
The easiest way to get the current URL path in PHP
Table of contents
Get the path from the current URL
You can get the current URL path in PHP using the $_SERVER
superglobal. Here is a straightforward way to do it:
<?php echo $_SERVER['REQUEST_URI'];
The REQUEST_URI
key will give you the current URL path along with the query string (if any).
For example, if the current URL is https://www.example.com/foo?bar=baz, the above code will output /foo?bar=baz
.
$_SERVER contains everything about the URL’s path
Now that you have the solution, let’s break it down:
$_SERVER
is a superglobal exposed by PHP, which means it is available in all scopes throughout a script. It contains information about headers, paths, and script locations. And it’s not the only superglobal you can use.['REQUEST_URI']
is one of the elements of the$_SERVER
superglobal that contains the URI (Uniform Resource Identifier). It includes both the path and the query string.
Use var_dump()
on $_SERVER
and see for yourself all the valuable information it contains.
Use cases for the URL’s path
- Generating breadcrumbs: Breadcrumbs are a secondary navigation aid that helps users understand their location in an application. PHP lets you use the current URL path to generate dynamic breadcrumbs.
- Highlighting the current page in a navigation menu: You can use the current URL path to compare with the menu items and highlight the active one dynamically.
- Redirection: You may want to redirect users to the same page after they perform an action (e.g., submit a form).
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