What is the difference between events and observers in Laravel?
Jul 29, 2025 am 03:22 AM
Events are used for general application-wide actions, while observers are specifically for Eloquent model lifecycle events; 1. Events are manually dispatched and can be listened to by multiple listeners for decoupled business logic, 2. Observers automatically respond to model events like created or deleted, centralizing model-related logic, 3. Observers are registered via Model::observe() in EventServiceProvider's boot() method, whereas events are mapped to listeners in the $listen array, 4. Under the hood, observers use Laravel’s event system to listen to Eloquent events, making them a specialized form of listeners for models, and both should be used according to their ideal context to maintain clean and organized code.
In Laravel, events and observers are both part of the application’s event system and are used to respond to actions that happen in your application—but they serve different purposes and are used in different contexts. Here's a clear breakdown of the differences:
? What Are Events?
Events in Laravel are something that happened in your application—like "user registered", "order shipped", or "payment processed". They are dispatched (fired) when certain actions occur, and other parts of your app can listen or react to them.
- Think of events as broadcasts: "Hey, this just happened!"
- You dispatch an event.
- One or more listeners can respond to it.
Example:
// Dispatching an event event(new UserRegistered($user)); // Or using the Event facade Event::dispatch(new UserRegistered($user));
You can generate events via:
php artisan make:event UserRegistered
? What Are Listeners?
Listeners are the classes that react to events. One event can have multiple listeners.
Example:
class SendWelcomeEmail
{
public function handle(UserRegistered $event)
{
Mail::to($event->user)->send(new WelcomeMail());
}
}You register listeners in EventServiceProvider:
protected $listen = [
UserRegistered::class => [
SendWelcomeEmail::class,
UpdateUserAnalytics::class,
],
];? What Are Observers?
Observers are a special type of listener that watch for Eloquent model events—like when a model is created, updated, deleted, etc.
Instead of registering individual listeners for each Eloquent event (created, updated, deleted…), you group them into a single observer class.
- Observers are tied to Eloquent models.
- They help clean up model hooks (e.g., boot methods) by moving logic out of models.
Example:
class UserObserver
{
public function created(User $user)
{
// Send a notification, log activity, etc.
}
public function deleted(User $user)
{
// Clean up related data
}
}Register the observer in EventServiceProvider@boot():
User::observe(UserObserver::class);
You can generate an observer with:
php artisan make:observer UserObserver --model=User
? Key Differences
| Feature | Events | Observers |
|---|---|---|
| Purpose | General app-wide actions | Specifically for Eloquent models |
| Triggered by | Manual dispatch (event()) |
Automatic model lifecycle events |
| Scope | Any part of the app | Tied to a specific Eloquent model |
| Events handled | Custom-defined events |
created, updated, deleted, etc. |
| Best for | Business logic across systems | Model cleanup, logging, syncing |
| Registration |
$listen array in EventServiceProvider
|
Model::observe() in boot() method |
?? When to Use Which?
-
Use Events Listeners when:
- You want to decouple actions from triggers (e.g., after registration, do X, Y, Z).
- The action isn't strictly tied to a model change.
- You need flexibility and multiple reactions to one action.
-
Use Observers when:
- You're reacting to model lifecycle changes (CRUD operations).
- You want to keep model event logic organized (instead of cluttering boot methods).
- You have multiple model events to handle (e.g., created, updated, deleted).
? Pro Tip: Observers Use Events Under the Hood
Observers are actually a convenience layer on top of Laravel’s event system. When a model is saved, Laravel fires an Eloquent event (like created), and the observer listens for it.
So under the hood, observers are just specialized listeners for Eloquent events.
Basically, events are the broader system, and observers are a focused tool for working with models. Use both where they fit best.
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