Getting Started with Laravel 12: What's New

Laravel 12 represents the latest evolution of the PHP framework that has defined modern web development for over a decade. Whether you're starting a new project or considering an upgrade, understanding what's changed will help you make the most of this release.

What Makes Laravel 12 Different

Laravel 12 continues the framework's tradition of developer experience improvements while introducing meaningful performance enhancements under the hood. Rather than revolutionary changes, this release focuses on refinement and modernization.

The most notable shift is the continued embrace of PHP 8.2+ features throughout the codebase. You'll find more widespread use of readonly properties, enums, and the newer intersection types. This isn't just internal housekeeping;it means better IDE support and more expressive code in your own applications.

Performance Improvements

Performance has received significant attention in this release. The query builder now generates more optimized SQL in common scenarios, particularly when using eager loading with complex relationships. In benchmarks, applications with heavy database usage have seen 10-15% improvements in response times.

The routing layer has been streamlined as well. Route matching is now faster, especially in applications with hundreds of routes. If you've ever noticed slowdowns in large applications during the route registration phase, you'll appreciate these changes.

Caching mechanisms have been enhanced across the board:

• Session handling is more efficient with reduced serialization overhead
• Config caching now handles environment-specific values more intelligently
• View caching has been optimized for Blade components with many slots

New Eloquent Features

Eloquent, Laravel's ORM, continues to evolve with practical additions that address real-world needs.

The new whereRelationCount method simplifies a common query pattern. Instead of writing complex whereHas closures just to count related records, you can now express this directly:

// Find users with exactly 3 active projects
User::whereRelationCount('projects', 3, status: 'active')->get();

Model attribute casting has been expanded with better support for value objects. You can now cast attributes to custom classes more seamlessly, with the framework handling serialization automatically when the class implements the appropriate interface.

Lazy loading prevention, introduced in earlier versions, now provides more granular control. You can allow lazy loading in specific contexts (like Tinker sessions) while keeping it disabled in production HTTP requests.

The Updated Default Stack

New Laravel applications come with an updated default configuration that reflects current best practices.

Vite remains the standard for asset compilation, but the default configuration has been simplified. The boilerplate now includes better TypeScript support out of the box, recognizing that TypeScript has become the standard for serious frontend development.

Tailwind CSS 4 is included by default, bringing its new CSS-first configuration approach. If you've been using Tailwind, you'll find the transition straightforward, though the configuration file format has changed.

For API development, Laravel now scaffolds with better defaults for JSON responses and error handling. The exception handler produces more consistent JSON error responses, and validation errors follow a predictable structure that frontend frameworks can easily consume.

Migration Considerations

Moving from Laravel 11 to 12 is generally straightforward, but there are a few areas that require attention.

PHP version requirements have increased. Laravel 12 requires PHP 8.2 as a minimum, with PHP 8.3 recommended for the best performance and feature support. Check your hosting environment before planning an upgrade.

Some deprecated methods have been removed. If you've been ignoring deprecation warnings in Laravel 11, now is the time to address them. The upgrade guide provides a complete list of removed methods and their replacements.

Third-party package compatibility is always a consideration. Most major packages update quickly, but check that your critical dependencies support Laravel 12 before upgrading. Running composer outdated will show you which packages have updates available.

Database configuration has changed slightly. If you're using custom database configurations, review the changes to the default config/database.php file. The structure remains similar, but some default values have changed to reflect better practices.

Quick Start for New Projects

Getting started with Laravel 12 follows the familiar pattern:

composer create-project laravel/laravel my-app
cd my-app
php artisan serve

For the best development experience, use Laravel Herd (macOS) or Laravel Sail (Docker-based). Both provide pre-configured environments that handle PHP versions, database servers, and other dependencies.

After installation, consider these first steps:

1. Configure your .env file with appropriate database credentials
2. Run php artisan migrate to create the default tables
3. Install frontend dependencies with npm install && npm run dev
4. Review the routes in routes/web.php and routes/api.php

If you're building an API, use php artisan install:api to add the API scaffolding, which configures Sanctum for authentication and sets up appropriate route files.

Resources for Learning More

The official Laravel documentation remains the authoritative source and is updated for each release. Laravel News provides commentary on new features and community packages. Laracasts offers video tutorials that are regularly updated for new Laravel versions.

For upgrade-specific guidance, the official upgrade guide walks through each breaking change with before and after examples. Running composer require laravel/upgrade-rules provides automated tooling that can identify issues in your codebase.

Conclusion

Laravel 12 is a mature, refined release that builds on the framework's strengths. The performance improvements benefit everyone, while the new Eloquent features address patterns that developers encounter daily. Whether you're starting fresh or planning an upgrade, Laravel 12 provides a solid foundation for building modern PHP applications.

The framework's commitment to developer experience remains evident. From the improved default stack to the enhanced error messages, every change reflects lessons learned from the community. Laravel 12 isn't about reinvention;it's about making a great framework even better.