Skip to content

Craft CMS vs PHP

Based on 12 and 1030 real audits

View Craft CMS details | View PHP details
MetricCraft CMSPHPWinner
Performance4246PHP
Accessibility8989Tie
Best Practices8788PHP
SEO9191Tie
Security6565Tie
TTFB167ms421msCraft CMS
Composite7474Tie
Performance
Craft CMS
42
PHP
46
Accessibility
Craft CMS
89
PHP
89
Security
Craft CMS
65
PHP
65
SEO
Craft CMS
91
PHP
91
Composite
Craft CMS
74
PHP
74

PHP outperforms Craft CMS in 2 of 7 categories, with a stronger composite score (74 vs 74). Craft CMS leads in TTFB.

When to choose Craft CMS

Choose Craft CMS when your primary concern is server response time. Its audit data shows consistent strength in these areas across the sampled sites.

When to choose PHP

Choose PHP when your primary concern is performance and best practices. Its audit data shows consistent strength in these areas across the sampled sites.

How this comparison was built

Scores are medians across 12 audited Craft CMS sites and 1030 audited PHP sites in the BeaverCheck database. Every audit runs the same 100+ checks — Lighthouse performance, security headers, accessibility, SEO, server response time — against a real URL. No vendor input, no sponsorship, no affiliate links. Read the full methodology →

FAQ

Which is faster, Craft CMS or PHP?
Based on real BeaverCheck audits, PHP sites score higher on Lighthouse performance (46 vs 42 on average).
Which has better security, Craft CMS or PHP?
Craft CMS sites score higher on security analysis (65 vs 65 on average).
Which has better accessibility, Craft CMS or PHP?
Accessibility scores measured by Lighthouse WCAG 2.1 checks favor Craft CMS (89 vs 89). Both technologies can be made fully accessible with care — the difference reflects common patterns in the sampled sites, not inherent platform limits.
Which is better for SEO, Craft CMS or PHP?
Craft CMS sites score higher on Lighthouse SEO signals (91 vs 91 on average), which cover meta tags, crawlability, mobile friendliness, and structured data. Content strategy and backlinks still matter more than platform choice for ranking.
Which has faster server response (TTFB), Craft CMS or PHP?
Craft CMS sites show lower Time to First Byte (167 ms vs 421 ms on average). TTFB depends heavily on hosting and CDN setup rather than the technology itself, but the sampled sites suggest a meaningful difference in common deployment patterns.
Should I choose Craft CMS or PHP for my website?
Both platforms have trade-offs. PHP scores higher on overall composite score while Craft CMS may excel in metrics you care about most. Run a free BeaverCheck audit on a real site using each to compare the metrics relevant to your use case.
Audit your own site

Send Feedback