String Manipulation - Knowledge of Laravel

The `Str` class

Illuminate\Support\Str provides a consistent API for string operations. Instead of memorising the inconsistent argument order of PHP’s built-in string functions, you get a single, uniform interface that also handles multibyte characters correctly. Laravel offers two styles:

Static methods — Str::slug($title, '-') — clear for single operations
Fluent strings — Str::of($title)->slug('-')->limit(50) — chain multiple transformations left to right

use Illuminate\Support\Str;

// Static method
$slug = Str::slug('My New Blog Post', '-');
// 'my-new-blog-post'

// Fluent (Str::of)
$result = Str::of('  My New Blog Post: Part 1  ')
    ->trim()
    ->slug('-')
    ->limit(30);
// 'my-new-blog-post-part-1'

The str() global helper is equivalent to Str::of(). You can write str('hello')->upper() instead of Str::of('hello')->upper().

Case conversion

Use these when normalising database column names, API keys, or user-facing labels.

`Str::camel()` / `Str::snake()` / `Str::kebab()` / `Str::studly()`

use Illuminate\Support\Str;

Str::camel('foo_bar');         // 'fooBar'
Str::camel('user_profile_id'); // 'userProfileId'

Str::snake('fooBar');          // 'foo_bar'
Str::snake('UserProfile');     // 'user_profile'

Str::kebab('fooBar');          // 'foo-bar'

Str::studly('foo_bar');        // 'FooBar'
Str::studly('user-profile');   // 'UserProfile'

`Str::lower()` / `Str::upper()` / `Str::title()`

use Illuminate\Support\Str;

Str::lower('LARAVEL');      // 'laravel'
Str::upper('laravel');      // 'LARAVEL'
Str::title('hello world');  // 'Hello World'

Slugs and URLs

`Str::slug()` — URL-friendly slugs

Converts spaces and special characters into a safe URL segment.

use Illuminate\Support\Str;

Str::slug('My New Blog Post', '-');
// 'my-new-blog-post'

Str::slug('Hello World!', '_');
// 'hello_world'

Combine slug generation with fluent strings

use Illuminate\Support\Str;

$slug = Str::of('  My New Blog Post: Part 1!  ')
    ->trim()
    ->slug('-')
    ->limit(50);
// 'my-new-blog-post-part-1'

Trimming and truncating

`Str::limit()` — truncate by character count

Truncate article previews or comment snippets to a fixed length.

use Illuminate\Support\Str;

$text = 'The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog.';

Str::limit($text, 20);
// 'The quick brown fox ...'

// Custom end string
Str::limit($text, 20, ' → read more');
// 'The quick brown fox  → read more'

// Do not break in the middle of a word
Str::limit($text, 20, preserveWords: true);
// 'The quick brown fox...'

`Str::words()` — truncate by word count

use Illuminate\Support\Str;

Str::words('Perfectly balanced, as all things should be.', 3, ' >>>');
// 'Perfectly balanced, as >>>'

Searching and checking

`Str::contains()` — check for a substring

use Illuminate\Support\Str;

Str::contains('This is my name', 'my');
// true

// Match any of several needles
Str::contains('This is my name', ['my', 'your']);
// true

// Case-insensitive
Str::contains('This is my name', 'MY', ignoreCase: true);
// true

`Str::startsWith()` / `Str::endsWith()`

use Illuminate\Support\Str;

Str::startsWith('https://laravel.com', 'https://');
// true

Str::startsWith('https://laravel.com', ['https://', 'http://']);
// true

Str::endsWith('photo.jpg', '.jpg');
// true

Str::endsWith('photo.jpg', ['.jpg', '.png', '.gif']);
// true

`Str::is()` — wildcard pattern matching

use Illuminate\Support\Str;

Str::is('foo*', 'foobar');
// true

Str::is('*/user/*', '/admin/user/profile');
// true

// Case-insensitive
Str::is('F*', 'foo', ignoreCase: true);
// true

Replacing and transforming

`Str::replace()` — simple replacement

use Illuminate\Support\Str;

Str::replace('8.x', '13.x', 'Laravel 8.x');
// 'Laravel 13.x'

// Case-insensitive replacement
Str::replace('laravel', 'Symfony', 'I love Laravel', caseSensitive: false);
// 'I love Symfony'

`Str::replaceArray()` — sequential placeholder replacement

use Illuminate\Support\Str;

$string = 'The event runs from ? to ?';

Str::replaceArray('?', ['9am', '5pm'], $string);
// 'The event runs from 9am to 5pm'

`Str::replaceMatches()` — regex replacement

use Illuminate\Support\Str;

// Strip non-digits from a phone number
Str::replaceMatches('/[^0-9]/', '', '(555) 123-4567');
// '5551234567'

// Dynamic replacement via a closure
Str::replaceMatches('/\d+/', fn ($matches) => '[' . $matches[0] . ']', '1 item, 2 boxes');
// '[1] item, [2] boxes'

`Str::remove()` — delete substrings

use Illuminate\Support\Str;

Str::remove('e', 'Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers.');
// 'Ptr Pipr pickd a pck of pickld ppprs.'

// Multiple substrings
Str::remove(['foo', 'bar'], 'foo and bar and baz');
// ' and  and baz'

`Str::squish()` — collapse whitespace

use Illuminate\Support\Str;

Str::squish('  Laravel   Framework  ');
// 'Laravel Framework'

Extracting substrings

`Str::before()` / `Str::after()`

use Illuminate\Support\Str;

Str::before('[email protected]', '@');
// 'test'

Str::after('[email protected]', '@');
// 'example.com'

// Last occurrence
Str::afterLast('App\Http\Controllers\UserController', '\\');
// 'UserController'

Str::beforeLast('App\Http\Controllers\UserController', '\\');
// 'App\Http\Controllers'

`Str::between()` — text between two markers

use Illuminate\Support\Str;

Str::between('[debug] Error occurred', '[', ']');
// 'debug'

`Str::start()` / `Str::finish()` — ensure a prefix or suffix

Adds the character only when it is not already there — never duplicates.

use Illuminate\Support\Str;

Str::start('users/profile', '/');
// '/users/profile'

Str::start('/users/profile', '/');
// '/users/profile' — not doubled

Str::finish('https://example.com', '/');
// 'https://example.com/'

`Str::chopStart()` / `Str::chopEnd()` — remove a prefix or suffix

use Illuminate\Support\Str;

Str::chopStart('https://laravel.com', 'https://');
// 'laravel.com'

// Multiple possible prefixes
Str::chopStart('http://laravel.com', ['https://', 'http://']);
// 'laravel.com'

Str::chopEnd('UserController.php', '.php');
// 'UserController'

Masking and security

`Str::mask()` — redact part of a string

Useful for displaying partially obscured email addresses, phone numbers, or card numbers.

use Illuminate\Support\Str;

// Mask from position 4 onward
Str::mask('[email protected]', '*', 4);
// 'alic*************'

// Show only the last 4 characters (negative offset)
Str::mask('1234-5678-9012-3456', '*', -4);
// '***************3456'

// Mask a specific range
Str::mask('[email protected]', '*', 3, 5);
// 'ali*****xample.com'

`Str::excerpt()` — contextual snippet

Extract a passage of text centred around a keyword — handy for search result snippets.

use Illuminate\Support\Str;

$text = 'Laravel is a PHP framework for building beautiful web applications.';

Str::excerpt($text, 'PHP', ['radius' => 12]);
// '...is a PHP framework...'

Random strings and identifiers

`Str::random()` — random alphanumeric string

use Illuminate\Support\Str;

Str::random(32);
// 32-character random string — suitable for tokens and reset keys

`Str::uuid()` / `Str::ulid()` — unique identifiers

use Illuminate\Support\Str;

(string) Str::uuid();
// '550e8400-e29b-41d4-a716-446655440000'

// Time-ordered UUID (UUIDv7)
(string) Str::uuid7();

// Sortable ULID
(string) Str::ulid();
// '01ARZ3NDEKTSV4RRFFQ69G5FAV'

`Str::password()` — secure password generation

use Illuminate\Support\Str;

Str::password(12);
// 12-character string with uppercase, lowercase, digits, and symbols

Fluent strings — `Str::of()`

Str::of() returns a Stringable instance so you can chain methods. Cast the result to string or call toString() when you need a plain string.

use Illuminate\Support\Str;

$result = Str::of('  hello world  ')
    ->trim()
    ->title()
    ->append('!')
    ->toString();
// 'Hello World!'

Practical chaining examples

Slug from a blog title

$slug = Str::of('  My New Blog Post: Part 1  ')
    ->trim()
    ->lower()
    ->slug('-')
    ->limit(50);
// 'my-new-blog-post-part-1'

Extract a domain from a URL

$domain = Str::of('https://www.example.com/path/to/page')
    ->after('//')
    ->before('/')
    ->chopStart('www.');
// 'example.com'

Sanitise user input

$clean = Str::of($userInput)
    ->squish()      // collapse extra whitespace
    ->limit(255)    // enforce max length
    ->toString();

Class name to file path

$path = Str::of('App\Http\Controllers\UserController')
    ->replace('\\', '/')
    ->append('.php')
    ->toString();
// 'App/Http/Controllers/UserController.php'

Conditional chaining — `when()`

use Illuminate\Support\Str;

$result = Str::of('Laravel')
    ->when($isUppercase, fn ($str) => $str->upper())
    ->append(' Framework');
// 'LARAVEL Framework' when $isUppercase is true
// 'Laravel Framework' otherwise

`pipe()` — insert an arbitrary callback

use Illuminate\Support\Str;

$result = Str::of('my-slug')
    ->pipe(fn ($str) => $str->replace('-', '_'))
    ->upper()
    ->toString();
// 'MY_SLUG'

Key fluent methods at a glance

use Illuminate\Support\Str;

$str = Str::of('Hello, World!');

$str->length();            // 13
$str->upper();             // 'HELLO, WORLD!'
$str->lower();             // 'hello, world!'
$str->trim();              // 'Hello, World!'
$str->slug();              // 'hello-world'
$str->contains('World');   // true
$str->startsWith('Hello'); // true
$str->endsWith('!');       // true
$str->replace(',', '');    // 'Hello World!'
$str->prepend('>>> ');     // '>>> Hello, World!'
$str->append(' <<<');      // 'Hello, World! <<<'
$str->reverse();           // '!dlroW ,olleH'
$str->wordCount();         // 2

Summary

Common Str methods at a glance

Method	Purpose
`Str::slug($str)`	URL-friendly slug
`Str::limit($str, $n)`	Truncate by character count
`Str::contains($str, $needle)`	Substring check
`Str::startsWith($str, $needle)`	Prefix check
`Str::endsWith($str, $needle)`	Suffix check
`Str::replace($search, $replace, $str)`	Simple replacement
`Str::camel($str)`	Convert to camelCase
`Str::snake($str)`	Convert to snake_case
`Str::kebab($str)`	Convert to kebab-case
`Str::studly($str)`	Convert to StudlyCase
`Str::upper($str)`	Uppercase
`Str::lower($str)`	Lowercase
`Str::squish($str)`	Collapse extra whitespace
`Str::after($str, $search)`	Substring after a marker
`Str::before($str, $search)`	Substring before a marker
`Str::between($str, $from, $to)`	Text between two markers
`Str::mask($str, '*', $index)`	Redact part of a string
`Str::random($length)`	Random alphanumeric string
`Str::uuid()`	Generate a UUID
`Str::of($str)`	Start a fluent chain

Static methods vs fluent strings

Use static methods when you only need one or two transformations:

$slug = Str::slug($title);

Use fluent strings (Str::of()) when you want to chain three or more operations, use conditional logic, or prefer reading the transformations top to bottom:

$slug = Str::of($title)
    ->trim()
    ->lower()
    ->slug()
    ->limit(50);

Str class vs PHP built-ins

Prefer Str over raw PHP functions (strtolower(), substr(), str_replace()) because:

It handles multibyte characters correctly by using mb_* functions internally
You can chain operations without nesting function calls
The argument order is consistent across all methods
It keeps your code style consistent with the rest of Laravel

Documentation Index

​The Str class

​Case conversion

​Str::camel() / Str::snake() / Str::kebab() / Str::studly()

​Str::lower() / Str::upper() / Str::title()

​Slugs and URLs

​Str::slug() — URL-friendly slugs

​Combine slug generation with fluent strings

​Trimming and truncating

​Str::limit() — truncate by character count

​Str::words() — truncate by word count

​Searching and checking

​Str::contains() — check for a substring

​Str::startsWith() / Str::endsWith()

​Str::is() — wildcard pattern matching

​Replacing and transforming

​Str::replace() — simple replacement

​Str::replaceArray() — sequential placeholder replacement

​Str::replaceMatches() — regex replacement

​Str::remove() — delete substrings

​Str::squish() — collapse whitespace

​Extracting substrings

​Str::before() / Str::after()

​Str::between() — text between two markers

​Str::start() / Str::finish() — ensure a prefix or suffix

​Str::chopStart() / Str::chopEnd() — remove a prefix or suffix

​Masking and security

​Str::mask() — redact part of a string

​Str::excerpt() — contextual snippet

​Random strings and identifiers

​Str::random() — random alphanumeric string

​Str::uuid() / Str::ulid() — unique identifiers

​Str::password() — secure password generation

​Fluent strings — Str::of()

​Practical chaining examples

​Conditional chaining — when()

​pipe() — insert an arbitrary callback

​Key fluent methods at a glance

​Summary

The `Str` class

Case conversion

`Str::camel()` / `Str::snake()` / `Str::kebab()` / `Str::studly()`

`Str::lower()` / `Str::upper()` / `Str::title()`

Slugs and URLs

`Str::slug()` — URL-friendly slugs

Combine slug generation with fluent strings

Trimming and truncating

`Str::limit()` — truncate by character count

`Str::words()` — truncate by word count

Searching and checking

`Str::contains()` — check for a substring

`Str::startsWith()` / `Str::endsWith()`

`Str::is()` — wildcard pattern matching

Replacing and transforming

`Str::replace()` — simple replacement

`Str::replaceArray()` — sequential placeholder replacement

`Str::replaceMatches()` — regex replacement

`Str::remove()` — delete substrings

`Str::squish()` — collapse whitespace

Extracting substrings

`Str::before()` / `Str::after()`

`Str::between()` — text between two markers

`Str::start()` / `Str::finish()` — ensure a prefix or suffix

`Str::chopStart()` / `Str::chopEnd()` — remove a prefix or suffix

Masking and security

`Str::mask()` — redact part of a string

`Str::excerpt()` — contextual snippet

Random strings and identifiers

`Str::random()` — random alphanumeric string

`Str::uuid()` / `Str::ulid()` — unique identifiers

`Str::password()` — secure password generation

Fluent strings — `Str::of()`

Practical chaining examples

Conditional chaining — `when()`

`pipe()` — insert an arbitrary callback

Key fluent methods at a glance

Summary