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Nginx vs PHP

Based on 1220 and 1540 real audits

View Nginx details | View PHP details
MetricNginxPHPWinner
Performance5350Nginx
Accessibility8788PHP
Best Practices8889PHP
SEO9191Tie
Security7070Tie
TTFB581ms632msNginx
Composite7677PHP
Performance
Nginx
53
PHP
50
Accessibility
Nginx
87
PHP
88
Security
Nginx
70
PHP
70
SEO
Nginx
91
PHP
91
Composite
Nginx
76
PHP
77

PHP outperforms Nginx in 3 of 7 categories, with a stronger composite score (77 vs 76). Nginx leads in performance, TTFB.

When to choose Nginx

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

When to choose PHP

Choose PHP when your primary concern is accessibility 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 1220 audited Nginx sites and 1540 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, Nginx or PHP?
Based on real BeaverCheck audits, Nginx sites score higher on Lighthouse performance (53 vs 50 on average).
Which has better security, Nginx or PHP?
Nginx sites score higher on security analysis (70 vs 70 on average).
Which has better accessibility, Nginx or PHP?
Accessibility scores measured by Lighthouse WCAG 2.1 checks favor PHP (88 vs 87). 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, Nginx or PHP?
Nginx 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), Nginx or PHP?
Nginx sites show lower Time to First Byte (581 ms vs 632 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 Nginx or PHP for my website?
Both platforms have trade-offs. Nginx scores higher on overall composite score while Nginx 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.
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