Feature comparison as of DevTent 1.3.x. DevTent started Windows-first and now ships desktop + CLI on Windows, macOS, and Linux (portable folder layout; Unix uses PHP-FPM, Windows uses php-cgi).
| Feature | Laravel Herd | Lerd | Yerd | DevTent |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free | ✓ (Pro is paid) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Open source | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ (DTCL v1.0) |
| Linux support | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| macOS support | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Windows support | ✓ | ✗ | ✗* | ✓ |
Automatic *.test domains |
✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ (*.localhost default — no admin; .test optional) |
| HTTPS with a trusted local CA | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ (mkcert, auto-trust on SSL enable) |
| Multiple PHP versions | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| PHP version per site | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| First-class CLI | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Menu-bar / tray GUI | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Database & cache services | ✓ (Pro) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ (MySQL, MariaDB, PostgreSQL, Redis) |
| Local mail capture | ✓ (Pro) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ (Mailpit) |
| Laravel dump / query inspector | ✓ (Pro) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ (dumps + jobs/views/requests/logs/cache/HTTP) |
| Share a site publicly (tunnel) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ (quick + named cloudflared tunnels) |
| Local DNS for custom TLDs | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ (built-in DNS + hosts; mkcert CA) |
| Runs rootless day-to-day | ✓ | ✓† | ✓ | ✓‡ |
| No Docker / Podman / containers | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Lightweight (no VM, no container images) | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ |
Built-in health checks (doctor) |
✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Park / link external projects | ◐ | ◐ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Managed dev tooling | ◐ | ◐ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Portable stack folder | ◐ | ◐ | ◐ | ✓ |
| Import from existing local stack | ✗ | ◐ | ◐ | ✓ |
| Automatic MySQL backups | ✗ | ◐ | ◐ | ✓ |
Legend: ✓ supported · ✗ not supported · ◐ partial · † rootless containers · ‡ one-time admin for .test hosts file · * Yerd targets macOS/Linux first
- Open source on Windows, macOS, and Linux — no Pro paywall
- Portable stack folder —
c:\devtenton Windows,~/devtenton Unix - Local DNS for custom TLDs — built-in DNS on port 15353 for
*.test(etc.); macOS/etc/resolverhelper; mkcert CA status in Doctor - Command palette —
Ctrl/Cmd+Kto jump views and run common actions - Per-site PHP via dedicated FastCGI ports (9082, 9083, 9084…) — php-cgi on Windows, php-fpm on Unix
- Laragon / environment import (Windows)
| Feature | How |
|---|---|
| PHP per site | Projects → Details drawer → PHP dropdown (or devtent sites php <site> <version>) |
| PHP.ini / extensions | Developer → PHP — pick a version, toggle extensions, edit raw php.ini |
| Database admin | Developer → Database — list/create DBs; backup MySQL, MariaDB, or PostgreSQL |
| Dumps | Dumps tab — search + site filter; dump()/dd() auto-captured; install Laravel telemetry from the toolbar or site drawer for queries/jobs/views/requests/logs/cache/HTTP |
| Share | Share page — quick trycloudflare.com tunnels, or named Cloudflare tunnels with a stable hostname |
| Local DNS / CA | Doctor — trust mkcert CA; start built-in DNS (port 15353) for custom TLDs; optional OS resolver |
| Command palette | Ctrl/Cmd+K (topbar button or /) — jump to views, open sites, run common actions |
| MariaDB | Quick Add → MariaDB 11.4, or profile database → MariaDB |
| Tooling | Tooling tab — Composer, Node, Bun, Laravel installer |
DevTent runs on Windows 10/11, macOS (Apple Silicon), and Linux (x64). Day-to-day use stays rootless via *.localhost; optional *.test hosts updates use an elevated helper (UAC / osascript / pkexec). Yerd remains a strong macOS/Linux-native alternative; Herd covers macOS + Windows with a Pro tier.