PHP development along with MySQL development has become one of the most popular web development services over the Internet today. With rapid updates and secure changes being made in the PHP development scene, it is bound to become one of the commanding scripting languages in no time. In custom web development services time is more important, with web development experts being constantly on the lookout for better tools to enhance speed in PHP development.

Here we shall discuss the five most effective tools to speed up PHP development for better results.

1. A superior editor or an IDE - Are you still using editing tools like Notepad or WordPad? Then its time to change to better alternatives, such as EditPlus2 or PHPEdit, which are absolutely free. A better editor gives you time-saving advantages such as -
o Color highlighting, hence easier spotting and correction operations.
o Search, locate and replace operations.
Another way is to use an extensive IDE (Integrated Development Environment), though these come with a high stake of license fees.

2. Use a basic relevant framework - Most PHP development projects are built on a similar kind of framework. Therefore, instead of starting off from square one on every project, use the skeletal framework and build on it, thus saving oodles of time on your project, which you can actually use to troubleshoot or customize your project better!

3. Recycle and Re-use - Ready solutions and answers to questions or issues that have risen and solved in previous projects should be put to use. Most of the existing scripts not only provide great ideas to imitate, they are free too! Extending an existing PHP script for custom web development services or modifying it to suit your needs will save you a lot of time and money.

4. Simplicity is the Best Policy - Keep your code simple and objective. The more complicated the codes in PHP MySQL development projects or custom web development projects are, the harder it is for the programmer to find the glitches and remove them. Re-do the code if necessary in order to keep it simple. Time is a luxury you cannot afford to waste otherwise your whole effort as well as the expensive work of your hired offshore staff will go down the drain.

5. Proper Documentation - The proper documenting of your code, including comprehensible comments, hints and other such tools is mandatory to save time. Troubleshooting is made much easier this way, especially while pondering over the complicated parts of the code.

PHP development or PHP MySQL Web Development projects are a rage today in the online services arena, and saving precious time while the development process is underway is a great way to cut down on your custom web development budget.