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Web Development · head to head

.NET vs PHP

.NET logo

.NET

Web Development

Free, cross-platform, open source developer platform

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
PHP logo

PHP

Web Development

A popular general-purpose scripting language that is especially suited to web development

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: .NET .NET 8 and .NET 9 both reach end of support on 10 November 2026, per dotnet.microsoft.com/en-us/platform/support/policy (Aug 2026), forcing an upgrade to .NET 10 by that date; PHP distributed under the Modified BSD License, also called the PHP License version 4, per php.net/license/; there is no paid tier or vendor price to compare
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 29 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which .NET and PHP actually diverge.

Attributes where .NET and PHP differ
Attribute.NETPHP

Identical on both: starting price (Free), pricing model (open-source), free tier (Yes), platforms (Web), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Web Development).

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

.NET

  • Web development with ASP.NET Core and Entity Frameworknot PHP
  • Cloud-native application development for Azurenot PHP
  • Mobile and desktop apps with .NET MAUI cross-platform frameworknot PHP
  • AI and machine learning applications using C#not PHP

PHP

  • Server-side web developmentnot .NET
  • Content management systemsnot .NET
  • API backendsnot .NET

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

.NET

  • .NET 8 and .NET 9 both reach end of support on 10 November 2026, per dotnet.microsoft.com/en-us/platform/support/policy (Aug 2026), forcing an upgrade to .NET 10 by that date
  • Standard Term Support releases get only 2 years of patches versus 3 years for Long Term Support releases, per Microsoft's own support policy page, so teams on an STS release face a shorter upgrade cycle

PHP

  • Distributed under the Modified BSD License, also called the PHP License version 4, per php.net/license/; there is no paid tier or vendor price to compare
  • PHP 8.2 lost active support on 31 Dec 2024 and enters full end of life on 31 Dec 2026, with only security fixes since, per php.net/supported-versions.php (Aug 2026)

Pricing, plan by plan

.NET

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the .NET review.

PHP

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the PHP review.

Which should you pick?

Choose .NET if

  • You want to start without paying.
.NET review

Choose PHP if

  • You want to start without paying.
PHP review

Questions people ask

Is .NET or PHP better?
Neither clearly leads. .NET starts at Free and PHP at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, .NET or PHP?
.NET starts at Free and PHP at Free.
Does .NET or PHP run on more platforms?
Both run on Web, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
Can I use .NET for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is .NET best used for?
.NET is most often used for web development with asp.net core and entity framework, cloud-native application development for azure, mobile and desktop apps with .net maui cross-platform framework, ai and machine learning applications using c#. Of those, web development with asp.net core and entity framework and cloud-native application development for azure are not what PHP is typically brought in for.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

.NET: Is .NET free to use?

Yes. .NET is completely free and open-source, available on GitHub.

Source
PHP: Is PHP free to use?

Yes, PHP is completely free and open-source software under the PHP Foundation governance. There are no licensing fees or paid tiers.

Source
.NET: What platforms does .NET support?

.NET supports Windows, Linux, macOS, and Docker. A single C# codebase can run across multiple platforms including iOS, Android, and cloud environments.

Source
PHP: Does the PHP Foundation offer paid support?

The PHP Foundation accepts voluntary donations to support long-term development, but donations are optional and not required to use PHP.

Source
.NET: How large is the .NET ecosystem?

NuGet provides 390,000+ unique packages with 50,000+ new packages added annually. .NET has 474K+ GitHub stars and active community support across multiple platforms.

Source
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