CodeIgniter to Laravel Migration

If your business still runs on CodeIgniter 3, you probably know the feeling. The app works, customers depend on it, and every server upgrade or new feature feels like a gamble. I help teams move from CodeIgniter to Laravel one piece at a time, on the same database, while the old system keeps serving real users.

I'm Umer Farooq, a senior full-stack developer with 9+ years of experience in PHP (Laravel and CodeIgniter), Node.js, React, Next.js, Angular, Vue, MySQL and Postgres. Legacy rebuilds are a large part of my work.

Who this is for

This service fits you if:

• Your product runs on CodeIgniter 3 (or 2) and still makes money every day.
• Your hosting provider or security team is pushing you onto a newer PHP version, and the app throws deprecation warnings or breaks.
• New features take weeks because nobody wants to touch the old controllers.
• You've been told the only option is a full rewrite with a big launch day, and you don't want to bet the business on that.
• The developer who built the system has moved on, and the knowledge left with them.

Why move off CodeIgniter 3

CodeIgniter 3's last official release was 3.1.13, in March 2022. It supports PHP up to 8.1. PHP 8.2 deprecated dynamic properties, which CodeIgniter 3's core classes rely on, so a CI3 app on PHP 8.2 or newer fills your logs with deprecation notices. The fixes were proposed upstream but never shipped as an official CI3 release. Under the current PHP plan, dynamic properties on classes without the opt-in attribute will become an error in PHP 9.

You can patch around this, and community forks exist. But patching keeps you on a framework that isn't moving forward. Laravel gives you an actively developed framework, a large hiring pool, first-class testing tools, queues, a built-in auth system and a big package ecosystem.

CodeIgniter 4 is also an option, but it isn't a drop-in upgrade from CI3. It's close to a rewrite either way, so it's worth comparing both before you commit.

How I migrate CodeIgniter to Laravel

I don't do big-bang rewrites. The new Laravel app grows next to the old CodeIgniter app, and traffic moves over one module at a time.

1. Audit. I read the codebase and database first: controllers, models, libraries, helpers, cron jobs, payment and SMS integrations, and anything doing raw SQL. You get a written map of what exists, what's risky, and a suggested order of migration.
2. Set up Laravel against the live database. Laravel connects to your existing MySQL (or Postgres) schema. Eloquent models are mapped to the current tables and column names, so no data migration is needed on day one.
3. Bridge login and sessions. Users shouldn't notice which app served the page. I make both apps accept the same login, either by sharing the session store or by having Laravel read the existing users and password hashes, so nobody has to reset their password.
4. Route traffic module by module (strangler pattern). The web server or a front router sends finished modules to Laravel and everything else to CodeIgniter. Old URLs keep working, and anything that does change gets a 301 redirect, so you keep your search rankings and bookmarks.
5. Rebuild each module with tests. I write feature tests around the old behaviour first, then rebuild the module in Laravel until the tests pass. Business rules hidden in old helpers get pulled out and documented.
6. Cut over and switch off. Once a module is stable on Laravel, the CodeIgniter version is removed. Each step can be rolled back by changing a route, so there's no single risky launch night and no planned downtime.
7. Clean up the schema last. Once CodeIgniter no longer touches a table, I can safely add proper migrations, indexes and foreign keys.

CodeIgniter to Laravel: how the pieces map

What you get

• A written audit and migration plan before any code changes.
• A Laravel app running on your current database, deployed alongside the old one.
• Shared login, so users move between old and new pages without noticing.
• Feature tests for every migrated module.
• Redirect rules for any URL that changes.
• Deployment to your server or VPS, with a rollback path at each step.
• Handover notes, so your next developer isn't starting from zero.

Proof: a CodeIgniter 3 rebuild on a live production database

From 2018 to Oct 2026 I worked on NitroTickets, a ticketing platform for combat-sports events. I was part of the original CodeIgniter build, and later I was the primary developer on its rebuild into Laravel 13, working with a small team. The rebuild ran on the same production database the whole time, while the platform kept selling tickets.

Read the NitroTickets case study

Working with me directly

You work with me, not an account manager. I'm the one who reads your code, writes the migration plan, and answers your messages. I work remotely and have deployed to shared hosting, cPanel and VPS servers, so I can work inside the setup you already have.

Book a quick call

Tell me what your CodeIgniter app does and what's worrying you about it. In a short call we can work out whether a step-by-step move to Laravel makes sense, and where to start.

Book a 30-minute call or send me a message.