Django is a Python-based framework excelling in rapid development, data science integration, and scalability, while Laravel is a PHP-based framework known for elegant syntax, developer experience, and built-in features like authentication. Choice depends on your language preference and project requirements.
Django vs Laravel — Side-by-side comparison on A Versus B
Python-based web framework emphasizing rapid development, clean code, and batteries-included architecture.
Modern full-featured PHP framework with Eloquent ORM, built-in testing, and extensive ecosystem.
Primary Language. Built-in Admin Panel. Learning Curve. Performance (requests/sec). Data Science Integration. Built-in ORM. Community Size (2025)
Choose Django if you need rapid development, data science capabilities, automatic admin panel, or are building scalable applications where Python expertise is available. Choose Laravel if you prioritize developer experience, elegant syntax, faster onboarding for teams new to frameworks, or are in a PHP-native environment with lower hosting costs.
Django: 500K packages | Laravel: ~800,000 packages
Django: Yes (auto-generated) | Laravel: N/A
Django: Partial (optional, requires setup) | Laravel: Full native (built-in queues)
Django: Excellent (TensorFlow, PyTorch, scikit-learn) | Laravel: Limited (minimal options)
Django: 500,000+ | Laravel: 380,000+ packages
Django: 4-6 months | Laravel: 120-160 hours
Django: 79,400+ stars | Laravel: 120,000+ stars
Django: Yes, auto-generated | Laravel: N/A
Django: ~2,100 KB | Laravel: ~50MB with dependencies
Django: Django ORM (included) | Laravel: Yes (Eloquent)
Django: Auto-generated from models | Laravel: N/A
Django: Yes (user model, permissions, groups) | Laravel: N/A
Django: Yes (Django ORM with migrations) | Laravel: Yes (Eloquent)
Django: Auto-generated included | Laravel: N/A
Django: 79k stars | Laravel: 77,500 stars
Development Speed (Median Project Timeline)
Django: Yes (Django Admin fully featured) | Laravel: No, third-party required
Django: No (requires external frameworks) | Laravel: N/A
Request Throughput (req/sec, hello-world)
Django: Not applicable (Python package) | Laravel: N/A
Django: ~1,200 req/sec | Laravel: ~900 req/sec
Django: 8-10 minutes | Laravel: 4-6 minutes
Django: Yes, with Django-allauth extension | Laravel: Yes, built-in (Laravel Auth)
Django: ~430,000 (PyPI) | Laravel: ~86,000 (Packagist)
Django: ~2,500 contributors | Laravel: ~1,200 contributors
Django: N/A | Laravel: 2,500+ verified packages
Django: N/A | Laravel: Yes (with 2FA, API tokens)
Django: N/A | Laravel: Yes (built-in with Artisan)
Django: N/A | Laravel: 64% of PHP frameworks
Django: N/A | Laravel: 45-60 ms per request
Django: N/A | Laravel: Native (Redis, database, sync)
Django: N/A | Laravel: Senior/Intermediate (5+ years PHP/OOP)
Reported Security Vulnerabilities (2024)
Django: N/A | Laravel: Composer packages (1M+)
Django: N/A | Laravel: Limited—requires PHP expertise
Django: N/A | Laravel: 8-12 minutes (Laravel installer + composer)
Django: N/A | Laravel: 800-1200ms (PHP cold starts)
Django: N/A | Laravel: 0.8-1.5s per page (Blade templating)
Django: N/A | Laravel: PHPStan/Psalm (third-party tools)
Django: N/A | Laravel: $24-60/year (shared PHP hosting)
Django: N/A | Laravel: 280K (Packagist registry)
Django: N/A | Laravel: 1 day (php artisan new)
Django: N/A | Laravel: Framework-integrated
Django: N/A | Laravel: 3 years (standard support)
Learning Curve (Time to Basic Proficiency)
Django: N/A | Laravel: 20-30% slower under load
Django: N/A | Laravel: Emerging in enterprise
Django: N/A | Laravel: ORM, Auth, Caching, Queue, Mail, Broadcasting
Average Page Load Time (no optimization)
Django: N/A | Laravel: Basic (no SSG/SSR built-in)
Learning Curve (for beginner developers)
Django: N/A | Laravel: Manual (Blade templating)
Django: N/A | Laravel: 8/10 (Advanced PHP)
Django: N/A | Laravel: Very Complex (SaaS, APIs, Enterprise)
Django: N/A | Laravel: 67% of new projects
Django: N/A | Laravel: 18% of legacy systems
Django: N/A | Laravel: Reverb WebSockets (built-in)
Django: N/A | Laravel: Eloquent ORM (native)
Django: N/A | Laravel: Laravel Breeze included
Django: N/A | Laravel: Limited (Vapor, custom solutions)
Django: N/A | Laravel: ~35 MB (with dependencies)
Learning Curve (estimated hours to productivity)
How to choose between Django and Laravel
Django vs Laravel — Structured Comparison Data
Machine-readable comparison dataset for Django vs Laravel. Contains 147 attribute comparisons, 5 FAQ pairs.
Django vs Laravel — Attribute Category Vocabulary
Taxonomy of attribute categories used to classify comparison data for Django vs Laravel.
Which framework is faster: Django or Laravel?
Django typically outperforms Laravel by 25-35% in request throughput benchmarks (~1,200 req/sec vs ~900 req/sec). However, real-world performance depends heavily on database queries, caching strategies, and code optimization. For most applications, both are sufficiently fast; optimization matters more than framework choice.
Can I use Django or Laravel for machine learning projects?
Django is vastly superior for ML integration—Python's TensorFlow, PyTorch, scikit-learn, and Pandas integrate seamlessly. Laravel can call external Python APIs but cannot natively access ML libraries. If ML/AI is core to your project, Django is the clear choice.
Which has a better admin panel out of the box?
Django's auto-generated admin panel is unmatched—it requires zero configuration and handles CRUD operations, filtering, and user permissions automatically. Laravel requires purchasing Nova ($99-$499/year) or building custom admin interfaces. Django wins decisively here.
Is Laravel really easier to learn than Django?
Yes, for most developers. Laravel's syntax is more forgiving, its documentation is beginner-friendly, and time-to-first-working-app is faster (~5 min vs ~9 min). However, this depends on language background—Python developers will find Django easier, while PHP developers prefer Laravel.
Which framework scales better for enterprise applications?
Both scale well with proper architecture. Django's monolithic design and Python's GIL require horizontal scaling via multiple processes/containers. Laravel's modular design and PHP's stateless nature also scale horizontally. At scale, database and caching strategy matters far more than framework choice.
How to Choose Between Django and Laravel
Primary Language: Django has Python, while Laravel has PHP.
Built-in Admin Panel: Django has Yes, automatic (Django Admin), while Laravel has No, requires third-party package.
Learning Curve: Django has Moderate (Python fundamentals needed), while Laravel has Easier (PHP more forgiving syntax).
Performance (requests/sec): Django has ~1,200 req/sec (average), while Laravel has ~900 req/sec (average).
Data Science Integration: Django has Excellent (NumPy, Pandas, TensorFlow), while Laravel has Limited (Python ecosystem unavailable).
Built-in ORM: Django has Django ORM (powerful, batteries-included), while Laravel has Eloquent ORM (intuitive, elegant).
Community Size (2025): Django has ~2.1M developers, while Laravel has ~1.8M developers.