The tribal war is not your war
Programmers argue PHP vs Python like sports. Buyers should ask three boring questions instead: what does it cost to build, what does it cost to staff, and does the roadmap lean toward what each ecosystem is best at. (Spoiler: PHP powers most of the web you touch daily, including WordPress, which alone is ~40% of all sites. "Dying language" chatter is about fashion, not employment.)
What PHP means for your project
Cheapest hosting on the planet, the deepest freelancer pool for money-constrained projects, the entire WordPress/WooCommerce/Laravel universe, and mature tools for every common need. The trap: the floor is low, cheap PHP work is the cheapest software there is, and quality control is your job (see vetting).
What Python means for your project
The AI/data gravity (LLMs, RAG, automation, analytics all speak Python first), clean codebases at senior hands, strong enterprise/finance credentials, and great frameworks. The trap: hosting/ops are slightly less commodity, and mid-level Python talent skews pricier than equivalent PHP in most markets.
The decision, stated once
Content site, WordPress-family product, budget-first build → PHP is not a compromise; it is the native answer. Product with data/AI in the roadmap → Python (or Node + a Python sidecar, the backend comparison covers it). Anything else, the languages are equivalent and seniority is everything, pay for the developer, not the logo of the language.
The one bad answer
Choosing by whatever a forum yelled loudest. The five-minute version with your actual requirements: send them over, the answer will name a language, a framework, and a band, in writing.