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GeezerVison is showing phpmon.app — PHP Monitor: Set up and manage PHP on macOS

If you like my software, support it with a monthly sponsorship on GitHub Sponsors.

PHP Monitor open on a Mac, showing the menu bar version switcher alongside the Domains and PHP Version Manager windows.

PHP Monitor helps you set up and develop Laravel and Symfony projects. It's also great for WordPress or Drupal sites. In fact, it's a great companion for all kinds of projects, no matter the framework or CMS.

GitHub Stats

3.2k stargazers

152k total downloads

This app is made with ♥ by Nico Verbruggen. It is open source and entirely free to use. Further development of this app is supported by your donations. You are also encouraged to star the repository on GitHub.

Your stars and sponsorships are very much appreciated. Thanks to your support, the app has seen a steady stream of updates with new features and bugfixes over the last three years, and will continue to be supported as long as it makes sense to do so.

PHP Monitor 26.09 is now available!

I am releasing monthly updates with minor improvements and quality of life changes for the foreseeable future to better support the app.

Read the release notes ›

PHP Monitor was last updated on 13/09/2026.

1 Get guided through setup

Setup Assistant helps you get from a fresh macOS installation to a machine for PHP development. It can guide you through the entire setup flow, without making you piece together terminal commands by hand. No more need to figure things out yourself.

PHP Monitor's Setup Assistant guiding the user through preparing a Mac for PHP development.

2 A GUI for managing PHP versions

With the PHP Version Manager, you can easily install, upgrade and remove individual PHP versions without needing to manually type or copy Homebrew commands. The app will also attempt to automatically fix broken PHP versions.

The PHP Version Manager listing installed PHP versions, with buttons to install, upgrade and remove them.

3 Easily manage PHP extensions

With the new PHP Extension Manager, you can easily install and remove PHP extensions, all using a GUI. It is also super easy to manage your extensions on a per PHP version basis via the Domains window (you can right-click on a site and toggle extensions easily).

The PHP Extension Manager showing PHP extensions that can be installed or removed per PHP version.

4 Quickly link a new domain or proxy

You can easily link or proxy a folder: you can even easily customize the name of the domain and secure this new domain by simply checking a box. This will make these projects accessible as *.test domains on your system.

The dialog for linking a folder as a new .test domain, with options to rename and secure it.

5 All of your domains in a single list

Do you have many projects or legacy sites? No worries, the app includes a domain list that you can use to get a quick overview of all domains and proxies you have set up, as well as their PHP version, what type of project they are, and more.

The Domains window listing every linked domain and proxy alongside its PHP version and project type.

6 A different PHP version per domain

In addition to offering a global version switcher (which switches the PHP version for all of your projects), this app also includes support for Valet's site isolation feature. This allows you to use a specific version of PHP with a specific domain, all while retaining the globally linked PHP version.

A single domain being isolated to its own PHP version while the globally linked version stays unchanged.

7 Determine compatibility

PHP Monitor will help you figure out if your sites are compatible with the currently linked version of PHP. You will receive suggestions when site isolation may be of use for a given domain.

PHP Monitor reporting whether a site is compatible with the currently linked version of PHP.

8 Information at a glance

PHP Monitor lives in your menu bar. From here, you can use the bulk of PHP Monitor's functionality, including the global version switcher as well as services status section.

If everything runs fine it'll be obvious, but if things happen to go wrong PHP Monitor will warn you, and help you figure out what to do.

The PHP Monitor menu bar dropdown showing the active PHP version and the status of related services.

9 No more hunting for config files

Sometimes you need to edit a configuration file or toggle an extension. But where are those pesky config files located again? From PHP Monitor's menu you can easily find them. Extensions can even be toggled with one click of the button!

PHP Monitor's menu for locating PHP configuration files and toggling extensions in one click.

10 Small, frequent, fast and easy updates

The app also comes with an optional (but very fast) built-in updater, which allows you to stay up-to-date with the latest developments and bug fixes, so you can have a seamless PHP switching experience.

PHP Monitor's built-in updater installing the latest version of the app.

11 Totally free & open source

PHP Monitor's source code is, unlike other proprietary products, entirely open source. Also, all features that are part of PHP Monitor are available entirely free of charge, so you don't need to pay for any walled-off features. How great is that?

The open source PHP Monitor repository on GitHub.

🦶 A tiny footprint

Laravel Valet is a lightweight solution that is much leaner than Docker. PHP Monitor as a companion tool uses few system resources: it is light on RAM, and CPU usage is negligible.

🇪🇺 Made in Europe

Built in Europe. No tracking. No bullshit. Nothing to worry about. Learn more about how your data is respected by reading the privacy policy. In plain English!

💶 No nagging for donations

PHP Monitor will only ask you to donate once after installing it on a new computer. However, if you can, please support the project.

Q&A

Can PHP Monitor set up PHP on a fresh Mac?

Yes. Setup Assistant can guide you through preparing a local PHP development environment on macOS, including the various packages and dependencies that PHP Monitor expects to find and uses to give you a great development environment.

Does PHP Monitor require Laravel Valet?

Not required, but recommended.

I should note that PHP Monitor works best with Laravel Valet because many of its project and domain management features integrate with Valet.

Some PHP version and configuration features can still be useful without it! If you don't have Valet installed, PHP Monitor runs in Standalone Mode.

Can I use multiple PHP versions?

Yes. PHP Monitor includes a PHP Version Manager for installing, upgrading, removing, repairing, and switching between PHP versions.

Can each site use a different PHP version?

Yes. PHP Monitor supports site isolation, so individual domains can use their own PHP version while the rest of your system keeps using the global version.

Can PHP Monitor install PHP extensions?

Yes, some extensions can be installed and removed via the PHP Extension Manager.

If an uncommon extension is not listed, you can use pie to install and manage that extension, and it will show up in PHP Monitor, too.

Is PHP Monitor totally free?

Yes. There are no walled off features.

PHP Monitor is 100% free and open source. Development is supported by voluntary sponsorships and donations.

Why should I use this instead of Laravel Herd?

Well, you should use the developer tooling you find most useful and works best for your workflow!

I built PHP Monitor because it neatly integrates with Homebrew, which you may already be using for other dependencies, too. It's a great package manager.

Laravel Herd and other solutions don't integrate with Homebrew, which can be an advantage or disadvantage depending on your use case. You can decide what works best for you. I'm just offering you a free, open-source option here.

Something unclear?

The full FAQ is part of the README on GitHub.

FAQ on GitHub