A strong Laravel developer job description includes six parts: a one-line role summary, five to eight specific responsibilities, required skills (PHP 8.3+, Laravel 13, Eloquent, a SQL database, REST APIs, automated testing, and Git), nice-to-have skills, the seniority level, and an honest salary range. Copy the free template below, then adjust the skills checklist to match the level you're hiring for.
Most job posts fail before anyone applies. They ask for a "PHP rockstar" with 10 years of Laravel experience and list every tool in the ecosystem. Strong developers skip them. Weak ones apply anyway.
Consider Priya, CTO of a 12-person logistics startup in Toronto. In February 2026, she posted a vague job ad titled "Full Stack PHP Ninja." She received 140 applications in nine days, but only six candidates had built and launched a real Laravel application. Her team spent three weeks sorting through resumes.
You already know that a clear job post attracts better candidates. This guide gives you the exact wording. You'll get a copy-and-paste Laravel developer job description, a skills checklist by seniority, the requirements that matter in 2026, and the common mistakes that drive good developers away.
Not sure you need a full-time hire yet? See what StackMivo can build for you first, then write the job post around what's left.
Key Takeaways
A Laravel developer job description should include 5–8 specific responsibilities, not a long list of buzzwords. Name the product, the tech stack, and the first project.
The current baseline requirements are PHP 8.3+ and Laravel 13, which was released on March 17, 2026. Laravel 12 stopped receiving bug fixes on August 13, 2026.
Separate skills into "required" and "nice to have." Five to seven required skills are enough. Longer lists can reduce the applicant pool without improving its quality.
Include a salary range. The US median salary for software developers was $135,980 in May 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Hiring involves three steps: write the job description, screen candidates with a paid task, and conduct interviews using Laravel-specific questions.
What a Laravel Developer Job Description Should Include
Every good Laravel developer job description answers the same questions candidates ask before clicking "Apply": What will I build? Which tools will I use? What level is the role? And how much does it pay?
Include these six sections in this order:
Role summary. One or two sentences describing the product and why the role exists.
Responsibilities. Five to eight specific tasks, written as actions.
Required skills. The Laravel developer skills a new hire needs from day one.
Nice-to-have skills. Tools and technologies the candidate can learn on the job.
Seniority and reporting line. Specify whether the role is junior, mid-level, or senior, and who the candidate will report to.
Pay, location, and benefits. Include the salary range, remote-work policy, and required time-zone overlap.
The order matters. Developers often look for the tech stack and salary first. If either is missing, many will close the tab.
Laravel Developer Job Description Template
Copy this template and replace everything in square brackets. It's written for a mid-level role, so adjust the requirements using the checklist in the next section.
Job title
Laravel Developer ([Mid-Level]), [Remote / City]
About the role
[Company name] builds [one-sentence product description] for [customer type]. We're hiring a Laravel developer to [main goal, such as "own our billing and subscription features"]. You'll join a team of [number] engineers and report to [title].
What you'll do
Build and maintain features in our Laravel 13 application, from database migrations to API endpoints.
Design clean Eloquent models and relationships, keeping queries fast as the application grows.
Write automated tests with Pest or PHPUnit for every feature you ship.
Build and document REST APIs used by our [web app / mobile app / partners].
Use queues and scheduled jobs to handle background tasks such as emails, imports, and reports.
Review pull requests and provide clear, constructive feedback to teammates.
Work with product and design teams to break features into small, manageable tasks.
Help monitor, debug, and resolve production issues.
What you'll need
[2–4] years of professional PHP experience, including at least [1–2] years working with Laravel.
Strong knowledge of PHP 8.3 or later, including types, enums, and readonly properties.
Solid Eloquent skills, including relationships, eager loading, scopes, and migrations.
Experience with MySQL or PostgreSQL, including indexes and query optimization.
Experience building and securing REST APIs, ideally with Laravel Sanctum.
A habit of writing tests with Pest or PHPUnit.
Confidence using Git, pull requests, and code reviews.
Nice to have
Experience with Livewire, Inertia.js with Vue or React, or Filament admin panels.
Knowledge of Redis, Laravel Horizon, and queue optimization.
Deployment experience with Laravel Forge, Laravel Cloud, Docker, or a CI/CD pipeline.
Experience reviewing or refactoring AI-generated code.
What we offer
Salary: [$X–$Y per year] or [$X–$Y per hour for contract work].
[Remote / hybrid / on-site] work with [X] hours of overlap with [time zone].
[Benefits: health cover, learning budget, equipment, paid leave].
How to apply
Send your resume and a link to one Laravel project you're proud of, such as a GitHub repository, a live application, or a short project write-up.
Our hiring process includes a 30-minute introductory call, a [3–4]-hour paid technical task, and a final interview with the team.
Laravel Developer Skills Checklist by Seniority
Use this checklist to adjust the "What you'll need" section. A junior job post that asks for senior-level skills can discourage the very candidates it's meant to attract. A senior job post that only asks for junior-level skills can attract the wrong applicants.
Skill area | Junior (0–2 years) | Mid-level (2–5 years) | Senior (5+ years) |
|---|---|---|---|
PHP and Laravel basics | Routing, controllers, Blade, validation | Service classes, form requests, policies | Architecture decisions, package design |
Eloquent and databases | CRUD, simple relationships | Eager loading, scopes, indexes | Query optimization at scale, data modeling |
APIs | Consume and build simple endpoints | API resources, Sanctum authentication, versioning | API strategy, rate limiting, integrations |
Testing | Writes basic feature tests | Tests every feature, uses factories | Sets testing standards, CI coverage |
Queues and jobs | Understands the concept | Builds jobs, handles retries and failures | Horizon tuning, scaling workers |
Security | Knows CSRF and mass assignment basics | Authorization with policies and gates | Threat modeling, security reviews |
Deployment | Uses an existing pipeline | Fixes deployment issues, writes safe migrations | Owns infrastructure and zero-downtime releases |
Collaboration | Takes tasks, asks good questions | Reviews code, estimates work | Mentors, leads technical planning |
How to use it: Choose one column. Copy five to seven skills into the "What you'll need" section, then move two or three skills from the next level up into "Nice to have." This gives candidates a clear idea of your expectations and a path for growth.
Laravel Developer Requirements That Matter in 2026
Some requirements are worth being strict about. Others can unnecessarily limit your applicant pool.
Be strict about these
Current versions. Laravel 13 requires PHP 8.3 or later. Laravel 12 stopped receiving bug fixes on August 13, 2026, and Laravel 11 is past its end-of-life date. A developer who has only worked with Laravel 8 will need time to catch up.
Testing habits. Ask candidates for proof of their testing experience. Tests help distinguish developers who ship safely from those who ship quickly but introduce problems.
Database skills. Most slow Laravel applications are slowed down by database queries, not PHP.
Code review experience. In 2026, a growing share of code is AI-assisted. Developers need to review code critically, regardless of who or what wrote it.
Be flexible about these
Years of experience. Two strong years of experience can be more valuable than six years of copy-paste work.
Front-end framework. A good Laravel developer can learn Livewire or Inertia in a few weeks.
Computer science degree. Portfolios and paid technical tasks can tell you more about a candidate's abilities.
Every tool in the ecosystem. Nobody needs to know Horizon, Octane, Reverb, Scout, and Cashier on day one.
Marcus, a founder in Manchester, learned this in April 2026. His first job post required "8+ years of Laravel experience and a CS degree." After three weeks, he had received only four applications. He rewrote the post, reduced the experience requirement to three years, removed the degree requirement, and added a salary range. The updated post attracted 31 relevant applicants. He eventually hired a developer with three years of experience and a strong open-source record.
Pay and the salary range
Including salary information in job posts is now standard, and it's legally required for many roles in several US states.
For context, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics reports a median software developer salary of $135,980 as of May 2025 and projects 10% job growth between 2025 and 2035.
Contract rates vary significantly by region. Before setting a figure, check our guide to Laravel developer hourly rates in 2026.
Hiring to build an MVP? You may not need a full-time developer for the first version. Generate your Laravel app with StackMivo, then hire a developer to manage and extend it.
Common Mistakes in a Laravel Developer Job Description
These mistakes appear in job posts all the time, and each one can cost you good applicants.
Buzzword titles. Words like "Ninja," "rockstar," and "wizard" can make a job post seem unprofessional. Use "Laravel Developer" or "Backend Engineer (Laravel)" so candidates can find it easily.
The unicorn list. Asking for Laravel, React, DevOps, design, and data science in one role can signal a lack of focus.
No mention of the product. Developers want to know what they'll be building. "Exciting projects" doesn't tell them anything.
Hidden pay. Saying "competitive salary" can make strong candidates assume the pay is below market.
Unpaid take-home tests. A 10-hour unpaid task can drive senior developers away. Keep the task to three or four hours and pay candidates for their time.
Outdated versions. Listing Laravel 7 can make candidates think your codebase is outdated and no one is maintaining it.
After the Job Post: Screening Laravel Developers
A strong job description helps attract the right candidates. The next step is checking what they can actually do.
Follow this simple three-step process:
Screen portfolios. Look for real Laravel code, including migrations, tests, and a sensible folder structure.
Give a short paid task. Choose something similar to your actual work, such as adding an API endpoint with tests.
Conduct targeted interviews. Use our list of Laravel interview questions to assess candidates' knowledge of Eloquent, queues, security, and testing.
For a broader look at sourcing, team structure, and costs, read our complete guide to hiring Laravel developers. If you're still deciding between hiring models, see freelance vs agency for Laravel projects.
Here's how this process can work. Elena, VP of Engineering at a Berlin-based e-commerce company, followed these steps in May 2026. Her job post clearly stated the tech stack, the first project, and the salary range. The paid task took candidates around three hours to complete. She hired a mid-level Laravel developer in 19 days, and the new hire shipped their first feature in the second week.
Frequently Asked Questions
What should I put in a Laravel developer job description?
Include a short role summary, five to eight specific responsibilities, required and nice-to-have skills, the seniority level, and a salary range. Mention your product and tech stack so candidates know exactly what they'll be working on.
What skills does a Laravel developer need?
A Laravel developer needs strong PHP 8.3+ skills, knowledge of Eloquent ORM, MySQL or PostgreSQL, REST API development, automated testing with Pest or PHPUnit, and Git. Mid-level and senior developers also need experience with queues, security, and deployment.
What are the requirements for a junior vs. senior Laravel developer?
A junior Laravel developer should be comfortable with routing, controllers, Blade, and basic Eloquent. A senior Laravel developer should be able to make architecture decisions, optimize database performance, establish testing standards, and mentor other developers.
How many years of experience should I ask for?
For guidance, ask for one to two years of experience for junior roles, two to five years for mid-level roles, and five or more years for senior roles. Treat these as guidelines rather than strict requirements, and use portfolios and paid tasks to evaluate candidates.
Should a Laravel developer job description include salary?
Yes. Job posts with salary ranges tend to attract more relevant applicants, and many US states now require pay ranges in job advertisements. Use local market data and hourly rate benchmarks to determine a fair range.
Where can I find Laravel developers to hire?
Post on general job boards, Laravel community job boards, and developer communities. You can also explore agencies and freelance developers who build with StackMivo on the StackMivo Marketplace.
The Bottom Line
A good Laravel developer job description is specific, honest, and concise. Name the product, the tech stack, and the first project. List five to seven required skills that match the seniority level, include a realistic salary range, and keep the technical task short and paid.
Copy the template above, adjust it using the skills checklist, and publish it this week. Then screen candidates with a paid task and Laravel-specific interview questions to identify the right person.
Find a Laravel developer or agency on the StackMivo Marketplace →
Or start building your Laravel app for free and hire only for what's left.