How to check if URL Contain Certain String using PHP

In PHP, you can check if a URL contains a certain string using builtin functions like strpos() for simple substring matching or preg_match() for pattern matching with regular expressions.

Using strpos() Function

The strpos() function finds the position of the first occurrence of a substring within a string. It returns the starting index if found, or false if the substring doesn't exist.

Syntax

int strpos( $string, $substring )

$string: The text where searching is performed.

$substring: The pattern or substring to be searched.

Example

<?php
$url = "https://www.tutorialspoint.com/php/";

// Check if the URL contains the string "tutor"
if (strpos($url, "tutor") !== false) {
    echo "The URL contains the string 'tutor'.<br>";
} else {
    echo "The URL does not contain the string 'tutor'.<br>";
}

// Another search substring
$key = 'hyderabad';
if (strpos($url, $key) === false) {
    echo $key . ' does not exist in the URL.';
} else {
    echo $key . ' exists in the URL.';
}
?>

The URL contains the string 'tutor'.
hyderabad does not exist in the URL.

Using preg_match() Function

The preg_match() function performs pattern matching using regular expressions, allowing more complex pattern searches.

Syntax

preg_match( $pattern, $subject )

$pattern: The regular expression pattern for searching.

$subject: The text string to search within.

Example

<?php
// Given a URL
$url = 'https://www.google.co.in/';

// '\b' represents word boundary
// This pattern searches for 'google' as a whole word
$pattern = '/\bgoogle\b/';
if (preg_match($pattern, $url)) {
    echo 'google exists in the URL.<br>';
} else {
    echo 'google does not exist in the URL.<br>';
}

// Search for another pattern
$pattern2 = '/\bchrome\b/';
if (preg_match($pattern2, $url)) {
    echo 'chrome exists in the URL.';
} else {
    echo 'chrome does not exist in the URL.';
}
?>

google exists in the URL.
chrome does not exist in the URL.

Comparison

Conclusion

Use strpos() for simple substring matching in URLs as it's faster and sufficient for basic needs. Choose preg_match() when you need advanced pattern matching with regular expressions for more complex URL validation.