87%

of reviewers

rated it above 4 stars

[Learn More](https://www.capterra.com/p/178681/Apache-NetBeans/)

[View all alternatives](https://www.capterra.com/p/186624/PhpStorm/alternatives/)

## FAQs about PhpStorm

Overview

### What problems does PhpStorm solve?

PhpStorm solves slow PHP development, hidden syntax errors, inconsistent code formatting, and tool switching by combining intelligent code completion, refactoring, debugging, Git, database, terminal, and remote deployment in one IDE. PHP developers, full-stack web teams, and Laravel or Symfony users benefit most when managing large codebases and fixing issues faster.

Answer based on 132 reviews

Overview

### Which roles and teams benefit most from PhpStorm ?

PhpStorm is most used by software engineers, web developers, and full-stack development teams building and debugging PHP applications. Freelancers and programmers rely on it to code faster and manage multiple client projects, while CTOs, engineering managers, and IT leaders use it to standardize workflows, improve code quality, and support efficient team delivery.

Answer based on 160 reviews

Overview

### What company size and industries is PhpStorm built for?

PhpStorm is designed for developers building PHP web applications or CLI scripts, with 84% of reviewers from small businesses and 38% in Computer Software. It also serves Information Technology and Services at 22% and Internet companies at 7%, supporting backend, frontend, and full-stack IDE work.

Answer based on 160 reviews

Features and Usability

### What are the key features of PhpStorm ?

PhpStorm includes core code development features like intelligent code completion, code editing, refactoring, and real-time error inspection for PHP and web languages. Differentiating features include debugging with Xdebug, built-in version control, database tools, and plugin-based integrations for frameworks, Docker, SSH, and deployment workflows.

Answer based on 81 reviews

Pricing

### How much does it cost and what fees or limitations are included?

PhpStorm starts at $9.90/month for individual use, or 99/year, with organizational pricing at 249/user/year. The All Product Pack costs 28.90/month individually or 77.90/user/month for teams. A free trial is available. Reviewers often call the price high, especially for teams and freelancers, though many still find it worth paying.

Answer based on 40 reviews

Integrations

### Which third-party tools and platforms does PhpStorm integrate with?

PhpStorm integrates with 7 third-party tools and platforms, including MySQL, Docker, GitLab, GitHub, Microsoft SQL Server, DataGrip, and WebStorm. Reviewer mentions also point to database and development workflow connections, with MySQL and Docker appearing most often for coding, debugging, and container-based project setups.

Answer based on 36 reviews

Getting Started and Support

### What training and onboarding options does PhpStorm offer?

PhpStorm provides webinars and documentation to help teams get started. Webinars support guided learning through scheduled online sessions, while documentation offers written reference material for setup, features, and ongoing use.

Answer based on 8 reviews

Getting Started and Support

### What customer support options does PhpStorm offer, and how do users rate the experience?

PhpStorm provides chat support. User experience with support appears mixed: some users choose the product partly for its support and find it helpful, while others report unresolved technical issues and describe support as inadequate, especially when trying to fix persistent problems that remain open for long periods.

Answer based on 11 reviews

Memory usage

### Does PhpStorm use a lot of memory?

PhpStorm uses a noticeable amount of memory, especially during indexing, dependency updates, and when several projects stay open. Many developers accept the heavier RAM and CPU load because of its deep coding features, but small teams and users on lower-end machines often report slower startup, freezes, or system slowdowns.

Answer based on 31 reviews

## Who uses PhpStorm ?

Based on Capterra reviews from the past 6 years

Company size

Based on 114 reviews

100%

75%

50%

25%

Smallbusiness

Midsizebusinesses

Enterprise

Top job functions

Based on 114 reviews

IT & Software Development

65%

IT & Software Development

65%

Marketing

12%

Administrative

9%

Engineering

9%

Others

6%

Top industries

Based on 114 reviews

Computer Software

48%

Information Technology and Services

29%

Internet

9%

Design

7%

Other

7%

## Features

Features with the highest number of reviews are displayed first. Those that have no reviews appear next, sorted alphabetically.

Code Editing

4.9 (66)

68.18% of 66 reviewers that rated this feature as important or highly important

Edit code that has been previously created for product development.

For Developers

4.8 (66)

62.12% of 66 reviewers that rated this feature as important or highly important

For the intention to be used by developers

Code Development

4.9 (64)

68.75% of 64 reviewers that rated this feature as important or highly important

Create code from scratch

Graphical User Interface

4.5 (59)

50.85% of 59 reviewers that rated this feature as important or highly important

A visual way of interacting with an application or operating system using items such as windows, icons, and menus

Debugging

4.5 (56)

60.71% of 56 reviewers that rated this feature as important or highly important

Detect and remove errors

Data Modeling

4.1 (25)

36.00% of 25 reviewers that rated this feature as important or highly important

Conceptual model of how data items relate to each other

PhpStorm 10 features

Application programming interface that allows for integration with other systems/databases

Track and monitor efficient handling of all changes/transitions

Create code from scratch

Edit code that has been previously created for product development.

Conceptual model of how data items relate to each other

Detect and remove errors

For the intention to be used by developers

A visual way of interacting with an application or operating system using items such as windows, icons, and menus

Track revisions and updates made to files and navigate between different versions

Create/edit commerce applications for mobile devices and/or web

Features

4.8 (160)

4.8

Based on 160 reviews

## Pricing

Value for money

4.4 (136)

Free Trial

[View pricing plan details](https://www.capterra.com/p/186624/PhpStorm/pricing/)

PhpStorm (Organization)

$249.00

Per User,Per Year

It includes:

-   Code Quality Analysis
-   Databases & SQL
-   Debugging
-   Easy Code Navigation & Search
-   HTML and CSS Editor
-   Profiling
-   Smart PHP Code Editor
-   Testing
-   VCS

All Product Pack (Organization)

$779.00

Per User,Per Year

It includes:

-   Code Quality Analysis
-   Databases & SQL
-   Debugging
-   Easy Code Navigation & Search
-   HTML and CSS Editor
-   Profiling
-   Smart PHP Code Editor
-   Testing
-   VCS

Php Storm (Individual use)

$99.00

Flat Rate,Per Year

It includes:

-   Code Quality Analysis
-   Databases & SQL
-   Debugging
-   Easy Code Navigation & Search
-   HTML and CSS Editor
-   Profiling
-   Smart PHP Code Editor
-   Testing
-   VCS

All Product Pack (Individual use)

$289.00

Flat Rate,Per Year

It includes:

-   Code Quality Analysis
-   Databases & SQL
-   Debugging
-   Easy Code Navigation & Search
-   HTML and CSS Editor
-   Profiling
-   Smart PHP Code Editor
-   Testing
-   VCS

Value for money

4.4 (136)

4.4

Based on 136 reviews

## Integrations

[

GitHub](https://www.capterra.com/p/129067/GitHub/)

## Support, customer service and training options

Customer Service

4.5 (102)

Support

-   Email/Help Desk
-   FAQs/Forum
-   Knowledge Base
-   Phone Support
-   24/7 (Live rep)
-   Chat

Training

-   In Person
-   Live Online
-   Webinars
-   Documentation
-   Videos

Deployment

-   Web
-   Android
-   iPhone/iPad

Typical users

-   Freelancers
-   Small businesses
-   Mid size businesses
-   Enterprises

Customer Service

4.5 (102)

4.5

Based on 102 reviews

## User reviews

Overall rating

4.8

Based on 160 reviews

Filter by rating

5(126)

4(34)

3(0)

2(0)

1(0)

Mentioned topic

Sorted by most recent

MS

Marvin S.

Lead Developer

Computer Software

### "Great IDE with complete Featureset"

4.0

Overall Rating

4.0

4.0

Ease of Use

5.0

5.0

Features

5.0

5.0

Customer Service

2.0

2.0

Likelihood to Recommend

8/10

June 3, 2026

Overall I'm, very happy with the IDE, the integration with WSL on windows has improved a lot over the years and by now the only real flaw is the memory hogging and the freezes. Still I would recommend it.

Pros

The all around feature set is amazing, at first I was critical of switching to a paid IDE, but the quality really speaks for itself. The clean and effortless integration of search, debugging, git, docker and database queries is so effortless I only really notice how well it works when trying out one of the new "Ai IDES" missing all these features.

Cons

The biggest Gripe and the reason why its only 4 stars is the crashes and freezes. Every few months there is a period of 1-2 months when the ide becomes extremely unrealiable either freezing for several seconds regularly or as is the case right now completely locking up requiring an total restart. Killing all the open instances and running processes inside it (like Coding agents etc.)

Switched from

[Visual Studio Code](https://www.capterra.com/p/186634/Visual-Studio-Code/)

Older Colleague used it in the project so it was grandfathered in

Review source

Non-incentivized review: any software user can leave a review for any product listed on our site. All submitted reviews are subject to our verification process prior to publication.

Luis Antonio S.

Ingeniero de Sistemas

Construction

### "Buena herramienta de desarrollo"

5.0

Overall Rating

5.0

5.0

Ease of Use

4.0

4.0

Features

4.0

4.0

Customer Service

4.0

4.0

Likelihood to Recommend

10/10

May 26, 2026

Este programa me ayudó a levantar proyectos desde cero dando la facilidad de uso y que tiene muchas opciones.

Pros

La facilidad de uso para desarrollar en el IDE es genial, es una versión primium de algun otro programa para desarrollo

Cons

Es costoso, sin embargo como estudiante puedes obtener la licencia por un año, y renovarlo si sigues siendo estudiante

Review source

Non-incentivized review: any software user can leave a review for any product listed on our site. All submitted reviews are subject to our verification process prior to publication.

Enguerran M.

Fullstack Web Developer

Sporting Goods

### "The ultimate intelligent IDE for professional PHP development"

5.0

Overall Rating

5.0

5.0

Ease of Use

4.0

4.0

Features

5.0

5.0

Customer Service

4.0

4.0

Likelihood to Recommend

9/10

May 18, 2026

PhpStorm has been like the backbone to my PHP , and full-stack workflow for years now. Honestly it goes well beyond what people call a plain text editor; it kinda feels like an intelligent assistant that actually gets the structure of my frameworks, such as Laravel and Symfony . Even with the higher resource use it still, in practice, feels worth it because the productivity boosts , the automated suggestions and all those code-quality improvements they really do justify the license price for serious professional development.

Pros

Honestly the deep code understanding and those advanced refactoring capabilities feel kind of unmatched. In PhpStorm , I notice it catches errors as I type, and it pushes these really relevant quick-fixes, like right there. The native hookup with Xdebug is pretty seamless too, so debugging even more complex backend applications becomes almost straightforward. On top of that, I’m always using the database tools , especially through DataGrip integration, and the Git integration is excellent. It helps me manage branches and deal with conflicts without having to leave the IDE, which I really appreciate.

Cons

It’s basically a heavy , JVM-based IDE, so yeah it does end up with a pretty large memory footprint. On those bigger legacy projects with massive codebases , indexing can take a few minutes at least, and it can trigger noticeable CPU spikes even on a solid machine. Also , even though the new UI rollout is a step in the right direction , it still brings a steep learning curve, because reconfiguring particular tool windows isn’t always straightforward if you’re used to the old layout.

Review source

Non-incentivized review: any software user can leave a review for any product listed on our site. All submitted reviews are subject to our verification process prior to publication.

TE

Tom E.

Senior Frontend Developer

Higher Education

### "Solid IDE with regular updates"

5.0

Overall Rating

5.0

5.0

Ease of Use

5.0

5.0

Features

5.0

5.0

Customer Service

4.0

4.0

Likelihood to Recommend

9/10

March 25, 2026

Overall PhpStorm is my favourite development IDE and I use it more than just PHP including Twig, VueJS and more.

Pros

I like using PhpStorm as, not only is it great for PHP development with Symfony and Twig but also for JavaScript. I personally use it for VueJS. This is due to the plugins you can install. It fully integrates with Github and Github Copilot, has great code searching facilities. The learning curve is minimal and overall it straightword to use.

Cons

There are times when PhpStorm will occasionally freeze. This seems to happen on my Mac environment. I'm not sure how it performs on other environments.

Switched from

[Visual Studio Code](https://www.capterra.com/p/186634/Visual-Studio-Code/)

PhpStorm for me can do everything that Visual Studio Code did and more.

Review source

Non-incentivized review: any software user can leave a review for any product listed on our site. All submitted reviews are subject to our verification process prior to publication.

DG

Damian G.

CTO

Information Technology and Services

### "Burning Burritto"

4.0

Overall Rating

4.0

4.0

Ease of Use

4.0

4.0

Features

5.0

5.0

Customer Service

0.0

0.0

Likelihood to Recommend

10/10

March 8, 2026

Pros

Easy of use when writing in multiple platform such as windows/macOS. Very good debugging tool helping to solve complex issue with ease.

Cons

Very often on for example company laptop have some performance issues, making project indexing taking ages and putting laptop fan's to the sky.

Switched from

[Visual Studio Code](https://www.capterra.com/p/186634/Visual-Studio-Code/)

Have a lot of issues with it, problem with integrations, lack of plugins for my specific needs

Review source

Incentivized review: software users are invited to submit an honest review and offered a nominal incentive for their time and effort. All incentivized reviews are subject to our verification process prior to publication.

Nick B.

Engineer III

Computer Software

### "Preferred IDE for seasoned PHP developers"

4.0

Overall Rating

4.0

4.0

Ease of Use

5.0

5.0

Features

5.0

5.0

Customer Service

4.0

4.0

Likelihood to Recommend

10/10

January 8, 2026

I've been using PhpStorm for over 10 years and it has always been, and remains to this day, my preferred IDE.

Pros

PhpStorm is a feature-full IDE designed with PHP developers in mind. On top of standard code editing, testing, and debugging features, it brings all the best that JetBrains has to offer from its suite of products. It's easy to use, and intuitive, with a small learning curve, and it's capable of handling multiple languages that are critical to building modern web apps.

Cons

There really isn't much to complain about with PhpStorm. On the odd occasion, you may run into memory usage issues. This product is a beast, and does require a fairly robust machine to run efficiently.

Review source

Non-incentivized review: any software user can leave a review for any product listed on our site. All submitted reviews are subject to our verification process prior to publication.

GP

Gilbert P.

SysOPS

Information Technology and Services

### "My daily driver: An indispensable too"

5.0

Overall Rating

5.0

5.0

Ease of Use

5.0

5.0

Features

5.0

5.0

Customer Service

0.0

0.0

Likelihood to Recommend

9/10

November 25, 2025

PhpStorm works exceptionally well. It has become an indispensable part of my stack; I honestly couldn't imagine working without it now. It is reliable, powerful, and keeps me productive every single day.

Pros

Its seamless integration into my daily workflow. It is my everyday tool, and I particularly appreciate the intelligent code completion, robust debugging, and refactoring capabilities. It fits my development style perfectly.

Cons

It can be slightly resource-intensive (RAM) during the initial indexing of very large projects, and it slow to startup, but the performance trade-off is absolutely worth it for the features provided.

Review source

Incentivized review: software users are invited to submit an honest review and offered a nominal incentive for their time and effort. All incentivized reviews are subject to our verification process prior to publication.

VB

Visakh B.

Software Developer

Computer Software

### "All-in-One for PHP, But not lightweight"

4.0

Overall Rating

4.0

4.0

Ease of Use

4.0

4.0

Features

4.0

4.0

Customer Service

3.0

3.0

Likelihood to Recommend

4/10

October 3, 2025

I’ve been using PhpStorm for about a year for CodeIgniter and Laravel projects. While it sometimes feels heavy compared to other editors, the advanced debugging, code navigation, and refactoring tools save me a lot of time. Overall, PhpStorm is a professional IDE that is worth it for serious PHP development.

Pros

PhpStorm automatically suggests code, detects errors early, and helps with syntax highlighting.Works really well with Laravel and CodeIgniter.

Cons

It’s a subscription-based paid IDE, which may be expensive compared to free editors like VS Code.Beginners might find too many features confusing at first.

Switched from

[Sublime Text](https://www.capterra.com/p/179535/Sublime-Text/)

PhpStorm is a full IDE with many built-in tools (debugger, database tools, version control, etc.). This richness makes it use more RAM, CPU, and disk I/O, especially when opening large projects. Sublime Text is much lighter to run.

Review source

Non-incentivized review: any software user can leave a review for any product listed on our site. All submitted reviews are subject to our verification process prior to publication.

TB

Tony B.

Developer

Computer Software

### "PHPStorm - my go to IDE for several years"

5.0

Overall Rating

5.0

5.0

Ease of Use

5.0

5.0

Features

5.0

5.0

Customer Service

0.0

0.0

Likelihood to Recommend

9/10

October 2, 2025

Very happy, or I wouldn't keep renewing every year. They keep the system up to date with the latest versions of PHP and most of the time if Im watching youtube videos, the person is more than likely using PHP Storm so it seems to be popular with people other than me

Pros

I've been using it for years. I tried VS Code and I tried a multitude of other IDEs over the years but PHP Storm seemed to just gel with me. I love the debugging tools, the remote file view, the ability to edit a remote file, and linking to github to name but a few

Cons

It can be heavy on memory. I guess for what it's doing it may not be but I quite often have 3 or 4 projects open at the same time and you really notice your memory disappearing. They do regular updates but when it has to rebuild the indexes after a new version or for some other reason, it can be quite slow and certain features aren't available whilst it doing its indexing

Review source

Incentivized review: software users are invited to submit an honest review and offered a nominal incentive for their time and effort. All incentivized reviews are subject to our verification process prior to publication.

JT

James T.

Owner

Information Technology and Services

### "Great IDE, heavy resource usage."

5.0

Overall Rating

5.0

5.0

Ease of Use

5.0

5.0

Features

5.0

5.0

Customer Service

5.0

5.0

Likelihood to Recommend

9/10

September 8, 2025

Overall good experience with Phpstorm. Have used it as my daily IDE for years and don't see that changing anytime soon.

Pros

The simplicity of the interface is a big bonus. There are plenty of extension options that allow you to integrate about anything into it.

Cons

It is incredible resource heavy and can easily take multiple gigs of memory to run. But performance of the app isn't an issue.

Review source

Incentivized review: software users are invited to submit an honest review and offered a nominal incentive for their time and effort. All incentivized reviews are subject to our verification process prior to publication.

[View all Reviews](https://www.capterra.com/p/186624/PhpStorm/reviews/)

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Popular comparisons

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