How to Convert HTML to Plain Text in PHP

Last updated on by

How to Convert HTML to Plain Text in PHP image

The Hypertext PHP package converts HTML to pure text and beautifully handles various and malformed HTML. It works by taking an HTML string as input and removing all the markup, leaving the plain text:

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0">
<title>My Blog</title>
</head>
<body>
<h1>Welcome to My Blog</h1>
<p>This is a paragraph of text on my webpage.</p>
<a href="https://blog.com/posts">Click here</a> to view my posts.
</body>
</html>

Using Hypertext's Transformer class, you can convert the HTML to pure text like so:

use Stevebauman\Hypertext\Transformer;
 
// Pure text output
echo (new Transformer)->toText($input);
 
// Welcome to My Blog This is a paragraph of text on my webpage. Click here to view my posts.

Let's say that you want to convert everything to text but also preserve newlines and links:

echo (new Transformer)
->keepLinks()
->keepNewLines()
->toText($input);
 
/*
Welcome to My Blog
This is a paragraph of text on my webpage.
<a href="https://blog.com/posts">Click Here</a> to view my posts.
*/

Here is a list of the top features in the hypertext package:

  • Removes CSS
  • Removes scripts
  • Removes headers
  • Removes non-HTML based content
  • Preserves spacing
  • Preserves links (optional)
  • Preserves new lines (optional)

You can find the complete details for this package on Github: stevebauman/hypertext.

Paul Redmond photo

Staff writer at Laravel News. Full stack web developer and author.

Cube

Laravel Newsletter

Join 40k+ other developers and never miss out on new tips, tutorials, and more.

image
Tinkerwell

Enjoy coding and debugging in an editor designed for fast feedback and quick iterations. It's like a shell for your application – but with multi-line editing, code completion, and more.

Visit Tinkerwell
Lucky Media logo

Lucky Media

Get Lucky Now - the ideal choice for Laravel Development, with over a decade of experience!

Lucky Media
Kirschbaum logo

Kirschbaum

Providing innovation and stability to ensure your web application succeeds.

Kirschbaum
Shift logo

Shift

Running an old Laravel version? Instant, automated Laravel upgrades and code modernization to keep your applications fresh.

Shift
SaaSykit: Laravel SaaS Starter Kit logo

SaaSykit: Laravel SaaS Starter Kit

SaaSykit is a Multi-tenant Laravel SaaS Starter Kit that comes with all features required to run a modern SaaS. Payments, Beautiful Checkout, Admin Panel, User dashboard, Auth, Ready Components, Stats, Blog, Docs and more.

SaaSykit: Laravel SaaS Starter Kit
No Compromises logo

No Compromises

Joel and Aaron, the two seasoned devs from the No Compromises podcast, are now available to hire for your Laravel project. ⬧ Flat rate of $9500/mo. ⬧ No lengthy sales process. ⬧ No contracts. ⬧ 100% money back guarantee.

No Compromises
Acquaint Softtech logo

Acquaint Softtech

Acquaint Softtech offers AI-ready Laravel developers who onboard in 48 hours at $3000/Month with no lengthy sales process and a 100 percent money-back guarantee.

Acquaint Softtech
PhpStorm logo

PhpStorm

The go-to PHP IDE with extensive out-of-the-box support for Laravel and its ecosystem.

PhpStorm
Harpoon: Next generation time tracking and invoicing logo

Harpoon: Next generation time tracking and invoicing

The next generation time-tracking and billing software that helps your agency plan and forecast a profitable future.

Harpoon: Next generation time tracking and invoicing
Tinkerwell logo

Tinkerwell

The must-have code runner for Laravel developers. Tinker with AI, autocompletion and instant feedback on local and production environments.

Tinkerwell
Laravel Cloud logo

Laravel Cloud

Easily create and manage your servers and deploy your Laravel applications in seconds.

Laravel Cloud

The latest

View all →
Find the Security Vulnerabilities in Your Laravel App with Sensagraph image

Find the Security Vulnerabilities in Your Laravel App with Sensagraph

Read article
Uvora: A macOS Menu Bar App for Finding Laravel Projects image

Uvora: A macOS Menu Bar App for Finding Laravel Projects

Read article
Passwordless Sign-In with Fortify Two-Factor Support in Laravel image

Passwordless Sign-In with Fortify Two-Factor Support in Laravel

Read article
Intercept: Middleware Guardrails for Laravel AI Agents image

Intercept: Middleware Guardrails for Laravel AI Agents

Read article
AI Review for Laravel Upgrades image

AI Review for Laravel Upgrades

Read article
HTTP Query Method Support in Laravel 13.19 image

HTTP Query Method Support in Laravel 13.19

Read article