Is Next.js similar to Laravel?

No, not really. They get lumped together in "which framework should I learn" lists, but they solve different layers of a web app. Next.js is a React framework built for rendering and routing on the front end, while Laravel has shipped as a complete PHP framework, with its own ORM and queue system, since Taylor Otwell first released it in 2011.

Why do people even compare them?

Both get pitched as "everything you need to build an app" frameworks, which makes them sound interchangeable even though they operate at different layers. Next.js shows up in the same breath as Laravel because both have large plugin ecosystems, active maintainers, and tutorials that promise a production-ready app in a weekend. Job listings don't help either: a posting asking for "Next.js or Laravel experience" reads like the two are alternatives, when in practice a team choosing between them is usually choosing a language and a rendering model, not a single missing piece of functionality.

What does each one actually include?

Next.js is a meta-framework on top of React, maintained by Vercel. Out of the box it handles routing, server-side rendering, static generation, and image and font optimization. What's changed is how much backend logic now lives inside it: Route Handlers give you API endpoints, and Server Actions, introduced in Next.js 13, let a component call server-side code directly without a separate API layer. That's real backend capability, just not a database layer, a queue system, or built-in auth.

Laravel is a full PHP framework with those pieces already built. Eloquent handles the ORM, Blade handles templates, and the queue system runs background jobs without extra tooling. It also ships routing, migrations, and authentication scaffolding, so a single Laravel install can serve an entire application, front end included, without touching another framework.

When would you actually use them together?

The common real-world pairing is a Next.js front end talking to a Laravel API: Laravel handles the database, business logic, and auth, while Next.js renders the UI and manages client-side routing. Teams do this when they already have a Laravel backend and want a more modern React-based interface without rewriting the API layer. If you're starting from scratch and don't need PHP, Next.js alone can cover the whole app using Route Handlers or Server Actions for the backend bits. If you're starting from scratch and don't need React, Laravel alone, with Blade or Livewire for the UI, covers the same ground without adding a second framework and a second deploy target.