Livewire 4 — Reactive UIs without JavaScript

What is Livewire?

Before Livewire, building dynamic UIs in a Laravel application meant reaching for Vue.js, React, or writing AJAX requests by hand. Livewire removes that requirement. Livewire is a Laravel package that lets you build reactive, interactive components entirely in PHP and Blade. Real-time form validation, live search, counters, and modals — everything that previously needed JavaScript can now be written in PHP.

Livewire 4 requires Laravel 10 or higher and PHP 8.1 or higher.

How it works

A Livewire component is a PHP class combined with a Blade template. When a user clicks a button or types in an input, Livewire sends an AJAX request in the background, runs the PHP logic, and updates only the changed parts of the page. You write pure PHP — Livewire handles the rest.

Installation

Run the following command in your Laravel project root:

composer require livewire/livewire

Laravel’s package auto-discovery takes care of registration. No additional configuration is needed.

Create a layout file

If you plan to use Livewire as full-page components, you need a layout file. Generate one with Artisan:

php artisan livewire:layout

This creates resources/views/layouts/app.blade.php:

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="{{ str_replace('_', '-', app()->getLocale()) }}">
    <head>
        <meta charset="utf-8">
        <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0">

        <title>{{ $title ?? config('app.name') }}</title>

        @vite(['resources/css/app.css', 'resources/js/app.js'])

        @livewireStyles
    </head>
    <body>
        {{ $slot }}

        @livewireScripts
    </body>
</html>

@livewireStyles and @livewireScripts automatically inject Livewire and Alpine.js assets.

Your first component

Generate a component using Artisan. Let’s build a simple counter:

php artisan make:livewire Counter

This creates a single-file component at resources/views/livewire/counter.blade.php. Edit it to look like this:

<?php

use Livewire\Component;

new class extends Component {
    public int $count = 0;

    public function increment(): void
    {
        $this->count++;
    }

    public function decrement(): void
    {
        $this->count--;
    }
};
?>

<div>
    <h1>Count: {{ $count }}</h1>

    <button wire:click="increment">+1</button>
    <button wire:click="decrement">-1</button>
</div>

Embed the component in any Blade template:

<livewire:counter />

Every button click updates the count without a page reload. wire:click wires a DOM event directly to a PHP method — no JavaScript required on your end.

Properties and actions

Properties — `wire:model`

The wire:model directive binds an input element to a component property bidirectionally.

<?php

use Livewire\Component;

new class extends Component {
    public string $name = '';
    public string $email = '';
};
?>

<div>
    <input type="text" wire:model="name" placeholder="Name">
    <input type="email" wire:model="email" placeholder="Email">

    <p>Hello, {{ $name }} ({{ $email }})</p>
</div>

By default, wire:model syncs on form actions (such as submit). Add modifiers to control sync timing:

Syntax	Behavior
`wire:model`	Syncs only on action (default)
`wire:model.live`	Sends a request on every keystroke
`wire:model.blur`	Syncs when the input loses focus (no extra request)
`wire:model.live.blur`	Sends a request when focus leaves the input

Actions — `wire:click` and `wire:submit`

wire:click maps click events to PHP methods. wire:submit maps form submissions.

<?php

use Livewire\Component;
use App\Models\Task;

new class extends Component {
    public string $taskName = '';

    public function addTask(): void
    {
        Task::create(['name' => $this->taskName]);
        $this->taskName = '';
    }

    public function render()
    {
        return $this->view([
            'tasks' => Task::latest()->get(),
        ]);
    }
};
?>

<div>
    <form wire:submit="addTask">
        <input type="text" wire:model="taskName" placeholder="Task name">
        <button type="submit">Add</button>
    </form>

    <ul>
        @foreach ($tasks as $task)
            <li>{{ $task->name }}</li>
        @endforeach
    </ul>
</div>

Real-time validation

Livewire 4 lets you attach validation rules directly to properties using the #[Validate] attribute.

<?php

use Livewire\Attributes\Validate;
use Livewire\Component;
use App\Models\Post;

new class extends Component {
    #[Validate('required|min:3')]
    public string $title = '';

    #[Validate('required|min:10')]
    public string $content = '';

    public function save(): void
    {
        $this->validate();

        Post::create([
            'title' => $this->title,
            'content' => $this->content,
        ]);

        $this->reset(['title', 'content']);

        session()->flash('message', 'Post saved.');
    }
};
?>

<div>
    @if (session('message'))
        <div>{{ session('message') }}</div>
    @endif

    <form wire:submit="save">
        <div>
            <input type="text" wire:model.live.blur="title" placeholder="Title">
            @error('title') <span style="color: red;">{{ $message }}</span> @enderror
        </div>

        <div>
            <textarea wire:model.live.blur="content" placeholder="Content"></textarea>
            @error('content') <span style="color: red;">{{ $message }}</span> @enderror
        </div>

        <button type="submit">Save</button>
    </form>
</div>

$this->validate() validates all properties at once on form submission. Using it alongside #[Validate] attribute-level validation gives you a two-step approach: per-field validation on blur, and full validation on submit.

Pair wire:model.live.blur with #[Validate] to display error messages the moment a user leaves an invalid input — without a page reload.

Lifecycle hooks

Livewire components expose lifecycle hooks you can use to run code at specific points:

Hook	When it runs
`mount()`	When the component is first initialized (once only)
`boot()`	At the start of every request (initial and subsequent)
`updating($property, $value)`	Before a property is updated
`updated($property)`	After a property is updated
`rendering()`	Before the view renders
`rendered()`	After the view renders
`dehydrate()`	At the end of every request

`mount()` — initialization

Use mount() to initialize the component, similar to a constructor.

<?php

use Illuminate\Support\Facades\Auth;
use Livewire\Component;

new class extends Component {
    public string $name = '';
    public string $email = '';

    public function mount(): void
    {
        $this->name = Auth::user()->name;
        $this->email = Auth::user()->email;
    }
};
?>

<div>
    <p>Name: {{ $name }}</p>
    <p>Email: {{ $email }}</p>
</div>

`updated()` — react to property changes

Use updated() to run logic after a property changes. Scope it to a specific property by including the property name in the method name.

<?php

use Livewire\Component;

new class extends Component {
    public string $username = '';

    public function updatedUsername(): void
    {
        $this->username = strtolower($this->username);
    }
};
?>

<div>
    <input type="text" wire:model.live="username">
    <p>Username: {{ $username }}</p>
</div>

Every keystroke automatically converts the input to lowercase.

Integration with Laravel

Eloquent models as properties

Livewire can hold Eloquent model instances directly as component properties.

<?php

use Livewire\Attributes\Validate;
use Livewire\Component;
use App\Models\User;

new class extends Component {
    public User $user;

    public function mount(User $user): void
    {
        $this->user = $user;
    }

    #[Validate('required|min:2')]
    public string $name = '';

    public function save(): void
    {
        $this->validate();
        $this->user->update(['name' => $this->name]);
        session()->flash('message', 'Profile updated.');
    }

    public function render()
    {
        return $this->view();
    }
};
?>

<div>
    @if (session('message'))
        <div>{{ session('message') }}</div>
    @endif

    <form wire:submit="save">
        <input type="text" wire:model="name" placeholder="Name">
        @error('name') <span style="color: red;">{{ $message }}</span> @enderror
        <button type="submit">Update</button>
    </form>
</div>

Form objects

For complex forms, extract form state into a dedicated Form Object to keep your component lean.

php artisan livewire:form PostForm

namespace App\Livewire\Forms;

use Livewire\Attributes\Validate;
use Livewire\Form;
use App\Models\Post;

class PostForm extends Form
{
    #[Validate('required|min:3')]
    public string $title = '';

    #[Validate('required|min:10')]
    public string $content = '';

    public function store(): void
    {
        Post::create($this->only(['title', 'content']));
    }
}

Use the form object in a component:

<?php

use App\Livewire\Forms\PostForm;
use Livewire\Component;

new class extends Component {
    public PostForm $form;

    public function save(): void
    {
        $this->form->validate();
        $this->form->store();
        $this->form->reset();
        session()->flash('message', 'Post created.');
    }
};
?>

<div>
    <form wire:submit="save">
        <input type="text" wire:model="form.title" placeholder="Title">
        @error('form.title') <span style="color: red;">{{ $message }}</span> @enderror

        <textarea wire:model="form.content" placeholder="Content"></textarea>
        @error('form.content') <span style="color: red;">{{ $message }}</span> @enderror

        <button type="submit">Publish</button>
    </form>
</div>

When to use Livewire

Use case	What Livewire handles well
Form handling	Real-time validation, error display
Data tables	Live search, sorting, pagination
Toggles and counters	UI updates without page reloads
Admin panels	CRUD directly against Eloquent
Multi-step wizards	Step management in pure PHP

If you already know Blade, you can start using Livewire today. There is no JavaScript framework to learn.

For experiences that require SPA-level interactivity with a full JavaScript UI framework, Inertia.js is a better fit. But for forms, admin panels, and data tables, Livewire often results in simpler, more maintainable code. Start with a single small component and expand from there.

Livewire documentation

Full coverage of file uploads, pagination, testing, Alpine.js integration, and more.

Documentation Index

​What is Livewire?

​How it works

​Installation

​Create a layout file

​Your first component

​Properties and actions

​Properties — wire:model

​Actions — wire:click and wire:submit

​Real-time validation

​Lifecycle hooks

​mount() — initialization

​updated() — react to property changes

​Integration with Laravel

​Eloquent models as properties

​Form objects

​When to use Livewire

Livewire documentation

What is Livewire?

How it works

Installation

Create a layout file

Your first component

Properties and actions

Properties — `wire:model`

Actions — `wire:click` and `wire:submit`

Real-time validation

Lifecycle hooks

`mount()` — initialization

`updated()` — react to property changes

Integration with Laravel

Eloquent models as properties

Form objects

When to use Livewire