shouldiuse.io

VERDICT

Should I use Deployer?

The PHP deployment tool with support for popular frameworks out of the box. - deployer.org

Worth it. If your team deploys PHP apps to servers you control, this is a no-brainer — it is free, open-source, and battle-tested for a decade. Skip it if you run a non-PHP stack or want a managed click-to-deploy dashboard.

Confidence

Medium. Based on 14 public sources; no quantitative review ratings found. Pricing comparison comes from a competitor's blog.

Ratings

  • Value for money
  • Ease of use
  • Feature depth
  • Support qualityNo support evidence in sources
  • Security posture

Pricing

$0

Deployer (open source)

ModelNot disclosed
Monthly feesNot disclosed
HardwareNot disclosed
Free tierYes

Best for

  • PHP/Laravel teams on their own servers
  • Zero-downtime deploys on a $0 budget
  • WordPress and Grav site developers
  • CI/CD pipelines

Not for

  • Non-PHP stacks — it is built by and for PHP developers
  • Teams wanting a managed, visual deploy dashboard
  • Devs who won't touch a CLI or write config code
  • One tiny site where host git-push or FTP is enough — overkill

Gotchas - check before you buy

medium

No vendor behind it: community help only, no SLA or support line.

medium

Deployer's own security page appears missing — no published security policy.

medium

Deploy recipes live in your repo as PHP; switching tools later means rewriting them.

low

Managed rivals start at $4.50/month — cheap insurance if DIY maintenance wears thin.

Pros and cons

Pros

  • Free and fully open-source — no per-project or seat fees
  • Zero-downtime deployments with instant rollback to previous releases
  • Ready-made recipes for popular PHP frameworks out of the box
  • Automatic server provisioning: firewall, PHP, database, HTTPS
  • Deploys to multiple servers in parallel — no sequential bottleneck

Cons

  • PHP-only; no help for Node, Ruby, or Go deploys
  • Deploys defined as PHP code — no visual dashboard or GUI
  • No vendor support; free open source means self-service only
  • Official security page appears missing from
  • Requires SSH server access and CLI comfort to operate

Sources & method

Analyzed 9/20/2026 - 11 sources - No known vulnerabilities found in the sources reviewed.

official x2review x7security x1news x1

Key stats

  • Value for money: 5/5

    Rating

  • $0

    Starting price

  • 11

    Sources

  • Analyzed

  • Value for money: 5/5. Completely free, fully open source
  • Ease of use: 4/5. First deploy in ~30 minutes per review
  • Feature depth: 4/5. Zero-downtime, rollbacks, provisioning, parallel deploys
  • Support quality. No support evidence in sources
  • Security posture: 2/5. Own security page appears missing
  • $0 Price Free and open source
  • ~30 min First deploy Per hands-on review
  • 2015 Around since Early reviews date to Sep 2015
  • v7 Latest major Reviewed by php[architect] in 2022

Pricing

Deployer (open source)

$0

  • Full deployment toolkit
  • Zero-downtime, rollbacks, parallel deploys
  • Self-supported via community

Security

No known vulnerabilities found in the sources reviewed.

What users say

Developers describe it as a fast, modular way to automate PHP deploys with rollbacks and consistent, repeatable results.

“Deployer is a fast, modular deployment tool for PHP”
Matthew Setter blog review
“reduces the risk of human error and ensures consistent, repeatable deployments”
Laravel News
“In just 30 mins, you could have your first deployment running, with just a few lines of PHP code.”
Matthew Setter blog review

Alternatives

Compare Deployer with each alternative.

Full analysis

Based on 14 public sources; no quantitative review ratings found. Pricing comparison comes from a competitor's blog.

Free open-source PHP deploy tool: zero-downtime, rollbacks, framework recipes. Ideal for PHP dev teams; skip for non-PHP stacks.

Methodology

Based on 14 public sources; no quantitative review ratings found. Pricing comparison comes from a competitor's blog.

Sources

  1. Deployer — Deploy PHP everywhere (official site)deployer.org
    official
  2. deployphp/deployer on GitHubgithub.com
    official
  3. Deployer security page (reported not found)deployer.org
    security
  4. Deployer — Laravel Newslaravel-news.com
    news
  5. Deploying Our Code With Deployer 7 — php[architect]phparch.com
    review
  6. Simplify Your PHP Deployment Needs with Deployer — Matthew Settermatthewsetter.com
    review
  7. Which PHP Deployment Tool Should You Use in 2026? — DeployHQdeployhq.com
    review
  8. Easy WordPress theme deployment using Deployer — dev.todev.to
    review
  9. Easy Deployment of PHP Applications with Deployer — SitePointsitepoint.com
    review
  10. Testing Deployer — BBQ Softwarebbqsoftwares.com
    review
  11. CircleCI + Deployer CI/CD guideen-ambi.com
    review

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