Installing Laragon server and make it ready to run first Laravel project

Step 1: Download Laragon

• Go to the official site: https://laragon.org/download/

• Download Laragon Full (recommended, includes PHP, MySQL, Apache, etc.)

Step 2: Install Laragon

• Run the installer (Laragon Full Setup.exe)

• Choose the installation path (default is C:\laragon)

• Keep the default settings unless you want to change ports

• Finish installation

Step 3: Start Laragon

• Open Laragon (shortcut appears on your desktop)

• Click “Start All” — this launches Apache & MySQL servers

• You should see the “Running” status for both

Test it: open your browser and go to
http://localhost
You’ll see the Laragon homepage — that means it’s working!

 2. Configure Environment for Laravel

Laragon automatically configures PHP and Composer, but let’s verify.

Step 1: Check PHP

Open Laragon Terminal (Menu → Terminal) and run:

You should see the PHP version info.

Step 2: Check Composer

Run:

If it shows Composer version — you’re good!
If not, install Composer manually from https://getcomposer.org/download/

 3. Create Your First Laravel Project

Laragon makes it super easy to create Laravel apps.

Option 1: Quick Create (Recommended)

1. Right-click on the Laragon window.

2. Go to Quick app → Laravel.

3. Type your project name (e.g., mylaravelapp).

4. Laragon will automatically:

   • Download Laravel via Composer

   • Create the project folder

   • Configure virtual host automatically (e.g., http://mylaravelapp.test)

 After a few minutes, your Laravel app will be ready!

Option 2: Manual via Terminal

If you prefer doing it manually:

When done, start the Laragon servers, then visit:

If the .test domain doesn’t work, use:

4. Configure .env (Database Settings)

If you want to use a database:

1. Open Laragon → Menu → MySQL → phpMyAdmin

2. Create a new database (e.g., laravel_db)

3. In your Laravel project’s .env file, update:

   DB_DATABASE=laravel_db

   DB_USERNAME=root
DB_PASSWORD=


Then run:

 This creates default Laravel tables.

5. Run and Verify

In your terminal:

Then open:

or your auto-generated domain:

If you see the Laravel welcome page — you’re all set!