Feature Suggestion: TypeScript Version (Laravel for Node.js / TS Developers)

[nobugawakof]

Hello Laravel team 👋

First of all, thank you for creating and maintaining such an elegant and powerful framework. Laravel has set the gold standard for backend developer experience - from Eloquent ORM and the Service Container to Blade, queues, jobs, and the overall architecture.

However, as the web ecosystem evolves, many new projects are now built with TypeScript / Node.js due to strong frontend-backend synergy and async performance.

I’d like to propose the idea of an official Laravel port or sister project built in TypeScript - something like “Laravel-TS” or “Laravel for Node.js.”

💡 Why This Makes Sense

1. Developer Experience:
   Laravel’s architecture, syntax, and expressive APIs are universally loved. TypeScript developers want that same clarity and productivity.

2. Full-Stack Synergy:
   Many teams use Laravel + Vue or Laravel + React today. With a TypeScript backend, teams could unify the stack and still enjoy Laravel’s elegance.

3. Ecosystem Demand:
   Frameworks like AdonisJS and NestJS have proven that Laravel-inspired design in TypeScript is both viable and popular. However, neither fully captures Laravel’s expressive feel or rich ecosystem.

4. Modern Runtime:
   Running on Node.js or Deno could unlock async support, streaming APIs, and native integration with modern frontend frameworks (Next.js, Nuxt, etc.).

🚀 Vision Example

Imagine this in TypeScript:

await User.with('posts.comments')
  .where('active', true)
  .paginate(10);

With an artisan-like CLI (ts-artisan make:model User), built-in job queues, service container, and middleware just like Laravel.

---

If Laravel were officially available in TypeScript, it could become one of the most used backend frameworks worldwide, uniting PHP and JS developers under the same philosophy of expressive and elegant code.

Thank you for considering this idea 🙏
I’d love to help brainstorm or contribute if this direction is ever explored.

[shaedrich]

Are you aware of what a massive undertaking this would be? Not to mention mimicking features in JavaScript that work differently in that language.

I highly doubt, the maintainers of the framework have enough spare time to do this on the side.

Node.js already has plenty of (good) ORMs. This would be a hard competition.

Laravel has set the gold standard for backend developer experience […] Laravel’s architecture, syntax, and expressive APIs are universally loved.

Developer convenience rather. Laravel is incredibly forgiving and convenient by often offering more than one way to do things and account for different inputs. However, this also comes with downsides as static analysis tools failing to infer all possible types and the inability to add types afterwards in some places among other things.

Running on Node.js or Deno could unlock async support, streaming APIs, and native integration with modern frontend frameworks (Next.js, Nuxt, etc.).

Nowadays, PHP can run async and Laravel supports this, however, due to PHP's nature, this is not achievable in the way other languages do this. This would actually be an argument for another language 👍🏻

[nobugawakof]

Thank you for your insights - I completely agree that this would be a massive undertaking and not something to be built overnight.

My intention isn’t to reject PHP or Laravel’s current direction, but rather to open a discussion about evolution and alignment with current development trends.

As the ecosystem shifts toward TypeScript and Node.js for full-stack synergy (especially with React, Vue, and modern SSR frameworks), I think it’s valuable to explore what Laravel’s elegant developer experience could look like in that environment - even if it starts as a community experiment or sister project.

This isn’t about replacing PHP, but about extending Laravel’s philosophy - expressive syntax, dependency injection, and clean architecture - into a modern runtime.

In fact, PHP was once misunderstood by many developers, but Laravel completely changed that perception - it broke stereotypes and redefined what PHP could achieve.
That transformation proves how much impact Laravel’s philosophy and design can have, regardless of the language.

So, it’s interesting to imagine - if Laravel’s foundation were built on Python or TypeScript, with modern async capabilities and tight front-end integration - it might truly become unrivaled and unstoppable in the full-stack ecosystem.

I genuinely appreciate your thoughtful feedback. Discussions like this help shape what the future could look like.

[shaedrich]

My intention isn’t to reject PHP or Laravel’s current direction, but rather to open a discussion about evolution and alignment with current development trends.

Laravel is one of the reasons people still use PHP today despite yearly claims that the language is dead. This is a strength, not a weakness.

In fact, PHP was once misunderstood by many developers

What do you mean by that?

it might truly become unrivaled and unstoppable in the full-stack ecosystem.

It would become rivaled by its sister project and vice versa.

I genuinely appreciate your thoughtful feedback. Discussions like this help shape what the future could look like.

Thank you, that was my intention 👍🏻

[shaedrich]

fyi, btw there has been a similar attempt for a different language: Go

#55866

[nobugawakof]

@shaedrich

Thank you for the clarification - and I completely understand your point.

Here’s what I meant: Laravel has achieved a remarkable level of influence, it’s built on PHP. The only reason we see PHP used less frequently today is because new developers are naturally drawn to popular languages like JavaScript or Python. But that trend doesn’t mean PHP is inferior or avoided. PHP has always been an open, accessible, and flexible language - anyone can pick it up and build serious systems with it.

Because of that, I believe there’s real value in taking Laravel’s ideas, methodologies, and architectural structures and applying them to other languages as well. It’s not about limiting ourselves to PHP - it’s about allowing the strengths of Laravel’s philosophy to expand into different languages and ecosystems.

I wasn’t implying PHP is weak. On the contrary, Laravel proves how powerful PHP can be - and that strength is exactly why I think its principles can succeed beyond a single language.

[sediqzada94]

Laravel inspired typescript framework https://adonisjs.com/

[nobugawakof]

Thank you.

AdonisJS is definitely inspired by Laravel - the creator has openly said that Laravel’s architecture and developer experience influenced the design. But AdonisJS is not created by the Laravel team or the Laravel organization.