JetBrains has released PhpStorm 2026.2, and it's a meaningful update for Laravel and PHP developers alike. The headline addition is a dedicated Laravel tool window built right into the IDE, but the release also covers new PHP language support, quality-tool improvements, and a growing set of AI agent capabilities.
The Laravel Tool Window
The new Laravel tool window is split into three tabs:
- Dashboard — quick access to Artisan commands and general project information
- Errors — browse local or Sentry-hosted log files, with an option to explore or fix errors using AI rather than copy-pasting stack traces
- Laravel Cloud — manage deployments and environment variables without leaving the editor
Package support has expanded too. PhpStorm now recognises laravel/passport and stancl/tenancy out of the box. The ide.json config file picks up new options including database schema file paths, Eloquent model-to-table mapping, custom Livewire component locations, and new completion types for viteAsset, passportScopeId, and staticStrings.
New PHP Support
#[FileReference] Attribute
A new built-in attribute lets you annotate function, method, or constructor parameters to tell the IDE that the argument is a file or directory path:
function loadConfig(
#[FileReference(basePath: __DIR__)] string $path
): array {
// ...
}
Once annotated, any path passed to that parameter gains IDE navigation and refactoring support. It works with relative paths via basePath, and with paths built dynamically from variables or constants. Annotations are project-wide and persist across IDE restarts.
Other PHP Additions
- PHP 8.5 pipe operator support
- PHPStan, Laravel Pint, and other quality tools can now run on the fly, on idle, or on save — configured under Settings | PHP | Quality Tools
- The built-in formatter can apply the PER Coding Style 3.0 spec
- Arrow autocompletion after object variables, enabled by default
- Code completion for nested arrays without explicit keys in
#[ArrayShape]annotations
AI and Agents
PhpStorm 2026.2 ships an agent skills manager — a browsable directory of skills you can add from inside the IDE. You can pull skills from external registries such as GitHub repos, or import configurations you already have set up for Claude Code or Codex.
GitHub Copilot is now natively integrated as an agent in the AI chat picker, built through a partnership with Microsoft. It authenticates via GitHub OAuth if you have an active Copilot subscription. For teams that prefer a different provider, AI code completion can now connect to any OpenAI-compatible model.
Everything Else
- Git worktree management is now handled from within the IDE, including on WSL
- A new "Resolve All Simple Conflicts" action clears standard merge conflicts across an entire changeset at once
- Typing
@in a code review comment surfaces a list of users from the current GitHub or GitLab repo - The terminal accepts dragged files and folders to insert their paths
- The Settings dialog is no longer modal, so you can keep it open while you work
- Custom database colors are now theme-aware and can be applied to folders
- Project indexing is reported to run up to 10% faster
Key Takeaways
- The Laravel tool window centralises Artisan, error logs, and Laravel Cloud deployments in one place
#[FileReference]brings path-aware navigation and refactoring to any annotated parameter- PHP 8.5 pipe operator is now supported
- Quality tools (PHPStan, Pint) can run automatically on idle or on save
- GitHub Copilot is a first-class agent, and OpenAI-compatible models are supported for code completion
- The non-modal Settings dialog is a small but genuinely useful quality-of-life improvement
