Laravel, renowned as a powerful and extensively utilized structural PHP framework, stands out for crafting robust web applications. This framework empowers developers to streamline intricate aspects of web projects, encompassing sessions, routing, authentication, and caching, thereby simplifying the development process within a user-friendly environment.
Laravel never sacrifices quality during development to facilitate the developers in fulfilling custom operations and functionalities. You have numerous ways to perform dependency injections through a relational database.
Laravel offers functionality and easiness for developers with specifically designed activities. These Laravel packages allow them to access the databases to perform functions like migrations, views, tests, and much more. Read along to learn more about these packages and a list of the best Laravel packages.
What is a Laravel Package and Bundle?
Laravel packages are modules with limited controllers, views, or models. These specifically designed Laravel permission packages are tested in the development framework for republishing or reorganization to maintain module versions.
The Laravel package manager offers a simple and effective administration for any Laravel website development project. It allows a developer to instantly install a desired package using a composer and automatically enroll it in the service provider and exterior.
Bundles in Laravel packages are the improvements made in Laravel 3.0. They are a convenient way to group packages in a “bundle,” hence its name. A bundle has its views, routes, configurations, and tasks and could be anything ranging from database ORM to an authentication system.
How many Packages Does Laravel Have?
Currently, 500 popular Laravel packages offer functionality for various industries ranging from travel to eCommerce and digital marketing.
Laravel default packages come in two types that Laravel development services usually consider:
- Framework Packages are suitable for Laravel and compatible with other PHP frameworks.
- Laravel Specific Packages that are compatible only with the Laravel framework.
What are default Laravel packages?
Although Laravel has various packages for developers, a few default packages come pre-installed with the framework. These default Laravel packages include:
- Cashier
- Envoy
- Passport
- Scout
- Socialite
- Telescope
- Horizon
Develop Your Web Application with Laravel
List of Most Popular Laravel Packages for Developers
One of the key advantages of Laravel packages is to gain access to all the framework’s attributes to its host application. Additionally, these packages significantly prevent repetition of codes using the Don’t Repeat Yourself or DRY principle.
ClickySoft has compiled a list of the best packages for Laravel that developers can use in 2023 and beyond. Let’s discuss these packages that optimize application performance and make the development process smooth.
1. Spatie
Key features of Spatie are:
- Addition of media from URL
- Readable size
- Allowing storage of files in the collection
- Regenerating images and
- Downloading multiple files
Most web developers and app development companies rely heavily on roles and permissions, and Laravel has a history of providing packages to fulfill these roles and improve the code. One of the most popular and widely used Laravel permission packages is the Spatie Roles & Permission.
This package explains how to assign user roles, permit them and assign permission to roles. The benefits of using Spatie are direct permissions, role assigning, middleware, multiple directives, and artisan commands.
2. Ignition
Key features of Ignition are:
- Pre-installed in Laravel
- Clean and easy layout
- Track errors
Ignition is a package for customizable error pages used by all the applications coming under Laravel 5.5. All the Laravel apps have a default error page with Flare API, and in case you use this key, the app monitors and observes errors whenever they occur.
3. Laravel DebugBar
Key Features include:
- Route and logs collector
- Memory and Events collector
- PHP info and Messages collector
- Swift Mail collector
- Config and Cache collector
The Laravel Debugbar is a fine Laravel package that adds a developer toolbar or PHP debug bar to the application(s). The package itself is suitable for debugging operations. Developers can publish assets and configure them using Laravel while bootstrapping Collectors to work with Laravel and implement custom Data Collectors.
Debugbar has many settings that assist in displaying all the needed queries for the application. Everything linked to the routing, as well as provided inputs, is managed by this package. It displays all the displayed templates you have passed and adds messages to the Façade provided under the ‘Messages” tab in the Laravel Debugbar dashboard.
Debugbar::info($object);
Debugbar::error('Error!');
Debugbar::warning('Watch out…');
Debugbar::addMessage('Another message,' 'mylabel')
4. Laravel Auditing
The Laravel Auditing package assists developers in handling the alterations in the Eloquent models through information on probable abnormalities that suggest any suspicious activity or challenge.
After utilizing a built-in trait, Laravel Auditing keeps track of all the model updates, and additionally, it audits the data to display it in many ways.
5. Laravel User Verification
Key features of this Laravel package include:
- Swift login
- Retrieval of an authenticated user
- Remembering user information
- Routing and route protection
The Laravel User Verification package allows developers to run user verification while managing emails. It is one of the best Laravel packages that stores and generates a user token, immediately sends an email for verification, and offers a verified route for middleware functionality.
An example of a verification email is as under:
The code used in Laravel User Verification is as follows:
public function register(Request $request)
{
$this->validator($request->all())->validate();
$user = $this->create($request->all());
event(new Registered($user))
$this->guard()->login($user);
UserVerification::generate($user);
UserVerification::send($user, 'My Custom E-mail Subject');
return $this->registered($request, $user)
?: redirect($this->redirectPath());
}
6. Laravel Backup
The Laravel Backup package allows the backing up of all the application files and data. It stores all information in a zip file, the files in the database, and the database dump. The backup storage can be of any file system, and the following command is needed to run the backup.
php artisan backup:run
7. Socialite
Key features of Socialite include:
- Multiple logins
- Manages Boilerplate code
- Track all conversations
Socialite offers an easy-to-use OAuth authentication that allows users to log in using popular services and social networks such as Google, Facebook, Twitter, and GitHub.
The code required to run the Socialite package on an application is as follows:
$user = Socialite::driver('github')->user();
// OAuth Two Providers
$token = $user->token;
$refreshToken = $user->refreshToken; // not always provided
$expiresIn = $user->expiresIn;
// All Providers
$user->getId();
$user->getName();
$user->getEmail();
$user->getAvatar();
8. Laravel Mix
Key features:
- Open source
- Webpack configuration
- SaaS compilation
- CSS Autoprefixer
- Vue Support
- Vendor Extraction
Laravel Mix is a popular Laravel package deemed the best choice for 2023 with its Application Programming Interface or API to create a project’s webpack steps. It is one of the best asset compilation tools developers can use to build an application.
Its source code is as under:
mix.js('resources/assets/js/app.js', 'public/js')
.sass('resources/assets/sass/app.scss', 'public/css');
9. No Captcha
No Captcha package allows you to use a Google ReCaptcha to prevent spam and validate forms, and the user has to receive a free reCaptcha API key to begin.
The code for the No Captcha Laravel package is as follows:
NoCaptcha::shouldReceive('verifyResponse')
->once()
->andReturn(true);
$response = $this->json('POST', '/register', [
'g-recaptcha-response' => '1',
'name' => 'Pardeep',
'email' => 'pardeep@example.com',
'password' => '123456',
'password_confirmation' => '123456',
]);
10. Eloquent Sluggable
Slugging is a process to create a simple, URL-friendly string version after converting it into a single case and eliminating accented letters, spaces, and ampersands. Laravel developers can easily develop slugs in Eloquent models using the Eloquent Sluggable package. The package aims to improve the user experience with a minimal and automatic configuration system.
Eloquent Sluggable code is as under:
class Post extends Eloquent
{
use Sluggable;
protected $fillable = ['title'];
public function sluggable()
{
return [
'slug' => [
'source' => ['title']
]
];
}
}
$post = new Post([
'title' => 'My Awesome Blog Post',
]);
// $post->slug is "my-awesome-blog-post
11. Migration Generator
Key features of the Migration Generator package include:
- Migration rollbacks
- Migration squashing
- Dropping columns
- Table creation and modification
- Creation of indexes
Migration Generator is the best Laravel package used to run migrations using a database that includes all the foreign indexes and keys. The following command can be used to migrate every table in the database:
php artisan migrate:generate
You can also use an alternate code for certain tables for migration:
php artisan migrate:generate table1,table2
12. Entrust
Key features of Entrust:
- Assigning roles and permissions
- Install extensions
- Route filter
- Code snippets
The Entrust package offers a workable way of granting role permissions for a Laravel 5 web application. The package creates four tables, namely:
Table 1: Roles table to store role records.
Table 2: Permissions table to store permission records.
Table 3: role-user able to store multiple relations between users and their roles.
Table 4: Permissions-role table to store multiple relations between permissions and roles.
Developers can create a role using the following code:
$admin = new Role();
$admin->name = 'admin';
$admin->display_name = 'User Administrator'; // optional
$admin->description = 'User is allowed to manage and edit other users'; // optional
$admin->save();
If you want to assign a role to a user then the following code can be used:
user = User::where('username', '=', 'michele')->first();
$user->attachRole($admin);
Now, you must give permissions to these roles:
$createPost = new Permission();
$createPost->name = 'create-post';
$createPost->display_name = 'Create Posts';
$createPost->description = 'create new blog posts';
$createPost->save();
$admin->attachPermission($createPost);
13. Laravel GraphQL
GraphQL is another popular Laravel package that acts as a data-query language to give a substitute to the REST application structure. This package gives you an idea about configuring and using GraphQL in web applications. Developers can use it to set the preferred data structure and receive the same from the servers in return.
Laravel eCommerce Packages
Besides the packages that support the architecture of a web application, some Laravel packages support eCommerce applications and SEO with value-added features. Let’s see some of these packages in detail.
1. Bagisto
Bagisto is a popular Laravel eCommerce package that has garnered a wide audience due to its open-source capability. It has a Laravel package manager and a warehouse management setup with other added features.
It also has a built-in CMS with a user-friendly navigation dashboard that includes currency management, localization, access controls, payment gateway integration, and more.
2. AvoRed
The best features of AvoRed include the following:
- Product and order management
- Responsiveness
- User-friendly interface
- SEO friendly
AvoRed Laravel package lets developers configure open-source shopping carts per the application’s requirements. It has a default mobile interface and is one of the best Laravel packages for eCommerce applications.
AvoRed supports developers in creating product features such as categories, attributes, and others. It fulfills this activity through an order management panel to track orders, gather customer information, manage inventory, monitor fulfillment, etc.
3. Laravel Telescope
Features of Laravel Telescope include:
- Notification and command watcher
- Dashboard authorization
- Schedule and event watcher
- Data pruning
Laravel Telescope is a PHP debugger package for Laravel applications that supports web and eCommerce. Telescope provides in-depth information about the requests received by an application with database queries, logs, jobs in the queue, mail notification alerts, cache activities, task scheduling, and many more activities. Developers benefit from Telescope as a functional addition to their development environment.
Laravel SEO Packages
1. Laravel Meta Manager
Key features of Laravel Meta Manager include:
- Issuance of standard meta tags
- Facebook meta tags
- Twitter tags
- Link tags
- Dublin Core meta tags
Laravel Meta Manager is an SEO package that optimizes a website for search engines for higher rankings and positions. It focuses on the application’s meta tags and let marketers correct those using SEO and Laravel best practices. The package has default meta tags, including standard SEO, Google Plus, Dublin Core, Open Graph, Facebook, and others.
2. SEOTools
SEOTools allows a user to optimize application SEO using the best practices. It has exceptional optimization features supported by frameworks such as Lumen and Laravel. The package easily integrates with applications and adds a user-friendly interface that is easy to navigate, even for beginners. It also allows setting meta tags, and titles for Open Graph and Twitter handles.
3. AutoMeta
Another popular Laravel SEO package is AutoMeta, which supports developers with additional SEO practices. It is one of the top listed and preferred SEO packages for Laravel web applications that offer easy meta tag management. The package also supports fixing common SEO errors and bugs within the application to simplify search engine crawling.
4. Laravel SEOable
Key features of Laravel SEOable include:
- SEO meta tag management
- Defining custom SEO database
- Setting templates for title and description
Laravel SEOable is the overall best package solution for Laravel web application SEO. It offers SEO factors and optimization techniques that help level up the results for a website.
The package offers several supportive functions such as attribute mapping, meta tag optimization, creating custom templates, and integration of SEO models. Your web application projects always stay on top using this Laravel SEO package.
5. Laravel-SEO
Another useful Laravel package is Laravel-SEO, which allows developers to manage (insert and remove) website meta tags. The package can also place structured data into an application and efficiently handle the most common meta tags such as Facebook, Dublin Core, and others.
Laravel Packages for Admin Panel Generator
The Laravel admin panel has two groups: visual builders and console-based. The choice of these categories depends on user preferences. Users can choose according to their convenience, such as GUI or typing Artisan commands using a parameter.
The building block of admin panels in Laravel is the core operations based on CRUD (Create, Read, Update, Delete) activities. Some of the best Laravel packages for admin panel generation are:
1. Voyager
Voyager is a commonly used admin panel package with an easy and professional interface. It offers clear instructions for usage with a user-friendly front-end and no apparent bugs. It offers useful features such as a media manager and dummy data generation.
2. Orchid
Orchid is a Laravel package that works well with the framework to build business applications. It has a core base of web applications and performs the functions such as CMF CMS and handles the admin panel for a website.
3. LaraAdmin
LaraAdmin is a package that combines the Laravel admin panel with CRM. After installation and logging into the admin panel, LaraAdmin allows the creation of visual models representing CRUDs.
What is the Process of Laravel Package Development?
When developers write Laravel packages, the package cannot access all the testing features. Users must utilize the Orchestral Testbench package to write tests within typical Laravel applications.
The process of Laravel package development is as follows:
- Setting Composer.json file for a new package
- Adding Service Provider
- Setting Alias
- Creation of a Façade class
These are the four steps developers must remember to write a Laravel package and speed up the development process.
Final Word
The choice of the suitable Laravel package depends on project requirements as it helps optimize its productivity and functionality. These packages offer ease for developers to create custom operations and perform function tasks effectively.
Each package listed above has features and usefulness but with the common purpose of making the development process smooth. Using these packages gives you support in performing functionalities depending on project requirements and specifications.
Once you’ve outlined your application requirements, you can explore the plethora of available options offered by the best Laravel packages. This curated Laravel packages list comprises solutions tailored to meet diverse needs, enhancing app performance and optimizing workflow. Integrating these Laravel packages into your project promises improved efficiency and a smoother development journey.
