PHP, standing for Hypertext Preprocessor, is a server-side scripting language commonly used for web development. It provides the functionality to interact with databases, create dynamic web pages, handle forms, manage sessions, and more. PHP is versatile and widely supported, making it a popular choice for web development. However, PHP on its own lacks certain features and structure that can lead to code redundancy and maintenance challenges in large-scale projects.

On the other hand, Laravel is a PHP web application framework that provides a structured and efficient way to build web applications. It follows the Model-View-Controller (MVC) architectural pattern, which helps organize code and separate concerns. Laravel simplifies common tasks such as routing, authentication, caching, and database interactions through its elegant syntax and built-in libraries. It also offers features like Blade templating engine for creating reusable UI components, Eloquent ORM for interacting with databases, and Artisan command-line interface for automating tasks.

One key difference between PHP and Laravel is abstraction level. PHP is a general-purpose programming language, giving developers the flexibility to build web applications from scratch, but it requires more manual coding and lacks the structure provided by frameworks. Laravel, on the other hand, abstracts away many repetitive tasks and provides conventions and best practices, enabling developers to focus more on application logic rather than boilerplate code.

In summary, while PHP is the language used to write web applications, Laravel is a framework built on top of PHP that provides a structured and efficient way to develop web applications by abstracting common tasks and promoting best practices. Laravel's features and conventions make it particularly well-suited for building scalable and maintainable web applications.