How to Create a Contact Form with PHP
How to Create a Contact Form with PHP using Simple HTML Layout Basics
Creating a contact form using PHP and HTML is one of the most fundamental tasks you'll encounter while building a website. These forms are vital as they facilitate communication between your website's visitors and you. This article breaks down the process and provides a simple guide on how to go about it. Remember, you shouldn't be intimidated, even if you're a beginner. As long as you have a basic understanding of PHP and familiarise yourself with small HTML basic balise for layout, this will be an absolute breeze.
Let's dive right in!
Basic HTML Layout
To make a user-friendly form, we require some HTML. HTML is structured by using different 'balises' or tags. This structure is what will provide the aesthetic appeal of your form. Here's a simple HTML template for a contact form:
```
```
This form contains fields for name, email, and a message. The 'required' attribute is added to ensure these fields are filled out before submission. The 'action' attribute in the form tag is empty for now — that's where the PHP script will come into play.
PHP Code for the Form
We'll now create a basic PHP script that will process the form information when it is submitted. This script will be placed in the 'action' attribute in the form tag.
Here's a basic PHP code snippet:
```
if (isset($_POST['submit'])) {
$name = $_POST['name'];
$email = $_POST['email'];
$message = $_POST['message'];
// Send email
$to = 'yourmail@example.com';
$subject = 'Contact Form Submission';
$body = "From: $name\n E-mail: $email\n Message:\n $message";
$headers = "From: $email";
mail($to, $subject, $body, $headers);
echo 'Thanks for contacting us. We will respond as soon as possible.';
}
?>
```
This script checks if the form's submit button is clicked using the 'isset' function. It then collects the data entered into the form using the '$_POST' superglobal. The ‘mail’ function is used to send the email to the specified address with the set subject, body, and headers.
Putting It All Together
To put it all together, you simply need to insert the given PHP code block on top of your HTML code. Here's what it would look like:
```php
. . .
// PHP script goes here
. . .
?>
```
In conclusion, creating a contact form with PHP and HTML can seem like a daunting task. However, with basic understanding and practice, it becomes manageable and less challenging. This guide provides you with the fundamental building blocks you need, and with time, you can build up more complex forms to suit your specific needs.