ORM Data v2.4.0 Updated 2026-01-15

Eloquent ORM

Beautiful Active Record implementation for PHP

N/A N/A Unknown N/A
92 /100
Excellent pick High confidence (92%)

Quick Verdict

Best For

  • Laravel applications
  • Rapid CRUD development
  • Teams preferring Active Record pattern
  • Projects with standard database operations

Consider Alternatives If

  • Complex domain models (consider Doctrine)
  • Highly optimized read-heavy apps
  • Teams preferring Data Mapper pattern

Top Alternatives

Score Breakdown

6 dimensions evaluated with transparent methodology

Performance
80 −20

Good performance with optimization options

  • Eager loading prevents N+1 queries
  • Lazy collections for memory efficiency
  • Query caching with Redis/Memcached
Why not 100%:
  • −10 Active Record pattern has inherent overhead
  • −10 Complex queries may need raw SQL
Developer Experience
98 −2

Intuitive API that feels natural

  • Fluent query builder with chainable methods
  • Relationships defined with simple methods
  • Model events and observers
Why not 100%:
  • −1 Magic methods can be confusing initially
  • −1 IDE autocompletion requires helper packages
Ecosystem
95 −5

Deeply integrated with Laravel ecosystem

  • Scout for full-text search
  • Factories and seeders for testing
  • Spatie packages extend functionality
Why not 100%:
  • −2 Tightly coupled to Laravel
  • −2 Using standalone requires more setup
Maintainability
90 −10

Well-documented with Laravel updates

  • Follows Laravel release cycle
  • Comprehensive official documentation
  • Type hints for IDE support
Why not 100%:
  • −5 Major Laravel versions may have breaking changes
  • −5 Some advanced features lack documentation
Cost Efficiency
95 −5

Free and open source

  • MIT licensed
  • No additional costs
  • Included with Laravel
Why not 100%:
  • −5 None significant
Compliance
88 −12

SQL injection protection by default

  • Parameterized queries prevent SQL injection
  • Mass assignment protection
  • Hidden attributes for sensitive data
Why not 100%:
  • −6 Raw queries bypass protection
  • −6 Audit logging requires packages

Compare Alternatives

How Eloquent ORM stacks up against similar technologies

TechnologyOverallPerfDXEcosystem
Current Eloquent ORM92809895
Doctrine Data Mapper, more explicit85Compare →
Prisma TypeScript, schema-first91Compare →

Sources & Methodology

How we calculate these scores: transparent and reproducible

Deterministic Scoring

Same inputs always produce the same outputs. We use versioned lookup tables, not LLM opinions. Every score is explainable and reproducible.

Learn how it works →
primary

GitHub

Repository activity, stars, contributors, issue resolution time

contextual

Community Signals

Stack Overflow activity, Discord engagement, developer surveys

Data version: 2.4.0 Last updated: 2026-01-15 Confidence: 92%

Frequently Asked