The JetBrains 2025 Developer Ecosystem Survey highlights significant trends and changes in software development, notably the widespread adoption of AI tools and the ongoing evolution of PHP. This comprehensive survey, which included responses from 24,534 developers across 194 countries, reveals that 85% of developers are now using AI tools regularly, with 62% relying on AI-powered coding assistants like ChatGPT and GitHub Copilot to enhance productivity and complete tasks faster.
Developers report several benefits from using AI, including increased productivity (74%), faster task completion (73%), and reduced information search time (72%). However, challenges remain, such as concerns about code quality (23%), AI’s limited understanding of complex code logic (18%), and privacy/security issues (13%). Furthermore, 68% anticipate that proficiency in AI tools will become a job requirement in the near future, as languages like Python, Java, and JavaScript maintain their popularity.
In the realm of PHP development, the survey portrays the language’s modernization and adaptability. With 89% of developers using PHP 8.x and Laravel maintaining a 64% adoption rate, PHP continues to evolve positively. The inclusion of AI tools has penetrated deeply into PHP development, with 95% of PHP developers trying at least one AI assistant. Adoption of tools like PHPStan has surged, seeing a 36% uptake, alongside an increasing interest in frameworks like Pest.
Despite declarations in the past regarding PHP’s decline, JetBrains’ latest reports contend it remains stable, continuing to modernize and adapt to new technologies. Notably, 58% of PHP developers express no plans to migrate to other languages, though Go and Python are attractive alternatives for those considering polyglot development. This dual nature of PHP’s status reflects the diverse landscape of programming languages that developers navigate today.
Beyond technical skills, the survey sheds light on a paradigm shift in performance measurement metrics. Developers increasingly value non-technical aspects such as collaboration, communication, and clarity as critical to their performance. While technical productivity metrics like DORA remain essential, 66% of developers feel these do not fully capture their contributions.
The JetBrains 2025 Developer Ecosystem Survey thus illustrates a transforming development landscape, where AI plays a crucial role in enhancing productivity, programming languages like PHP evolve and adapt, and developers call for more holistic metrics to measure their performance truly.

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JetBrains surveyed 24,534 developers across 194 countries, revealing that 85% now use AI tools regularly, with 62% relying on coding assistants like ChatGPT and GitHub Copilot. Developers report increased productivity (74%) and faster task completion (73%), though concerns about code quality and security persist. PHP shows strong modernization with 89% using PHP 8.x and Laravel maintaining 64% adoption, while 95% of PHP developers have tried AI assistants. The survey also highlights a shift toward valuing non-technical performance metrics like collaboration and communication, with 66% feeling traditional productivity metrics don't fully capture their contributions.

The State of PHP and Developer Ecosystem 2025: Embracing AI and Evolving Metrics