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PHP Essentials

A comprehensive zero-dependency PHP utility toolkit with 80+ helper methods for strings, arrays, dates, validation, security, HTTP, and file operations.

PHP Utility · v1.0.0 · 2 downloads

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Download PhpEssentials.php (36.5 KB)

Or use curl:

curl -OL https://ahmedhabib.com/libraries/download/php-essentials

Classes

80+

Methods

Dependencies

8.0+

PHP Version

require_once 'PhpEssentials.php';

String Manipulation

18 methods for slugs, case conversion, truncation, masking, and more

Str::slug($text, $separator)

Convert to a URL-friendly slug with Unicode transliteration.

Str::slug('Hello World!');  // "hello-world"
Str::slug('Café Résumé'); // "cafe-resume"

Str::camel / pascal / snake / kebab

Convert between camelCase, PascalCase, snake_case, and kebab-case.

Str::camel('user_first_name');  // "userFirstName"
Str::pascal('user name');       // "UserName"
Str::snake('userName');         // "user_name"
Str::kebab('userName');         // "user-name"

Str::truncate / truncateWords

Truncate by character limit or word count with customizable suffix.

Str::truncate('A very long text', 10);
// "A very..."

Str::truncateWords('The quick brown fox', 2);
// "The quick..."

Str::contains / startsWith / endsWith

Check substrings with optional case-insensitive matching.

Str::contains('Hello World', 'world', true);
// true (case-insensitive)

Str::startsWith('/api/users', '/api'); // true

Str::mask($text, $char, $start, $end)

Mask sensitive data — emails, phones, card numbers, tokens.

Str::mask('[email protected]');
// "jo************om"

Str::mask('4111222233334444', '*', 4, 4);
// "4111********4444"

Str::between($text, $start, $end)

Extract text between two delimiters.

Str::between('Hello [world] foo', '[', ']');
// "world"

Str::random / wordCount / readingTime

Generate random strings, count words, estimate reading time.

Str::random(32);            // "aB3xK9m..."
Str::wordCount('Hi there');  // 2
Str::readingTime($article);    // 5 (minutes)

Str::linkify / plainText / excerpt / nl2br

Convert URLs to links, strip HTML, generate excerpts.

Str::linkify('Visit https://x.com');
// 'Visit <a href="...">...</a>'

Str::excerpt($html, 20); // plain text words

Array Utilities

15 methods for dot notation, plucking, grouping, filtering, and pagination

Arr::get($array, $key, $default)

Access nested values using dot notation with a fallback default.

$cfg = ['db' => ['host' => 'localhost']];

Arr::get($cfg, 'db.host');        // "localhost"
Arr::get($cfg, 'db.port', 3306); // 3306

Arr::set / has / forget

Set, check, or remove nested keys using dot notation.

Arr::set($cfg, 'db.port', 3306);
Arr::has($cfg, 'db.port');     // true
Arr::forget($cfg, 'db.port');  // removed

Arr::pluck($array, $key, $indexBy)

Extract a single column, optionally indexed by another key.

$users = [
  ['id' => 1, 'name' => 'Alice'],
  ['id' => 2, 'name' => 'Bob'],
];
Arr::pluck($users, 'name');
// ["Alice", "Bob"]

Arr::pluck($users, 'name', 'id');
// [1 => "Alice", 2 => "Bob"]

Arr::groupBy($array, $key)

Group items by a shared key value into sub-arrays.

$items = [
  ['type' => 'fruit', 'name' => 'Apple'],
  ['type' => 'veg',   'name' => 'Carrot'],
];
Arr::groupBy($items, 'type');
// ["fruit" => [...], "veg" => [...]]

Arr::only / except

Whitelist or blacklist specific array keys.

$d = ['name'=>'Jo', 'email'=>'[email protected]', 'pass'=>'s'];

Arr::only($d, ['name', 'email']);
// ["name" => "Jo", "email" => "[email protected]"]

Arr::except($d, ['pass']);
// ["name" => "Jo", "email" => "[email protected]"]

Arr::flatten / sortBy / where / uniqueBy

Flatten nested arrays, sort/filter/deduplicate by key.

Arr::flatten([[1, [2]], [3]]); // [1, 2, 3]

Arr::sortBy($users, 'name', 'desc');
Arr::where($users, 'role', 'admin');
Arr::uniqueBy($users, 'email');

Arr::first / last

Get the first or last element matching a callback.

Arr::first($users, fn($u) => $u['age'] > 18);
Arr::last($users); // last element

Arr::paginate($array, $perPage, $page)

Paginate an array with full metadata: total, pages, has_next, etc.

Arr::paginate($items, 10, 2);
// ["data" => [...], "total" => 50,
//  "current_page" => 2, "has_next" => true]

Date & Time Helpers

10 methods for relative time, diffs, ranges, validation, and formatting

Date::ago($date)

Human-readable relative time string.

Date::ago('2025-12-30 10:00:00');
// "2mo ago"

Date::ago(new DateTime('-5 minutes'));
// "5m ago"

Date::diff($from, $to, $unit)

Get difference in seconds, minutes, hours, days, weeks, months, or years.

Date::diff('2025-01-01', '2025-03-15', 'days');
// 73

Date::diff('2020-01-01', '2025-06-01', 'months');
// 65

Date::range($from, $to, $step, $format)

Generate an array of dates between two endpoints.

Date::range('2025-01-01', '2025-01-05');
// ["2025-01-01", "2025-01-02", ...]

Date::range('2025-01', '2025-06', '+1 month', 'Y-m');
// ["2025-01", "2025-02", ...]

Date::isValid / isWeekend / age

Validate date strings, check weekends, calculate age from birthdate.

Date::isValid('2025-02-29');  // false
Date::isWeekend('2025-03-01'); // true (Sat)
Date::age('1990-05-15');       // 35

Date::format / startOfDay / endOfDay / fromNow

Format dates, get day boundaries, or show time until a future date.

Date::format('2025-03-15', 'F j, Y');
// "March 15, 2025"

Date::startOfDay(); // "2025-03-03 00:00:00"
Date::fromNow('2026-12-25'); // "in 42w"

Input Validation

14 methods for emails, passwords, credit cards, URLs, and more

Validate::email / url / ip / ipv4 / ipv6

Validate common network formats using PHP filter functions.

Validate::email('[email protected]'); // true
Validate::url('https://x.com');      // true
Validate::ip('192.168.1.1');         // true
Validate::ipv6('::1');                // true

Validate::password($pass, ...options)

Returns an array of validation errors (empty array = valid).

Validate::password('weak');
// ["Must be at least 8 characters",
//  "Must contain an uppercase letter"]

Validate::password('Strong1Pass');
// [] ← empty = valid

Validate::creditCard($number)

Validate credit card numbers using the Luhn algorithm.

Validate::creditCard('4111111111111111');
// true (valid Luhn)

Validate::creditCard('1234567890');
// false

Validate::between / length / regex / json

Check numeric ranges, string lengths, regex patterns, and JSON validity.

Validate::between(5, 1, 10);         // true
Validate::length('hello', 2, 10);      // true
Validate::regex('abc123', '/^\w+$/');  // true
Validate::json('{"a":1}');             // true

Validate::hexColor / phone / slug / date

Validate colors, phone numbers, URL slugs, and date strings.

Validate::hexColor('#ff0');     // true
Validate::phone('+1-555-1234'); // true
Validate::slug('my-post-123');  // true
Validate::date('2025-13-01');   // false

Security & Cryptography

12 methods for passwords, encryption, CSRF, tokens, and HMAC signing

Secure::hashPassword / verifyPassword

Argon2ID password hashing with automatic bcrypt fallback.

$hash = Secure::hashPassword('myPassword');
Secure::verifyPassword('myPassword', $hash);
// true

Secure::needsRehash($oldHash);
// true if algo/cost changed

Secure::encrypt / decrypt

AES-256-GCM authenticated encryption — tamper-proof.

$enc = Secure::encrypt('secret', 'key');
$plain = Secure::decrypt($enc, 'key');
// "secret"

Secure::token / uuid

Cryptographically secure random hex tokens and UUID v4.

Secure::token(32);
// "a1b2c3d4e5...64 hex chars"

Secure::uuid();
// "550e8400-e29b-41d4-a716-446655440000"

Secure::sign / verifySignature

HMAC-SHA256 signing for webhooks, API tokens, and data integrity.

$sig = Secure::sign('payload', 'secret');
Secure::verifySignature('payload', $sig, 'secret');
// true

Secure::csrfToken / escape / sanitizeFilename

CSRF protection, XSS-safe HTML escaping, and directory traversal prevention.

$token = Secure::csrfToken();
Secure::verifyCsrf($_POST['token']); // bool

Secure::escape('<script>x</script>');
// safe HTML entity output

Secure::sanitizeFilename('../../etc/passwd');
// "passwd"

HTTP Requests & Responses

8 methods for cURL requests, URL building, IP detection, and JSON responses

Http::get / post / put / delete

Full cURL HTTP client with JSON decoding and header parsing.

$r = Http::get('https://api.example.com/users');
// $r['status']  → 200
// $r['json']    → decoded array
// $r['headers'] → parsed headers

$r = Http::post('https://api.example.com/users', [
    'name'  => 'Alice',
    'email' => '[email protected]',
], ['Authorization: Bearer tok']);

Http::buildUrl($base, $params)

Build a URL with properly encoded query parameters.

Http::buildUrl('https://api.example.com/search', [
    'q'    => 'php essentials',
    'page' => 2,
]);
// ".../search?q=php+essentials&page=2"

Http::clientIp / isAjax

Get client IP (proxy-aware: CF, X-Forwarded-For) and detect AJAX.

Http::clientIp();
// "203.0.113.42"

Http::isAjax();
// true if X-Requested-With header set

Http::json / redirect

Send a JSON response or redirect — both exit immediately.

Http::json(['success' => true], 200);
// Sends JSON + exits

Http::redirect('/dashboard', 302);
// 302 redirect + exits

Filesystem Operations

13 methods for reading, writing, listing, copying, and parsing files

File::read / write / append / delete

Core file operations with automatic directory creation.

File::write('/tmp/data/log.txt', 'Hello');
// Creates /tmp/data/ if needed

$content = File::read('/tmp/data/log.txt');
// "Hello" (or null if missing)

File::append('/tmp/data/log.txt', "\nWorld");
File::delete('/tmp/data/log.txt');

File::size / extension / mimeType / exists

Human-readable file sizes, extensions, MIME types, and existence checks.

File::size('/var/log/app.log');  // "2.34 MB"
File::extension('photo.JPG');   // "jpg"
File::mimeType('photo.jpg');    // "image/jpeg"
File::exists('/tmp/data.txt');  // true/false

File::readJson / writeJson

Read and write JSON files in a single call with pretty printing.

File::writeJson('/tmp/config.json', [
    'debug'   => false,
    'version' => '1.0.0',
]);

$cfg = File::readJson('/tmp/config.json');
// ["debug" => false, "version" => "1.0.0"]

File::readCsv($path, $delimiter)

Parse CSV files into associative arrays using the header row as keys.

// users.csv: name,email
//            Alice,[email protected]

File::readCsv('users.csv');
// [["name"=>"Alice", "email"=>"[email protected]"]]

File::list / listRecursive / copy / move

List files with glob patterns, recursively search, copy and move.

File::list('/var/uploads', '*.jpg');
// ["/var/uploads/photo1.jpg", ...]

File::listRecursive('/app/src', '*.php');
// all PHP files recursively

File::copy('a.txt', 'backup/a.txt');
File::move('old.txt', 'archive/old.txt');

About This Library

PHP Essentials is a single-file, zero-dependency utility library for PHP 8.0+ that provides a rich collection of static helper methods organized into logical categories: Str (string manipulation), Arr (array utilities), Date (date/time helpers), Validate (input validation), Secure (security & hashing), Http (HTTP request helpers), and File (filesystem operations). Drop it into any project and start using it immediately.

How to Use

Download PhpEssentials.php
Include or autoload it in your project
Use the static helper classes: Str::, Arr::, Date::, Validate::, Secure::, Http::, File::