Express.js vs Laravel for Solo Developers

Quick Comparison

Express.js Overview

Express is the minimalist's web framework. It gives you routing, middleware support, and gets out of your way. There's no ORM, no template engine, no auth system included. You pick and choose what you need from npm. For developers who want full control over their stack, this flexibility is the entire point.

Solo developers pick Express because it's simple and the ecosystem is massive. Need authentication? Grab Passport.js. Need an ORM? Use Prisma or Sequelize. Need file uploads? Multer handles that. Each piece is modular, and you only include what your project requires. No bloat, no unused features eating memory.

The JavaScript full-stack advantage is real too. If your frontend is React or Vue, using Express means one language for everything. Shared types, shared utilities, one mental model.

Laravel Overview

Laravel is the most complete web framework available for any language. Out of the box, it ships with an ORM (Eloquent), authentication scaffolding, queue management, task scheduling, email handling, file storage, caching, and a template engine (Blade). It's opinionated by design. Laravel makes decisions so you don't have to.

For solo developers, Laravel's "batteries included" philosophy saves enormous amounts of time. Instead of evaluating and integrating five different packages for common tasks, Laravel provides one coherent solution for all of them. The Artisan CLI generates boilerplate code, creates migrations, and scaffolds controllers with a single command.

Laravel also has an exceptional ecosystem around it. Laravel Forge handles server provisioning. Laravel Vapor provides serverless deployment on AWS. Nova gives you an admin panel. Cashier manages subscriptions. Socialite handles OAuth. Each official package integrates seamlessly because they're built by the same team.

Key Differences

Batteries included vs batteries not included. This is the core philosophical difference. Laravel gives you everything from day one. Express gives you almost nothing and lets you assemble your own stack. Solo developers who want to move fast without researching every package benefit from Laravel's approach. Those who want lean, minimal deployments prefer Express.

Language and runtime. Express runs on Node.js with JavaScript or TypeScript. Laravel runs on PHP. Despite the memes, modern PHP (8.x) is a genuinely good language with strong typing, enums, fibers, and solid performance. Node.js excels at real-time applications and JavaScript-heavy stacks. Your choice depends on what you're building.

ORM and database. Laravel's Eloquent is one of the best ORMs available. Migrations, relationships, model factories, and query scoping are built in. Express has no ORM. You choose between Prisma, TypeORM, Drizzle, Sequelize, or raw queries. More choice means more flexibility, but also more decisions and integration work.

Authentication and authorization. Laravel ships with authentication scaffolding including registration, login, password reset, email verification, and two-factor auth. Express requires you to build this from scratch using Passport.js or similar libraries. For solo developers building user-facing apps, Laravel saves days of work here.

Real-time capabilities. Express on Node.js handles WebSockets naturally with Socket.io. Laravel uses Pusher or Laravel Reverb for real-time features, which works well but adds a layer of abstraction. If your app is heavily real-time (chat, live updates, multiplayer), Node.js has a more natural fit.

Hosting and deployment. PHP hosting is cheap and ubiquitous. Shared hosting, VPS, managed platforms all run PHP without issues. Node.js hosting is widely available too, but tends to be slightly more expensive. Laravel Forge simplifies server management for $12/month. Express apps deploy easily to Railway, Render, or any container platform.

When to Choose Express.js

• You're building a lightweight API without server-rendered views
• Your frontend is JavaScript and you want one language everywhere
• You need WebSocket-heavy real-time features
• You prefer minimal frameworks where you control every dependency
• Your project is small enough that Express's lack of built-ins isn't a pain point

When to Choose Laravel

• You're building a full-featured web application with authentication, forms, and admin panels
• You want built-in solutions for common tasks instead of researching packages
• You value the Artisan CLI for rapid scaffolding
• You need queue management, task scheduling, or email handling built in
• You want an ecosystem of official packages that integrate seamlessly

The Verdict

Laravel gets the edge for solo developers because it does more of the work for you. When you're the only person on a project, every hour spent setting up authentication or configuring an ORM is an hour not spent on features your users care about. Laravel's opinionated approach eliminates hundreds of small decisions that drain your time.

Express remains a strong choice for API-only projects or JavaScript-centric stacks where you want tight control. But for building complete web applications as a solo developer, Laravel's productivity advantages are hard to ignore.

The 8/10 vs 7/10 rating reflects the practical reality. Laravel ships with what most solo developers need. Express makes you build it yourself.