Why PHP ??

Java is on the helm, Python is growing rapidly, Golang is there, so many choices around. Why PHP ?

1. I am not saying PHP is great for enterprise applications or scientific programming or of that sort. PHP does not competes with Java. Java is great in write once and run anywhere. PHP is great for web development: building websites.
2. PHP is free. Truly free.
3. Easy to learn and on-boarding is quick. Just with a couple of days effort, you can build a basic website. You can start quick and ease into advanced stuff gradually. From day one, you will get things done.
4. Library support is enormous. Core libraries and public free library support is unbelievable. 25 years of existence gives this.
5. Small code footprint. One example, mail(_), you can send an email in one line. It comes in the core. Another example is support for JSON, it is too good to ignore. Get simple things done in a simple way.
6. Availability of mature frameworks. You have got lots of choices. Laravel, CodeIgniter, Symfony to name a few. Hope you have heard about WordPress, an excellent blogging and multi-purpose platform. Almost any blog on the Internet runs on WordPress / PHP.
7. Support for hosting is enormous. You buy any basic hosting from any hosting provider, there will be support for PHP. You can assume it. That's what the popularity gives!
8. Flexible, there are n number of ways to get things done. It does not force semantics on you. Documentation is good. PHP official documentation is really good. Added to that, you can find so much online material, example code, tutorial, video tutorial, blogs, etc.
9. Community, community, community. PHP has got an experienced vibrant community. I was never stuck on a programming issue for long. Abundant resource and online community support is available.