From Laravel and PHP to Next.js: when clients should migrate

ADSA Labs still ships and maintains Laravel and PHP where the team knows it, hosting is stable, and the product is not begging for a mobile-first SPA. Migration sells best when there is pain: slow releases, missing API layer for a new app, or hiring friction because juniors only know React.

We prefer strangler patterns: new customer portal on Next.js talking to the same PostgreSQL database; legacy admin stays on Laravel until feature parity. Rewrites that big-bang on a deadline usually slip and lose data edge cases — especially in invoicing and inventory.

TypeScript end-to-end wins for teams investing in AI features, rich dashboards, and Vercel preview deploys per pull request. PHP wins for shared hosting budgets and simple CRUD with mature packages.

Honest discovery beats stack religion. We document integration points, cron jobs, and file uploads before promising a six-week rewrite.