Overview
SpinApp is an AI-enabled local development environment for Laravel that provisions a Docker-based stack (app, database, Redis/queue, web server, etc.) and exposes an MCP server per project so AI assistants can run development commands inside the right containers.
Feature comparison
| Capability | SpinApp | Laravel Herd | Laravel Sail | DDEV | Laragon |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Category fit: Laravel local dev environment | Yes | Yes | Yes | Partial | Partial |
| Containerized stack provisioning (app+services) | Included | Not included | Included (via docker-compose.yml) |
Included | Not included |
| “Zero Compose” / no hand-written docker-compose.yml | Yes | No | Does not support (requires Sail template; compose lives in the project) | No | No |
| AI assistant / agent integration via MCP | Included | No | Not included | Not included | Not included |
| Built-in tool execution model (exec, SQL, logs, start/stop/status) | Included | N/A | Partial (CLI wrapper; container commands) | Partial (CLI tooling; not AI-specific) | Partial (1-click workflows; not AI-specific) |
| Queue/Horizon-style visibility & controls | Included | N/A | Not included | Partial | Not included |
| Multi-database support for Laravel dev | Supports | Partial | Supports (depends on Sail options) | Supports | Partial |
| Redis / queue worker support | Supports | N/A | Supports (depends on Sail options) | Partial | Supports (commonly included services) |
| Sharing to others (tunnel/remote exposure) | Supports (Cloudflare tunnel) | N/A | N/A | Supports (e.g., ddev share) |
Partial |
| Local domain / hosts management | Supports (my-app.local) |
Partial | N/A | Partial | Supports (vhosts/hosts-like behavior) |
| OS support breadth | Yes (macOS 12+; Windows not supported per customer limit) | Supports (macOS; and mentions Windows availability via downloads/licenses) | Supports (Docker-dependent) | Supports (macOS, Windows, Linux) | Supports (Windows-focused; cross-platform unclear) |
| Licensing / pricing model | Product (CTA + versioning; macOS download shown; Windows “coming soon”) | Free + paid (Herd Pro) | Included (part of Laravel ecosystem/templates) | Free/open source + support sponsorship | Free for non-commercial + paid (per pricing page) |
| Compliance / governance features (e.g., audit logs) | Included (audit log of tool calls) | N/A | Not specified | Not specified | Not specified |
When to use each
SpinApp: Use when you want Laravel local development that is “container-native” and you use AI assistants—SpinApp’s per-project MCP server and its container-context tooling are designed to let assistants run commands (artisan/composer/npm, SQL, logs, environment controls) in the correct containers.
Laravel Herd: Use when you want a fast, native Laravel/PHP desktop experience on macOS (with additional licensing options for teams) and you primarily want developer ergonomics (fast setup, integrated workflows) rather than AI/MCP orchestration.
Laravel Sail: Use when your team is comfortable with Docker Compose and wants Laravel’s official Docker development environment included as part of the project workflow—Sail is centered on docker-compose.yml plus a sail CLI wrapper.
DDEV: Use when you want an open-source tool for launching local web development environments in minutes and you value consistent multi-stack behavior across macOS/Windows/Linux, plus DDEV’s own command/tooling for managing project containers.
Laragon: Use when you want a Windows-friendly “ready-to-go” local web environment that emphasizes quick setup via 1-click workflows, automatic SSL/local domain conveniences, and multi-version services, without requiring you to manage container definitions manually.
Related AI Resources
- (Optional) Create internal guidance for your team: “How to connect Cursor/Claude via MCP and use SpinApp tool calls (exec/SQL/logs) safely.”
- (Optional) Write a checklist: “Pre-merge validation with migrations, queue worker sanity checks, and SQL query profiling.”
- (Optional) Add policy: “Only run allowlisted artisan/composer/npm commands through the agent tooling; log every tool call.”