Is it more effective to use a database instead of a .txt file for storing and displaying links on websites in PHP?

Using a database to store and display links on websites in PHP is generally more effective than using a .txt file. Databases provide better organization, search functionality, and scalability compared to flat files. By utilizing a database, you can easily manage and manipulate large amounts of data efficiently.

// Connect to the database
$servername = "localhost";
$username = "username";
$password = "password";
$dbname = "links_db";

$conn = new mysqli($servername, $username, $password, $dbname);

// Retrieve links from the database
$sql = "SELECT * FROM links";
$result = $conn->query($sql);

if ($result->num_rows > 0) {
    while($row = $result->fetch_assoc()) {
        echo "<a href='" . $row["url"] . "'>" . $row["title"] . "</a><br>";
    }
} else {
    echo "0 results";
}

$conn->close();