Laravel: Tinker (the interactive REPL)

terminal — php artisan tinker

# Start the REPL
php artisan tinker

# Create a row (uses the employees table from LEP 01)
>>> use App\Models\Employee;
>>> Employee::create([
...     'name'       => 'Asha Rao',
...     'age'        => 29,
...     'email'      => 'asha@example.com',
...     'address'    => '12 MG Road',
...     'department' => 'Engineering',
... ]);

# Read it back
>>> Employee::count();
>>> Employee::where('department', 'Engineering')->get();

# Bulk-create with the factory
>>> Employee::factory()->count(3)->create();

Output

Psy Shell (PHP 8.3) — type help for help.

>>> Employee::create([...]);

=> App\Models\Employee { id: 1, name: "Asha Rao", department: "Engineering" }

>>> Employee::count();

=> 1

>>> Employee::factory()->count(3)->create();

=> Illuminate\Database\Eloquent\Collection (3 items)

The Idea

Tinker is a REPL — a live PHP shell with your whole Laravel app booted. You can create records, run Eloquent queries, call any class or helper, and see the result instantly, without writing a route or refreshing a browser.

Starting it

Run php artisan tinker. You’re dropped into the Psy Shell where >>> is your prompt. Every model, service and facade is already available — just use the class and go. Type exit to leave.

What it’s great for

Testing a query before you put it in code, seeding a couple of rows by hand, checking a relationship, or debugging “why is this null?” live against your real database. Here we create an Employee in the table we built in LEP 01, then read it back.

Handy tricks

Employee::factory()->count(3)->create() makes test data fast. dd($var) dumps and stops. Press the up arrow to repeat a command, and >>> $employee alone re-prints any variable.

Why it matters

It shortens the feedback loop to seconds. Instead of editing a controller, hitting a URL and reading logs, you try the exact line of code right there and keep what works.

Example

Employee::create([...]) → inserts a row, returns the model

Employee::count() → 1

Key takeaway: Tinker boots your whole app in the terminal so you can run real Eloquent and PHP live — the fastest way to try, seed and debug.

Interview notes: Tinker is built on PsySH. It talks to your actual database, so be careful in production. php artisan tinker --execute="..." runs a one-liner without entering the shell.