How can I remove a package from Laravel using PHP Composer?

Ankit Verma - Feb 18 - - Dev Community

When working with Laravel, you may need to remove a package that is no longer required. PHP Composer makes it easy to uninstall packages cleanly from your project. In this blog, we’ll go over the simple steps to remove a package from Laravel using Composer.

Steps to Remove a Package

1. Find the Installed Package

Before removing a package, you might want to check the installed packages in your Laravel project. You can do this by running:

composer show
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This command lists all installed packages, helping you confirm the exact name of the package you want to remove.

2. Remove the Package Using Composer

To uninstall a package, use the following command:

composer remove vendor/package-name
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For example, if you want to remove laravel/telescope, you would run:

composer remove laravel/telescope
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3. Clear Configuration and Cache (Optional)

After removing a package, it’s a good practice to clear Laravel’s cache and configurations to avoid issues:

php artisan cache:clear
php artisan config:clear
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4. Remove Unused Dependencies (Optional)

To clean up any unnecessary dependencies that may no longer be needed, run:

composer autoremove
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5. Verify Removal

Check your composer.json file to ensure the package has been removed. Additionally, run:

composer dump-autoload
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This regenerates the Composer autoload files, ensuring Laravel runs smoothly.

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