Laravel is a free and open-source PHP web framework designed for building web applications with elegant syntax. Created by Taylor Otwell, Laravel intends to offer a more advanced alternative to the CodeIgniter framework by including features such as built-in support for user authentication and authorization. It follows the model-view-controller (MVC) architectural pattern, promoting scalability and maintainability through organized code.
Laravel includes features like the Artisan command-line interface (CLI), Blade templating engine, and Eloquent ORM. It provides tools and resources for creating, deploying, and monitoring web applications. Laravel's ecosystem includes starter kits and first-party packages that offer solutions for common web development needs. On September 5, 2024, Laravel announced that they had received $57 million in Series A funding from Accel.