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Editorial Team
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Asked: 2026-05-18T02:17:04+00:00

I have been designing websites for a while now, but there is one thing

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I have been designing websites for a while now, but there is one thing that I have never been quite sure of when using PHP and HTML. Is it better to have the whole document in PHP and echo HTML like so:

<?php
  doSomething();
  echo "<div id=\"some_div\">Content</div>";
?>

Or have a HTML file like so and just add in the PHP:

<html>
<body>
  <?php doSomething(); ?>
  <div id="some_div">Content</div>
</body>
</html>

It seems tidier to echo HTML, especially if lots of PHP gets used throughout the page, but doing so loses all formatting of the HTML i.e. colors in the IDE etc.

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1 Answer

  1. Editorial Team

    There are varying opinions on this. I think there are two good ways:

    • Use a templating engine like Smarty that completely separates code and presentation.

    • Use your second example, but when mixing PHP into HTML, only output variables. Do all the code logic in one block before outputting anything, or a separate file. Like so:

      <?php $content = doSomething();
   // complex calculations
?>
<html>
<body>
  <?php echo $content; ?>       
  <div id="some_div">Content</div>
</body>
</html>

    Most full-fledged application frameworks bring their own styles of doing this; in that case, it’s usually best to follow the style provided.

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