If you hang out a lot on reddit, this particular site is written in python, so there might be a bias. Python is also often chosen for entry courses in CS, while

If you hang out a lot on reddit, this particular site is written in python, so there might be a bias. Python is also often chosen for entry courses in CS, while PHP is probably more picked up by people who need to know it for work, so it is not necessarly well understood by many of its newly professional users. My guess is that python is a more well rounded language, with a nicer syntax, which enforces indentation rules (that's a plus for teachers). PHP only shows its merits after a while, and through good practices. However, looking at the charts over at langpop.com, I don't see how people would choose PHP over perl for its easiness, given the wide difference of popularity. They just don't sit in the same ballpark (except for maybe a few specific markets).