10 Common Laravel Mistakes Beginners Make (and How to Fix Them)

Most Frequent Laravel Errors and How New Developers Can Avoid Them

Avoid These Laravel Pitfalls and Improve Your Development Workflow

Laravel is elegant and powerful — but even experienced developers make small mistakes that cause big problems. If you're just getting started, knowing what **not** to do can save you hours of debugging, broken apps, and bad habits.

In this post, we’ll cover the **top 10 Laravel mistakes beginners make**, explain why they’re a problem, and show you exactly how to fix them. Let’s get better together. 🛠️

---

1. Not Using Eloquent Relationships

Many beginners retrieve data manually using multiple queries instead of leveraging Eloquent relationships. This leads to inefficient code and logic duplication.

// Wrong: Two separate queries
$user = User::find(1);
$posts = Post::where('user_id', 1)->get();

// Right: Use the relationship
$posts = User::find(1)->posts;

---

2. Forgetting to Use Mass Assignment Protection

Leaving your models unprotected can expose your app to major security risks.

// Protect your model
protected $fillable = ['title', 'content'];

Or use guarded if you want a blacklist approach:

protected $guarded = ['is_admin'];

---

3. Ignoring Validation Logic

Skipping validation or placing it in controllers clutters your logic. Use **Form Requests** instead:

php artisan make:request StorePostRequest

Then inject it in your controller:

public function store(StorePostRequest $request)
{
    Post::create($request->validated());
}

---

4. Hardcoding Configuration Values

Don’t put API keys, app URLs, or secrets directly in your code. Use the .env file:

// .env
API_KEY=your-api-key

// Usage
config('services.api_key')

---

5. Not Using Route Names

Hardcoding URLs breaks easily and makes refactoring harder. Use named routes:

// routes/web.php
Route::get('/posts', [PostController::class, 'index'])->name('posts.index');

// In views
<a href="{{ route('posts.index') }}">Posts</a>

---

6. Not Caching Configs and Routes

Always cache your config and routes in production for performance:

php artisan config:cache
php artisan route:cache

---

7. Writing Logic in Blade Views

Business logic belongs in controllers or service classes — not in Blade templates.

// ❌ Avoid this
@if($user->role === 'admin')

// ✅ Do this
@if($user->isAdmin())

---

8. Not Using Tinker for Quick Testing

Laravel Tinker is your best friend for quick data testing:

php artisan tinker
User::factory()->count(10)->create();

---

9. Not Setting Up Laravel Debugbar

This tool shows you what queries are run and helps catch performance bottlenecks.

composer require barryvdh/laravel-debugbar --dev

---

10. Not Reading the Official Docs

Laravel’s documentation is world-class. Don’t skip it — read the docs often and bookmark them.

---

Final Thoughts

Mistakes are part of learning, but avoiding these common Laravel traps will help you write better, cleaner code — and become a more confident developer. ✨

Start small, stay curious, and always look for better ways to structure your Laravel apps.

Produced by konakakademi.com