What are the advantages and disadvantages of using 'echo' versus other methods for outputting HTML in PHP scripts?

When outputting HTML in PHP scripts, using 'echo' is a common method. However, there are other methods such as using heredoc syntax or storing HTML in variables. The advantage of using 'echo' is its simplicity and readability, while the disadvantage is that it can be cumbersome for large blocks of HTML. Using heredoc syntax or storing HTML in variables can make the code cleaner and easier to maintain. 

// Using 'echo' to output HTML
echo "<div><p>Hello, world!</p></div>";

// Using heredoc syntax
$html = <<<HTML
<div>
    <p>Hello, world!</p>
</div>
HTML;
echo $html;

// Storing HTML in variables
$html = "<div><p>Hello, world!</p></div>";
echo $html;

Keywords

echo HTML output PHP scripts advantages disadvantages

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